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| Healthy Lifestyle: Variety And Moderation Are Key To A Healthy Lifestyle (Windsorstar) |
Bread is the staff of life, or it was, until marketers and researchers started sharing their opinions of which foods were best for our good health.
Today we are bombarded with research, studies and testimonials as to what is healthy and what will harm us. I like to simplify things and say all things in moderation are fine and good, and choosing more foods in their natural state, not processed, is healthier.
If we eat too much bread and not enough other food groups, our bodies will not gain the various vitamins, minerals and nutrients they would otherwise benefit from.
Also Read: Healthy Living: 20 Superstar Superfood For Super Healthy Heart
As a nutritionist I get many questions about what to eat. Here are a three of them, along with my opinion about what choices to make:
Question:
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As a nutritionist I get many questions about what to eat. Here are a three of them, along with my opinion about what choices to make:
Question:
Which is better, butter, margarine or oil? And which oils? Olive, canola, coconut or omegas?
Answer:
Answer:
I like butter on my toast and also add it lightly to air-popped popcorn. Nothing beats the taste. Butter comes from separating fat from the cream milked from cows. There’s not much processing or additives in this fat.
Margarine is made from oils extracted from seeds such as canola, rapeseed, corn and olives, and processed into a more solid state. It was invented by a French chemist in 1813 and became popular in North America during the Second World War, when butter had to be rationed.
Today, there are processing techniques that are non-hydrogenized to make these oils spread like butter. Their properties also offer an unsaturated feature that does not elevate one’s “bad” (LDL) cholesterol levels.
Fat is calorie-dense (36 calories per teaspoon). For people who have been told to avoid or reduce saturated fats and can’t give up butter, compromise by blending it with an oil, which is unsaturated. If you don’t know the difference between the two fats, saturated is hard at room temperature and unsaturated remains a liquid.
Research that compared people on a low-fat diet, a low-carbohydrate diet or Mediterranean diet showed all were successful if they could maintain their calorie control. The average weight loss after one year from any of these diets ranged from five to 10 pounds.
There are new fats on the market being touted as the healthiest choice. I would choose one that enhances the flavour without using a lot of it, like coconut oil in a rice dish. A little sesame seed oil in your hummus would require less tahini for flavour. Explore your options.
Question:
Margarine is made from oils extracted from seeds such as canola, rapeseed, corn and olives, and processed into a more solid state. It was invented by a French chemist in 1813 and became popular in North America during the Second World War, when butter had to be rationed.
Today, there are processing techniques that are non-hydrogenized to make these oils spread like butter. Their properties also offer an unsaturated feature that does not elevate one’s “bad” (LDL) cholesterol levels.
Fat is calorie-dense (36 calories per teaspoon). For people who have been told to avoid or reduce saturated fats and can’t give up butter, compromise by blending it with an oil, which is unsaturated. If you don’t know the difference between the two fats, saturated is hard at room temperature and unsaturated remains a liquid.
Research that compared people on a low-fat diet, a low-carbohydrate diet or Mediterranean diet showed all were successful if they could maintain their calorie control. The average weight loss after one year from any of these diets ranged from five to 10 pounds.
There are new fats on the market being touted as the healthiest choice. I would choose one that enhances the flavour without using a lot of it, like coconut oil in a rice dish. A little sesame seed oil in your hummus would require less tahini for flavour. Explore your options.
Question:
Is wheat a bad food to eat? Should I switch to rice or grains such as couscous, quinoa, or oats?
Answer:
Answer:
Although today’s processing of wheat flour is not what it use to be, it would be hard for me to give up my bagel in the morning. All breads, in moderation, will give us nutrients. If we choose whole grain, aim for higher fibre content. Adults should have 21 grams or more a day.
Incorporating more whole grains will give us more intact nutrients, fibre and a lower glycemic index because they take longer to digest and release insulin more slowly. They also add variety to our diet.
Question:
Incorporating more whole grains will give us more intact nutrients, fibre and a lower glycemic index because they take longer to digest and release insulin more slowly. They also add variety to our diet.
Question:
Is rice or almond milk better than regular cow’s milk?
Answer:
Answer:
There are more steps to processing and creating non-dairy milks that try to fortify their products with added calcium, protein, flavouring and nutrients. If you are not diagnosed as lactose intolerant, and can consume dairy products in moderation, choose milk. Check Canada’s Food Guide for your recommended intake. More is not better.
Keep in mind these are guidelines, and not recommendations, for generally healthy individuals. Your best assessment will come from your health-care provider.
Keep in mind these are guidelines, and not recommendations, for generally healthy individuals. Your best assessment will come from your health-care provider.
Post Credits
Post Site: http://blogs.windsorstar.com/
Post Arthur: Victoria Mikhail
Victoria Mikhail is a local dietitian/nutritionist who wrote The Athlete Can Cook. Check out her website: www.spicedwithnutrition.ca.
Now It’s Your Turn. Please Don't FORGET To SHARE This POST, Your Friends Might Need It! Feel Free To Leave Your COMMENTS. Your FEEDBACK And COMMENTS Are Always Appreciated. :-)
