7 Tips to create a healthy balanced diet

In today’s fast-paced world it can be difficult to maintain a healthy, nutritious, and balanced diet. Increased production and availability of processed foods, rapid urbanisation, and changes in lifestyle have made it easier to get access to unhealthy food options and more difficult to follow a healthy eating plan. It may seem like the odds are stacked against you to follow a healthy diet, but by making conscious changes to your eating and lifestyle habits you can significantly increase your health, energy levels, and overall wellbeing. Keep in mind that eating healthy shouldn’t only be tied to weight loss. While it’s important to watch your weight, a healthy diet shouldn’t only be followed when you need to drop a few kilos.

A common misconception is that eating healthy means switching to vegetables and cutting carbohydrates altogether, however, improving your diet means making balanced choices. Yes, you will need to cut out fatty and sugary food, but only consuming vegetables will result in vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The key to a better diet is balance between the different food groups and having variety on your plate. Eating foods that are high in certain ingredients such as fat, sugar, or starch can lead to unhealthy weight gain. The number of calories that you consume should directly correlate with energy spent. If you’re a very active person you’ll need more calories to maintain your health, whereas if you’re moderately or not active at all you’ll need fewer.

A balanced diet will help prevent noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, etc. You can lower your risk for heart disease and stroke with a healthier diet by:

• Adjusting your cholesterol levels
• Bringing down your blood pressure
• Managing your body weight
• Controlling your blood sugar

Eating healthy doesn’t mean restricting yourself, but rather making better choices for a well-rounded diet. This will include upping your intake of fresh fruit and vegetables and cutting out processed foods with high sodium levels.

When shopping you should keep an eye on the labels for nutritional value to help you avoid high sugar and sodium products. Bring more diversity into your diet by adding different fruits and vegetables, seeds, nuts, and grains to keep you satiated.

The right balanced diet will differ from one person to the next, but there are general steps you can take to work towards a healthier meal plan for you.

Create a healthy, nutritious diet for your wellbeing:

1 Increase your fibre intake

Foods higher in fibre help to keep you fuller for longer, which helps control your blood sugar levels and lowers your cholesterol. Fibre-rich foods include fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. You can increase your fibre intake by snacking on raw vegetables and fruit as well as eating whole-grain cereals, pastas, and bread. You can also get your fibre from breakfast foods such as oatmeal or food made with bulgur. Snacking on seeds and nuts or adding them to your meals such as salads and cereals will also contribute to your fibre intake.

2 Limit your intake of saturated and trans fats, sodium, and added sugars

Avoid foods that are high in unhealthy fat such as fatty meat, processed meat, cream, butter, cheese, and many fast-food and deep-fried dishes. These foods are also usually high in sodium which is bad for your cholesterol and blood pressure. Highly processed foods also contain unhealthy amounts of sugar and salt. The sugar content in fizzy drinks and sweets are very high and can cause spikes in blood sugar, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. Rather opt for natural sugars found in fruit and milk.

3 Manage your portion size

Overeating can lead to many health risks and happens often if you’re eating the wrong foods. Consuming empty carbs such as white bread, white flour, and white rice won’t leave you full for long, which can result in overeating and weight gain. Focus on eating three solid meals a day that consist of the major food groups with vegetables taking up half of your plate and a quarter whole grain foods and protein-rich foods. For snacking stick to fruit and nuts and avoid high-fat and sugary snacks.

4 Manage your carb intake

Carbohydrates are an important part of a healthy diet, but too much of it can cause health issues. Choose healthy carbs that are nutrient-dense such as potatoes, oats, quinoa, pumpkin, and buckwheat. Healthy carbs are also known as complex carbs which include vegetables, fruits, pulses, legumes, unsweetened dairy products, and whole-grains. Refined carbohydrates or simple carbs can be found in sugary drinks, sweetened dairy products, and white refined grains such as rice, pasta, and bread. When adjusting your diet rather opt for whole-grain foods and vegetables.

5 Up your fruit and vegetable intake

The key to a healthy, balanced diet is upping your consumption of fruit and vegetables. It is generally advised that you consume at least five servings of fruit and vegetables daily. More diversity in colour will also add to your diet rather than just eating green vegetables. They are loaded with vitamins, fibre, antioxidants, and minerals and will bring a healthy aspect to your diet that will keep you fuller for longer.

6 Regulate your protein

Proteins are a critical component of a well-balanced diet as it plays an important role in metabolism, immunity, fluid balance, and energy. It helps your body repair damaged cells and create new ones. Protein is made up of amino acids, which are divided into two groups: essential and non-essential. Essential amino acids are ones that the body can’t produce naturally and should be derived from the food you consume. Foods high in protein include eggs, meat, fish, chicken, nuts, and seeds. It’s important to note that protein isn’t only found in meat products, and you shouldn’t rely on only meat for it. Although meat forms part of a healthy diet, you should decrease your intake to about three times a week. The rest of the time you can get protein from beans and lentils.

7 Stay hydrated

Hydration is an important part of a healthy diet as it helps maintain essential bodily functions such as carrying oxygen and nutrients to cells and aiding the kidneys in getting rid of waste products. You can also get your hydration from coffee, tea, milk, and fruit juice, however, water is a healthier alternative as it doesn’t contain high levels of sugar. If you don’t like the taste of plain water, you can flavour it with chopped fruit such as berries or vegetables such as cucumber. Keeping hydrated prevents constipation, urinary tract infections, and kidney stones.

Bottom line

A well-balanced diet can help you feel energetic and refreshed because you are consuming all the nutrients your body needs. You won’t necessarily have to do a complete overhaul of your diet but can achieve great results by making small changes such as swopping full fat milk for low fat milk. It’ important to consider what works best for you based on your needs, health, level of activity, and taste preferences.

The lenmed Group is a world-class chain of Private Hospitals that brings quality healthcare to communities across Southern Africa.

For more information please contact: 

Phindile Mthembu, Dieticians

Hospital: La Verna Private Hospital

Tel: 036 307 0253

Cell: 078 106 7223

Email: [email protected]