It’s no secret that in today’s society, the secret to living a happy and fulfilling life is by taking care of yourself and making healthy life choices. The previous statement has been proven throughout history, as mortality rates have continued to rise and in our modern era, our elderly are much more likely to live into their sixties and beyond. We can attribute this success to various factors such as rapid improvements in medicine, advanced healthcare, and a rapidly-growing understanding of the health risks that can deteriorate our life spans. Generally, our modern world has opened up numerous possibilities and opportunities for our generation that our ancestors didn’t have the luxury of and which we owe to our longevity rate.
One such opportunity is access to fresh produce globally, readily available to us in convenience stores and supermarkets. Now, more than ever, with the creation of food delivery services and food subscription boxes, which enable fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat to be delivered to our doorsteps. Nutrition is now widely broadcast in schools and the media, leading to a greater understanding of our generation’s dietary practices and a more considerable recognition of food and guidance on practicing healthy eating in most households. It is drilled into us from a young age that the key to improving our quality of life is by maintaining a varied, well-balanced diet and avoiding bad habits such as smoking and substance abuse. Eating healthily and maintaining a balanced diet boasts many benefits, the number of which we plan to outline in this article and explain how making health-conscious lifestyle choices can help make you happy and improve your quality of life.
A Balanced Diet Helps To Improve Your Mood
Fuelling your body with a nutritious, balanced diet can not only improve physical aspects of your build-up but mental also. Food consumption directly links with our sugar levels, which can play a large part in bolstering or dipping our mood. For instance, when our blood sugar levels drop, we can experience mood shifts and feel emotions like depression, irritability, and tiredness, which perks up when we consume sugary foods such as honey, full-fat fizzy beverages, or sweets. Eating these types of foods also encourages the production of serotonin, which is the hormone that stabilises our mood and makes us happy.
Avoid dips in your mood with regular eating; however, make sure to choose healthy snacks and opt for meals made up of slow energy releasing foods like proteins, carbohydrates, and beans. Slow energy-releasing foods such as the previously mentioned will help keep your blood sugar levels stable and release energy gradually throughout your day. Consuming these foods increases your energy levels, allows you to perform better at work or extracurricular activities, and increases alertness.
Board-certified registered dietitians emphasize the importance of a well-rounded diet for physical health and emotional well-being. Consulting with a dietitian can help you create a personalized eating plan that stabilizes energy levels, reduces mood swings, and promotes long-term mental wellness.
Eating Healthily Helps You Maintain Your Current Weight
Depending on your desired outcomes, eating a balanced and varied diet can help you maintain or lose weight. To keep your current weight, health professionals advise that your diet consists of the four main food groups but focuses more on fruit and vegetables. You could also try incorporating elements of the following;
- Avoid cooking your foods in fat-rich spread such as butter and refined oils. Choose healthier alternatives such as coconut oil, avocado oil, peanut oil, or light olive oil.
- Aim to include at least five portions of fruit or vegetables a day at mealtimes.
- Eat protein-rich food and powders to boost satiety. These could come in the form of hardboiled eggs, pulses, nuts and nut butter, spinach powder, delicious protein snacks, or fish and meat products.
- Drink a variety of sugar-free juices, dairy products and aim for two litres of water per day.
- Foods high in fats, sodium, and sugar should be moderated and not eaten in excess.
We understand that the above points might not apply to everyone; due to lifestyle choices or other factors. For example, some individuals may work unsociable hours and find meal preparation hard or too time-consuming. If you also struggle to find time to prepare healthy meals and often opt for a quick fix, consider sourcing healthy meal alternatives during work hours. Leading companies like EatProtein specialise in healthy, protein-rich products, bars, shakes, supplements, and powders; browse their offerings for more information and prices to get you started.
Maintaining a Balanced Diet Can Help Prevent Diseases in Later Life
As well as other benefits, maintaining a balanced diet can help reduce the risk of health complications later on in life, such as diabetes, heart disease, and strokes. Usually, adults who promote good eating habits live longer and have a good amount of cholesterol, directly linked with preventing life-threatening diseases. Ingesting too much or too little of the same nutrients can also lead to other health problems and nutrient deficiency.
For instance, an absence or lack of iron in your diet can lead to iron deficiency and anaemia, a defect that weakens and decreases the number of red blood cells that your body produces. Red blood cells are primarily known for circulating oxygen, and damage to them from anaemia can cause troublesome symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue, lack of strength, and light-headedness. Those who lead a vegetarian or vegan diet are more susceptible to contracting iron deficiency, but it’s also common in young children or pregnant women. Adults following this lifestyle are recommended by health professionals to bolster iron levels with supplements; however, only in moderation as increased iron levels can also be detrimental to your overall health.
Maintaining a balanced diet is especially important for the older generation because when the body ages, the immune system weakens, making it much easier for older people to contract diseases or deficiencies, which is heightened if their diet is poor. To avoid these problems in the future, ensure your diet is varied, and you’re getting the nutrients your body needs to prevent them.
Having a Good Diet Can Help Boost Your Energy Levels
Ensuring that your diet is good, eating healthily can also help to raise your energy levels and motivate you for each day ahead. By eating the correct amount of each food group, you can fuel your body with the nutrients it needs to boost energy production. For instance, health professionals generally warn people about the importance of moderating the amount of fried, fatty foods they eat. These types of foods only provide us with short-term energy, which our bodies quickly burn, resulting in us feeling lethargic and having lower energy levels for the rest of the day. Over-consumption of these foods can lead to the risk of obesity, which is a common health problem in today’s society and can be prevented by monitoring the amount of fried, greasy foods that we ingest.
Instead, health professionals urge the public to concentrate on eating foods high in nutrients and iron, such as beans, leafy greens, nuts, and dried fruit. The majority of high iron foods are slow energy-burning, which helps our bodies remain energised for the day and is directly linked to the production of oxygen and red blood cells, which help circulate oxygen around the body. Therefore, bolstering our energy levels and helping us to keep alert throughout our entire day.
