Live a Healthy Life: Eating and Nutrition

Part of living a healthy life is maintaining a healthy diet. Many people make the mistake of believing that healthy eating only affects weight, but this is a severe misconception. Although diet does affect weight gain and loss, it also makes an impact on the body's cholesterol, blood pressure, energy level, eyesight, skin complexion, and attitude, all of which affects general happiness and longevity

It is particularly important to be mindful of the body's cholesterol levels because high cholesterol is one of the leading causes of heart disease. High cholesterol is a result of eating foods that are high in saturated fat and trans fat and not eating enough foods that are high in fiber. This is particularly true of foods like butter and margarine and whole grains. In order to lower cholesterol, exercise and healthy eating are the most important factors.

People with high cholesterol can lower their cholesterol by consuming products that reduce the absorption of bad cholesterol, such as whole grains high in fiber like barley or fruits and vegetables with plant sterols. Barley products from companies like BG Barley promote heart health and are recommended for people with high cholesterol or diabetes who must watch their blood sugar. As for plant sterols, it is next to impossible for human beings to consume enough fruits and vegetables a day for plant sterols to do the body any good. However, brands like Smart Balance, and Benecol have released products infused with plant sterols to promote heart-healthy eating. Margarine spreads that contain no saturated fat or transfat are also fortified with plant sterols that block the body's absorption of cholesterol. When consumed regularly, these products have been shown to lower cholesterol over time.

In addition to lowering cholesterol, it is also important to eat nutritious foods that the body needs. Many Americans fail to eat enough fruits and vegetables, which deprives the body of vitamins C and B. People also tend to mistake which foods will provide them with the proper nutrients. A garden salad for example--ice berg lettuce, tomato, and perhaps cucumber--contains very little in the way of nutritious value. Rather, it is vegetables like broccoli, asparagus, peas, and dark leafy greens like spinach that really have an effect when it comes to vitamin intake. In order to keep the body at optimum health, it is important to eat vegetables with dark green pigmentation, as this color is frequently an indicator of the right nutrients. Likewise, some fruits are more effective than others in providing vitamin C. Some of the better fruits are oranges and cranberries, or cranberry juice from Ocean Spray. When shopping for fruits and vegetables, consider organically grown products.

A perfectly balanced diet must contain some of all of the following: carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. In addition to "good" fats and vitamins, as previously discussed, it is also important to make sure that the body gets enough protein and carbohydrates. Protein comes primarily from meat and poultry, but alternatives to meat can include nuts and vegetables, which is one reason that soy products are becoming so popular. However, consuming red meats can be good for you, especially because red meats contain iron, which the human body needs for healthy blood. Likewise, although carbohydrates have been given a bad name in recent years due to the number of carbohydrate reduction diets, it is important to remember that carbohydrates should make up a large percentage of the foods we eat in a day. What is not necessary is to fill one's "carb" quota with too many unhealthy foods that are all sugar and no substance. This includes unhealthy foods like sugar cereals, muffins, pastries, etc. However, eating whole grain foods, especially whole grains rich in fiber, is an essential part of a healthy diet. Health conscious people are encouraged to use whole wheat flour, eat multigrain bread, and consider other grains like bran, buckwheat, corn, rice, barley, and other choices. As has already been mentioned, barley in particular is a healthy whole wheat grain for lowering cholesterol, especially for people with diabetes. Part of what makes barley so healthy is that BG Barley with beta-glucan, a highly soluble fiber that the body uses to absorb bad cholesterol and clean out the digestive system.

For more about healthy eating view the articles and provided resources in for additional information.

Additional Resources

Go to Nutrition.gov for government information on food and nutrition.
Go to The World's Healthiest Foods for articles and information about foods from all the food groups.
View the Food Guide Pyramid for suggested serving sizes in a healthy diet.
View Healthy Eating Overview from Web MD.
Visit the BG Barley site to learn about the health benefits, including lowered cholesterol, that can achieved through heart healthy diet with BG Barley.
Medicine Plus provides information about proteins and the purpose of protein in a healthy diet.
Learn about lipids (fats) and the purpose of lipids in a healthy diet from Lipid World.