Monday, September 24, 2012
When considering a diet, choose wisely
Your doctor says you need to lose weight, but there are so
many diets out there — Atkins, Cabbage Diet, South Beach, even the Lemonade Diet — it’s so
confusing!
Always check with your primary care doctor, but there is one
diet that most health professionals agree is the most healthful.
It doesn’t
skimp on nutrition or essential vitamins and minerals. My registered dietitian
colleagues consistently recommend the “Mediterranean Diet” which focuses on a
mainly plant-based diet featuring whole grains, whole fruits and vegetables,
healthy oils, nuts, beans, fish and poultry.
Key components include:
• Using herbs and spices instead of salt to flavor foods
• Replacing butter with healthy fats such as olive oil and
canola oil
• Limiting red meat to a few times a month
• Getting plenty of exercise.
Its anti-inflammatory, high-antioxidant benefits include a
reduced risk of developing cardiovascular disease or metabolic syndrome, the
precursor to diabetes.
It’s easy to
follow — just keep portion control in mind. For example, eating whole grains doesn’t mean the whole loaf
of whole wheat bread, just a slice.
Alice Facente is a community education nurse for the Backus
Health System. To comment on this column or others, visit the Healthy
Living blog at www.backushospital.org/backus-blogs or e-mail Ms. Facente or any of the Healthy Living columnists at healthyliving@wwbh.org.
# posted by ----------------- @ 8:46 AM 
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Life moves too fast. As time goes by it's important to focus on staying happy and healthy!
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