Good Idea, Bad Idea: Making wise food choices.
It's safe to assume that almost everyone knows how to make wiser food choices, but not many of us actually make them. Ask any child what's healthier, a vegetable or chocolate, and they'll most likely tell you the vegetable. Ask what they'd rather have - and they will probably choose chocolate. In other words, the challenge is, in many cases, not in knowing exactly WHAT to do, but actually DOING it.So why do we do things we know are "bad" for us? That's a whole other issue. What I'll attempt to describe here are simple choices that you can make to improve your healthy
Bad Idea |
Good Idea |
| Eating red meat every day, as a part of every meal. It has a log of saturated fat. And besides, it becomes a bit less exciting if overeaten. | Eating red meat once every few days, perhaps a week. It's not only healthier - it's good for the environment & your pocket, and it makes eating meat a lot more enjoyable. |
| Consuming many high fat dairy products. Same reasons as above. A small change can make a big difference. | Low fat dairy products. And let's face it, it's not THAT huge a difference. |
| Starting a meal with the main course. They didn't invest entrée for nothing. | Starting a meal with a salad. A tasty salad is a great way to start a meal, and it prevents bingeing. |
| Drinking lots of sweet drinks. They're full of sugar. And other bad stuff. And they give stomach aches. | Drinking lots of water or natural juice. Natural juice is just as tasty and has much more vitamins. Go for it. |
| Eating until you feel full. It's well known that we feel full only 10-30 minutes after our stomach is actually full. That's why so many times we eat too much. | Eating until you're 80% full. Yeah, it might be frustrating at first. You're hungry and you want to eat more. But 10 minutes later, you'll be happy you waited. |
| Heating food in plastic containers. Heated plastic releases dioxins. Not a good idea! | Heating food in glass containers. Glass containers are much safer for heating. |
| Eating just one type of food in a meal. One type of food might not have all the nutrients your body needs. | Mixing it up a little. The more types of food, the more diverse nutrients go in to your body. |
| Snacking on fries & candy. Nothing wrong with some candy now and then. But wouldn't you rather have some dessert instead? | Snacking on vegetables or whole bread. Snacks don't have to be boring, but they shouldn't block arteries either! |
| Cooking with margarine. Margarine has trans fat. Trans fat is bad. | Cooking with olive oil. Olive oil is your friend. It takes care of you. Use it! |
Got some other good ideas? Why not share with us?