Good Health Starts with Proper Nutrition
As adults, we sometimes forget the basics., We go about our merry way, eating and drinking whatever takes out fancy, regardless of the harm it may cause our body. As children, many of us were constantly reminded to eat and drink the right food. We had to take vitamins, and at school our P.E classes required us to exercise at the gym. Proper nutrition and good health were emphasized all the time.
What happened? How did it happen that as adults, we have become more irresponsible than children? How do we get back on track?
In the United States, studies show that over 50 million Americans have a weight problem. Obesity is growing at an alarming rate with 4 out of every 10 Americans well above their ideal weight. This studies shows that good health has become secondary, and proper nutrition has taken a back seat.
Proper nutrition is feeding your body with the right combination of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. All these are essential to good health. Skipping meals or avoiding carbohydrates because you think it will make you gain too much weight is going to do you more harm than good.
Skipping meals means denying your body what it needs to function. Our body is like a complex machine, and if you fail to provide it what it needs to accomplish its tasks, it will break down. This is why we see a lot of sick people. Colds and coughs is just one simple example of how we disregard good health in favor of a slim body.
Without proper nutrition, we get sick. Our body starts to malfunction. Some of the diseases we could get are infection, constipation, high blood pressure, clogging of our arteries and colon, and slower mental acuity. We also suffer emotionally. We can suffer from low self-esteem, depression, lethargy, slow reaction, irritability, and behavioral disorder.
It’s just like a pregnant mother who refuses to eat properly, therefore depriving her unborn baby of essential nutrients. She is taking a huge risk that her baby will be born with physical defects, emotional trauma, or slower mental abilities.
Fruits provide us with vitamins like Vitamin C which helps fight infection. Vegetables give us the fiber and beta carotene, among others, which helps cleanse our body and strengthen our hearts. Fish is a vital food group because it has a lot of protein and omega 3 fatty acids. In fact, nutritionists recommend eating fatty fish 2 times a week to prevent cardiovascular disease.
Athletes consider carbohydrates as energy food. In fact they eat a lot of pasta before a big game to help sustain them through the game. As such, they don’t get hungry or distracted by hunger pangs.
If you want to ensure good health, you just have to make sure you provide your body with food from the three main food groups: go, grow, and glow foods. Go foods are energy food that will get you through the day like cereal, pasta, bread, and sugar. Grow food contain protein like meat, milk, fish, cheese and eggs, while Glow foods are regulating food that supply you with vitamins and minerals.
The food you take gives your body energy to function and this energy is measured in terms of calories. Knowing how much energy you need for the day will determine how much calories you need to get through the day.
The energy needs of each person are different. Some people use up more energy than others, so they have to eat meals with more calories.
Good health is not just about diet. You need to take care of your mental and emotional well being as well. To have good health, you need to also get enough exercise, rest and leisure time. It isn’t just about eating the right food. Strengthening your body through exercise stimulates your mind and helps you perform better.
Your body also need enough rest. Sleeping for less than 7 or 8 hours is depriving your body of a chance to recoup. Good health also requires you to have relaxation time. This is a time when you can just sit back and enjoy yourself. You don’t have to sleep, you could watch a movie, play a game, or have a nice chat with friends. In addition, you should stay away from alcoholic drinks and smoking.
Having a healthy lifestyle is the best part of good health. You will get to enjoy life, extend life, and live life properly.
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