Health is a synthesis of how you feel physically and emotionally. Most people consider a "healthy" state of being to include your weight and absence of disease.
Doctors have defined weight by BMI, or body mass index, since the early 1800s. The calculation was updated in 1998, but many people still feel that the BMI measurement of a healthy weight doesn't take important factors into account. Being overweight or obese has been strongly linked to the onset and progression of many diseases. Feeling energetic, being active, and not being aware of any serious health issues is a generally good sign that you are a healthy person. Research shows that 75% of men and 60% of women are overweight or obese, so if you are not feeling as healthy as you could, what can you do?
Popular Healthy Diet Styles
Not everyone likes to exercise, has the time to exercise, or is able-bodied enough to exercise. However, everyone eats! Choosing an eating style that fits your lifestyle, cooking ability, and preferences can drastically change your level of health even if you don't increase your activity level.
The Paleo Diet
Paleo is short for paleolithic, which references the period of time, about 2.6 million years ago, in which early humans used rocks and sticks as their primary tools and had possibly not yet invented the wheel.
The spirit of the paleo diet is to eat whole, natural foods. Meat is included, but not dairy. Humans also had not gotten around to domesticating wheat or other grains, which are therefore also not included in the paleo diet. Followers also avoid oils, legumes, and all processed foods.
Historians love to debate the factual merits of the paleo diet because it is essentially based in speculation. Eating fruits and vegetables is unilaterally agreed to as good for your health, but the inclusion of meat, seafood, and eggs is controversial. The bottom line is there are many success stories from people who feel healthier by eating paleo, and anything that helps people cut out processed foods and sugar is a step in the right direction.
The Gluten Free Diet
People with Celiac disease need to be on a gluten free diet; less than 1% of Americans fall into this category. Most people who follow a gluten free diet do so by choice and not medical necessity.
Gluten free followers eat fruits, vegetables, eggs, meat, dairy, legumes, and certain safe grains. People with severe Celiac must be careful that any processed food they eat comes from a gluten free certified factory and is not contaminated.
Due to the popularity of the gluten free diet, there are many products on the market now that cater to this lifestyle. This is considered a positive thing, however, it discourages people from eating whole foods by making more processed foods available.
The Low Sugar Diet
Sugar is incredible addictive and causes a host of problems. These include loss of memory, depression, obesity, diabetes and more.
If you choose to respond to your sugar cravings like they are an addiction, following the Food Addicts Anonymous meal plan is a way to detox. You will avoid sugar in all its forms, including natural fruits that are exceptionally sweet, as well as white flour and wheat, which also cause sugar cravings. Following this low sugar diet allows you to eat all vegetables, legumes, protein, eggs, some grains and some dairy, although lactose is technically a form of sugar. Participants don't count calories, but they do measure their food each day to ensure proper nutrients are being consumed.
Avoiding sugar in all its forms is incredibly challenging, which makes you realize just how much hidden sugars are in virtually all the processed foods, beverages, and condiments that we consume daily.
The Low Carb Diet
Carbs is short for carbohydrates, which is a general term for the sugar, starch, and fiber in foods. Natural carbohydrates (lactose found in milk, whole grains, beans) are healthy and beneficial while refined carbohydrates (white sugar, white flour) are often called 'empty calories.' Followers of the low carb diet see all carbs as equally unhealthy and eat extra protein instead.
The body naturally uses carbs as its main source of energy, and people who eat in this style believe that the body will use its fat stores for energy when carbs aren't available. Most people do lose weight on this diet, but it's very difficult to maintain over time.
The Weight Watchers Diet
Literally millions of people have tried Weight Watchers since it was created over fifty years ago. People pay for a membership and have access to various levels of support and coaching, in addition to the diet plan. Followers record the food they eat and the corresponding points value assigned by Weight Watchers, and stay below a certain number of points to achieve weight loss goals.
Weight Watchers is popular in part because it provides a structure where members can attend meetings and support each other, whereas most diets are worked independently. The main idea of this eating style is to reshape a person's view of food and teach them, through the point system, which foods are healthier than other foods.
Weight Watchers produces a large selection of highly processed foods that have a low point value. These convenience foods meet the requirements of the program, but are certainly not the same as eating a diet full of whole foods.
The Plant Based Diet
One of the most well known plant based diets is the Forks Over Knives eating plan. The main idea is to eat fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts, and other unprocessed whole foods. This diet excludes meat, eggs, dairy, and added oil. Followers cook with herbs, spices, nuts, and plant based milks. You don’t count calories or measure your food; you just eat and the plan assures that you will get the proper amount of protein and other essential vitamins and minerals naturally.
Scientific studies have shown that plant based diets can halt, and even sometimes reverse, the negative health effects of obesity. There is no risk in experimenting with a plant based diet like there is with medical interventions, so many doctors recommend this eating style for patients with cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
Healthy Diet FAQ
When you first embark on your journey toward better health, the amount of information available is overwhelming. Some of your first questions may be answered below and provide a place for you to start educating yourself.
Q: What’s the difference between vegetarian, vegan, and plant-based diets?
A: Vegan is the strictest diet of the three, excluding all animal products including honey. Vegans are generally motivated by morality and health concerns, and also avoid leather, products tested on animals, circuses and zoos. Plant-based diets exclude all animal products, including dairy, eggs, seafood, red meat, and poultry. People who follow a plant based diet generally agree that honey is not an animal product. Vegetarians do not eat red meat, pork, or poultry. Most vegetarians eat eggs, seafood, and aren't incredibly strict about their dairy consumption.
Q: What are whole foods?
A: Whole foods are foods that have not been processed; you eat them pretty much the same way they came from nature. This includes fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and minimally processed animal products. For example, a chicken breast is healthier than a chicken nugget. Hulled barley is less processed than pearled barley, and steel cut oats are less processed than rolled oats.
Q: Is organic food healthier?
A: Organic foods have the same nutritional value as non-organic foods. The difference is that organic foods have been grown without toxic pesticides. If you wash your produce thoroughly, you can remove some of the residue, but some has been absorbed into the fruit and vegetable and cannot be scrubbed off. Dried spices that are not organic often have high levels of pesticides because they get concentrated when the herb or spice is dried. Additionally, when you consume processed products that contain many ingredients (think about a bottle of vegetable juice with tomato, carrot, and celery juices), there were different chemicals on each of those ingredients.
You will not see an immediate difference in your health from eating organic foods. You may never see a difference in your health at all. However, you may be avoiding inflammation or a future disease by minimizing the amount of chemicals that enter your body.
Q: Why is it more expensive to eat healthy food?
A: It's not! This has become a pervasive myth that is easy to disprove. If you are a smart shopper, and especially if you use coupons and rebate apps, you can save money by loading your diet with fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains. Enjoy a large pot of split pea soup (split peas, onion, celery, carrot) for just a few dollars. Bananas are inexpensive all year round now, but buying seasonal fruits and vegetables is an effective way to lower your food cost and eat healthier.
