In the age of obesity, this new visual aid is touted as being easier to understand and a better illustration of the dominant role that fruits and vegetables should play in our diet, in the hope that it will help the public with creating a more balanced diet, but in the age of mono-, refined, and trans-, is the average person so saturated with the modern complexities of food that they simply think healthy eating is too complex?Today, there are health nuts, health kicks, and then there is healthy, plain and simple. It is located at the intersection of what your parents fed you and the developments that have improved our health in the intervening time, so if your parents fed you ham and cheese sandwiches on white bread, and research has revealed that whole grains and leaner meats are healthier, then you choose to serve your child turkey and cheese on whole wheat (you could also add a spread of avocado for that extra flavor and nutrition, but I am getting ahead of myself). Thus, in that logical progression from 1981 to 2011, there were no prefixes, complexities, added time or expense, merely a healthier sandwich.
Now, let’s make 112 pages of the USDA’s 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans just as digestible:
1. Eat more fruits and vegetables: do not worry about what “type” of vegetable or color, be it red, green or yellow, just enjoy your fruits and vegetables. Are the vegetables and fruits with more color better for you? Perhaps. But if you do not like a lot of yellow vegetables and out of frustration eat a piece of bread instead, you would be better off eating more of the green vegetables that you love. As you learn to prepare vegetables, you will find more that you like, but, for now, be proud of yourself for choosing the healthier option.
2. Eat whole grains: throw out the white bread, pastas, and processed cereals; you won’t miss them. In your grocer, there are whole wheat pastas and breads that will suit your texture and taste preferences, so try different ones until you find one that you like. Also, most cereal makers now make many kids’ favorite cereals out of whole grains, so your little one can still get a familiar favorite with the added bonus of nutrition.
3. Milk: Low-fat milk and dairy products are an essential part of a healthy diet. Milk is a great substitute for a sugary juice and there is no snack better than yogurt.
4. How you cook it: instead of cooking with butter, try olive oil. It adds great flavor and is far healthier than its solid alternatives. Also, try using less of any oil, as food does not need to be drowned. For example, next time you buy salad dressing, pour off 85% of the oil on the top and save it for cooking (yes, this means that you are choosing an oil and vinegar based dressing and not the fat-laden ranch).
5. Vary your proteins: try replacing your fattier sources of protein with leaner, healthier options, such as fish, beans, pees, or eggs. Nothing is faster or easier than an omelet for dinner, even with adding fresh chopped peppers, onions, tomatoes, (shrimp!), and cheese.
6. Eat breakfast. People who eat breakfast have been shown to weigh less and it helps control hunger throughout the day.
The implications of the above is that you have to eat out less and choose more fresh and fewer processed foods, but those implications are far reaching, as, for example, it is estimated that every time you eat a meal at a restaurant, you may be consuming as much as a full stick of butter, which at approximately 810 calories, represents 41% of the calories that the average person should consume in an entire day.
But the larger message is that the answer to healthy eating does not reside on one plate, but on every plate that you choose every day, as it is the collection of food choices and consistent patterns that you develop that will determine the health of your diet.
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