Every day we are bombarded with conflicting messages about what we should be eating to lose weight and maintain optimal health. But while nutritionists and doctors continue to debate the merits of various food fads, and those in a Nutritional Science Masters degree program continue to learn more about the human body, there are many basic nutritional concepts that everyone agrees on. Things like eating more whole foods, fruits and vegetables and less processed convenience food.
Unless you work for Frito Lay, things like eating more whole foods, fruits and vegetables and less processed convenience food is generally regarded as a good lifestyle choice. But busy lifestyles often result in eating a McChicken in a hurry so as not to throw of a tight schedule. With less time to cook, many families today are dependent upon foods they can prepare quickly or don’t have to prepare at all.
A Fact Seldom Remembered: today’s grocery stores are amply stocked with quick, nutritious options - if you just know where to look.
It’s easy to improve your diet by eating more fruits because fresh fruit tops the list of healthy on-the-go snacks, and you don’t even need to take the few seconds to microwave it. If you always have your family’s favorite fresh fruit in the house, it will get eaten! If you’re looking to avoid masticating, choose whole fresh fruit and fruit drinks that are labeled 100% juice, especially the sugar free kind. Along those lines, watch out for added sugar in fruit cups or canned fruits. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the diets of children in the US are 13.5% sugar, which means 13.5% of an average child’s diet is doing nothing for them.
Eating more vegetables can be a bit trickier as they are often tied to a deep bias that seems to be present in young kids and persists into adulthood. I’m sure you have heard it, the guy in the restaurant declaring that he “doesn’t eat rabbit food.” However, as heart disease rises and steadily and increasingly credited to meat consumption, it would probably do his body good to throw on a cotton ball tail and order a salad.
Don’t like them raw? Steam-in-a-bag vegetables are available in the freezer section and take as little as five minutes to cook. Add some broccoli, spinach or mixed veggies on top of pasta, along with olive oil and garlic, and you have a nearly instant meal. Also in the frozen foods aisle, you’ll find healthy meals in single and family size packages, as well as frozen berries to add to smoothies.
If you’re a person who always grabs food on the way out the door, prepare snacks in advance. That way you’re less likely to end up with a bag of convenience store chips. Buy large containers of healthy snacks and portion them in Ziploc bags; you’ll save money while controlling your portion sizes. A few suggestions: lentil chips, wheat pretzels, baked potato chips, carrot sticks, low-fat peanut butter and crackers and reduced-fat cheese sticks.
Plan in advance for the inevitable evening when you are pressed for time by purchasing fast-cooking, healthy entrees and side dishes every time you shop. Meatless burgers, vegetables and canned beans with lean ground beef for chili... the options are endless!
If you’re stumped, check out any of the numerous websites devoted to healthy eating on the go. The Hungry Girl’s site and books have great information - quick recipes, a healthy fast food guide and low-fat trades for high-fat favorites. And the Hungry Girl isn’t alone, the Internet is fraught with Foodie blogs who love nothing more than to explain how intricately and healthfully they have been eating. You can check out more quick and healthy meal suggestions from noted author and nutritionist Elizabeth Ward Here.
With a little research and some advance planning, you’ll find that it isn’t as difficult as you thought to eat a healthy diet on the go.
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