THE CHALLENGE OF EATING HEALTHY

How do you define eating healthy? It may mean a lot of different opinions from different people. Everyone has their own concept of eating healthy and each of these concepts has challenges.

Our body requires food on a day-to-day basis and for each meal, we need to make choices. However, how sure are you that your choices are in line with the concept of healthy eating? But as it is, your choices oftentimes are actually different from what people perceive to be “healthy.” Some people may think that eating moderately in a fast-food restaurant amounts to “healthy” eating.  Or just downing fruits and vegetables is enough. Some people might think that taking minuscule bites of anything is already a way of curbing down calories.

 A lot of factors can affect a person’s choice of what to eat. For instance, food availability at the office or school, budget for meals, or lack of information as to what really amounts to healthy food choices. The following are some of the challenges we face when we want to eat healthily:

• The foods that are affordable are those that are high in calories and fat.
• Advertising is sometimes misleading.
• Hard to understand nutritional information in food packaging.
• Healthy foods are not available to certain societies.
• Giving up certain foods may cause weakness, infection, and pain.

What You Can Do About It

It takes being organized and creative to make the best choice for your meals. As mentioned above, these choices are done every single day for every meal. So, to make it easier, narrow down your choices to the simplest possible.

Preparation

Have foresight. Prepare your meals in advance. You can cook your meals and leave them inside your refrigerator.  Cooking takes up a lot of your time and sometimes, you may not be in the mood to cook, really.  Try to cook a batch and then store them inside your freezer for thawing and heating when you need them. For example, try to cook a lot of chicken or meat, and store them in covered containers, stick them in the freezer.

Cook your veggies and divide them to cover one week. It would help to cook them in various ways so you won’t get tired of eating one kind of veggie meal.

 Create your own Menu

It would be wise to make your own menu of dishes that you can use for a meal.  In a study, meal planning can contribute to an improved diet. For breakfast for example, narrow down choices to the following:

• Low-fat cereal with a fruit
• Oatmeal with an apple
• Whole grain toast with saltless butter and boiled eggs
• Banana pancakes

And likewise for lunch and dinner.  Preset meals are good if you have a limited budget, limited time to prepare and cook, and unavailability of some healthy food ingredients.

Keep Fruits Visible

Always, always have a fruit visible on your dining table, on the kitchen counter, or anywhere near you. Chances are when you feel hunger pangs, you grab anything that you can see or something that is within your reach.   Keep sweets and sugar hidden from your view.

Eating healthy foods may not be the same for all. If you are not sure of what a healthy meal consists of, consult a dietician to help you with the challenges you might be facing if you want to keep your meals healthy and nutritious to improve your quality of life.