Eating healthily is the foundation of good health. But amongst all the food choices we are faced with daily, what are the best choices? Eating fruits and veggies is vital, along with other foods that should be a part of a balanced diet.

The calories that count

Everything we eat ends up turning into the fuel that our body needs to function, which is glucose or sugar in the blood. But the different foods convert to glucose through different processes. Besides, not all foods contain the same vitamins or minerals. There are foods, such as refined sugar, that have a lot of glucose, but that hardly have vitamins or minerals. Nutritionists say these foods provide “empty calories”.  

It is a lot more efficient to choose other types of foods that have more or less the same number of calories, but that provide more vitamins, minerals or other necessary components for good health. For example, a medium-sized apple has more or less the same calories as two sugar cubes, but it has many more vitamins, minerals and fiber.   

The food-groups

Nutritionists classify food in several groups, depending on their properties. There are no “pure” foods, meaning that they all have a certain amount – however small – of other food groups (for example, meat is a protein but it also has fat):

• Carbohydrates are divided into simple and complex carbohydrates. Simple carbohydrates are absorbed faster in the blood and they raise the blood sugar level (which is not recommended if you have diabetes or a tendency towards it) Examples of simple carbohydrates are sweets or foods that have refined sugars, although fruits are also included in this category because the body easily converts them to glucose. Complex carbohydrates take longer to be digested, because they don’t raise the blood sugar level so suddenly. Complex carbohydrates are fiber-laden or starchy vegetables and grains and cereals.  

• Proteins are found in meat, fish, dairy products or nuts. They are a very important component of the diet because they provide “essential amino acids” that are necessary for the cells in our bodies to reproduce adequately. Vegetarians obtain these amino acids by mixing certain cereals and grains (rice and beans, for example).  

• Fats are bacon, oil or butter. These foods are only recommended in small amounts, because of the large amount of calories they have along with other components that are not considered to be healthy if eaten in excess. However, even if it is in small amounts, fats must be a part of a balanced diet, because they contain essential fatty acids that can only be found in them as the body cannot manufacture them.

A healthy selection

The amount of food you must eat every day depends on your height, weight and level of activity. But as a rule, you must include at least five servings of fruits and veggies, along with an equal or greater amount of grains, proteins at lunch and dinner and a small amount of fats, used to cook or as a dressing.

Specific examples of the food groups mentioned above are:  

• Carbohydrates

– Simple carbohydrates:  Fruits – Grapes, apples, pears, bananas, melons, figs, mangoes etc.

– Complex carbohydrates: Vegetables – Tomatoes, carrots, pumpkin, broccoli, etc.  

   Grains – Corn tortillas, rice, potatoes, yucca, pasta, lentils, etc.

• Proteins: meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products, nuts.

• Healthy fats: olive oil, corn oil, dressings, etc.

Eating simply

As a rule it is best to choose the least processed foods. A salad is a better choice, and it has less calories and more nutrients than a complicated pasta dish covered in sauce.

When you go shopping, be a label-reader. If the label is a maze of chemical products, you would be better of choosing something simpler.