Do you have the right attitude to food? ‘You are what you eat’ but our eating habits are just as important as the food choices we make in achieving and maintaining health. An old saying ‘Worry and hurry are enemies of digestive health’ are truer today than ever before. In order to truly benefit from the dietary changes we make, it is important to adopt healthy eating habits.
Top tips for healthy eating habits:
Get Cooking…
Prepare as many meals yourself as possible. Chopping, preparing and simmering food creates incredible aromas. It doesn’t only make your kitchen smell lovely; it also kicks off the secretion of digestive enzymes which are essential for complete digestion of macronutrients. Touching, tasting and smelling food before you eat it will prepare the body for digestion, prevent overeating and improve your psychological relationship with food.
Be clever about preparation
Fruit Heart Shop for fresh food regularly and keep your pantry stocked with good staples to make it easier to eat a healthy diet. Whenever you cook or prepare food, make double and freeze in individual containers for future meals. When preparing dinner make lunch at the same time to save time. The best preparation is knowledge about healthy food options – a well informed choice will be the healthiest choice.
Eat regularly
Eat at least every 4-5 hours. Our bodies need regular fuel to maintain blood sugar levels & metabolism but enough time to complete digestion before more food is eaten. Avoid skipping meals by having balanced snacks on hand for busy times. Hunger is a sign of low blood sugar and will lead to poor food choices & overeating if ignored.
Avoid overeating
Overeating occurs when we skip meals, eat too quickly or don’t satisfy our taste buds. Overeating stresses the liver and the digestive tract. Our digestive fire is at its peak around noon, a time that is most efficient at converting food into energy rather than storing it as fat.
Be ready to eat
Ask yourself how hungry you are before and after each meal. Take 5 minutes to relax before a meal if you feel stressed. Do not eat your meal in front of the computer or while working. Stop eating when you are almost full, to gauge whether you need any more. It takes approximately 20 minutes for our brains to receive the signal of satisfaction, produced by gut hormones, during a meal.
Drink plenty of water
Drink at least 2 litres (8 glasses) of water between meals each day. This can include herbal teas as well as diluted fruit juices. Try and avoid drinking excessively during a meal as this can reduce enzyme activity. A good alternative to water can be Green Tea or Cherry Active which is high in its ORAC values.
Chew
Digestion begins in the mouth with chewing and the secretion of enzymes. Eating quickly increases the amount of air and the size of food swallowed. This will lead to inadequate digestion and an increase in gas production
Go 50% raw
Have half of your vegetables and fruit intake raw (e.g. salads) unless otherwise stated by your healthcare practitioner. Fruit and vegetables contain enzymes which aid digestion, so aim to eat some with every meal.
Exercise
Aim for at least three or four times a week. Exercise works the diaphragm, which massages the intestines and thereby improves digestion. It also regulates appetite, blood sugar control and metabolism.
Treat yourself occasionally
Be healthy 90% of the time and treat yourself 10% of the time and eat whatever you desire.
Eat positively
Good habits can easily be established with a little effort and a positive frame of mind. A balanced healthy diet doesn’t have to be boring, bland, time consuming or expensive. Take back the control of your diet and health by making your own choices and stop allowing industry to dictate what you eat. And remember, food should be prepared, and eaten, with joy!
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About this Author
Chris Martin Sewell, Health Expert at Totally Nourish. Established since 2008, Totally Nourish is a leading UK online health store specialising in health supplements and vitamins, health foods, dietary supplements for the Low GL diet, skin care, beauty care and make up, patrick holford supplements and more. Fast dispatch and delivery available. Also available onsite is FREE confidential expert nutrition advice, health news and articles and also a low GL diet recipes section.
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