Tips for healthy eating

Everyone knows that eating fruits and vegetables is good but why is it so hard to include them in our diet? Here are some tips to help your family develop healthy eating habits.

Healthy eating facts

It is no secret that we are what we eat. Unhealthy diet is the main cause of health problems. In the United States over 40% of adults struggle with obesity, placing them at risk for heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and even some forms of cancer. The financial costs of obesity are staggering. It is estimated that every year $147 Billion is spent on tackling obesity related issues. Eating well is linked to health, longevity and overall well being

Healthy meals

Much has been written about the importance of vegetables and fruits to our diet. Plant based diets have been shown to be superior to meat based diets improving mental and physical health. Unfortunately more than 80% of Americans do not consume the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables. The reason for this is that most people have developed bad healthy eating habits over a period of time, and it takes some effort to change those habits. 

Healthy eating habits

Our habits can make or break us. Unless we do something habitually, it is hard to achieve sustained progress. Many people who have tried to go on a diet often relapse into their old ways because they had not made those changes a part of their daily habit. Developing a good new habit is easier said than done. Everyone has been raised in different ways and it is often difficult to change one’s personality. However, it is possible to develop new habits with patience and perseverance. If you are trying to encourage your loved ones to develop healthy eating habits, here are some ideas that may help.

Idea 1: Set a good example. 

If you want to make your loved ones to eat more vegetables, you need to set a good example for them and eat more vegetables yourself.  When eating vegetables, let your loved ones see that you are enjoying eating the vegetables. That will motivate them to follow your example and eat more vegetables themselves.

Idea 2: Replace meat with vegetables, slowly

It is hard to give up meat all at once. If you are a life long meat eater, it is hard to give it up cold turkey. Instead, take it slowly and gradually reduce the meat portion in your dishes, substituting them with more vegetables. Start with eating vegetarian food once a week. If you can, go ahead and make drinks such as fruit and vegetable milk shakes and smoothies to make the experience of eating fruits and vegetables more enjoyable. Make sure that you get a high quality blender – it makes the process much easier. I am using the Vitamix blender myself and enjoy making smoothies for family every day.

Idea 3: Substitute real meat with imitation meat

It used to be much harder to give up meat,  but these days you can easily find plant based protein that taste the same as meat and you can easily substitute these in your usual meat based recipes. You can easily find plant based versions of  chicken, beef, pork and fish online as well as at your local grocery store. Please take care not to add too much of seasoning when cooking your plant based protein, since seasoning often contains high levels of sodium, which is not healthy.

Idea 4: Do not go out with an empty stomach

We have all been through this. When you are shopping on an empty stomach, your willpower to eat healthy becomes weaker. The sight and smell of that meat being fried in the BBQ grill is enough to tempt even the strongest convert to vegetarianism. Make sure that you have finished your breakfast, lunch or dinner before you go out, to enable you to resist the temptation of eating unhealthy junk food. The junk food that you see at super market checkout counters are designed to tempt you. When you are full, those junk foods lose much of their appeal.

Idea 5: Savor the shopping experience

If you are trying to get your family to eat more fruits and vegetables, help them indulge in the experience of shopping for them. Take them to grocery stores which have a wide selection of fruits and vegetables and ask them to pick the fruits and vegetables that they like the most. If there are farms near you, plan a family trip to the farm and pick fruits and vegetables right from the tree. Farmers markets are also a great place to do fruit and vegetable shopping together with your family.

Idea 6: Grow a vegetable garden

There is nothing like plucking and eating fruits and vegetables from your own garden. Take time to plant a fruit and vegetable garden together with your family. Have your family pick the vegetables from the garden and cook it for them. Enjoy the experience! Check out your local nursery for garden plants and seeds. Big box retailers such as Home Depot and Lowes often have entire sections devoted to seeds and vegetable gardens. If you do not have a back yard, there are ways to grow vegetables right at your kitchen counter top. More on this in an upcoming article.

Idea 7: Embrace nature and animals

Oneness with nature will elevate your mind and motivate you more towards healthy eating. Take your family to the zoo and farms where they can interact with animals. This will help them appreciate the animal world and help them grow to love animals. Spend more time in natural surroundings. The ocean, forests, mountains, rivers and lakes all have a wonderful way of elevating our spirits and be more attuned with the natural world.

Idea 8: Educate your family on the benefits of vegetarianism

When you learn, you grow. There are a number of great books on the benefits of a plant based diet. One of my favorites is How Not To Die, by Dr. Michael Greger. In that book, Dr.Greger presents the science behind how a simple plant-based diet helps us live healthier and happier lives. There are also a number of educational movies and documentaries about the problems caused by poor nutrition and the benefits of a plant based diet. Watching the Neflix movie The Game Changers together with my family helped us to stay motivated to eating healthy and stick to a plant based diet.

Idea 9: Time with loved ones is the most valuable thing

The most valuable thing in the world is the time that we have with our loved ones. Tell your family that you love them and want to live a long and healthy life with them and in order for you to enjoy a healthy life together for a long time, eating habits need to change for the better.