“You are what you eat,” as the adage goes. This implies that the health of your body reflects what you put into it. If you’re wondering why physicians stress eating a balanced diet so much, it’s because your health suffers when you eat poorly and thrives when you eat well. Remember these nine benefits of a nutritious diet the next time you’re tempted to eat a doughnut instead of an apple.
1. Manage a Healthy Weight
You know the two critical ingredients for weight loss: diet and exercise. However, the Huffington Post argues that weight loss is 75 percent diet and only 25 percent exercise.
An examination of 700 distinct weight reduction trials discovered that people have the best outcomes when they eat healthily. Dieting without exercise results in an average weight loss of 23 pounds over 15 weeks. Exercising without dieting, on the other hand, resulting in a six-pound weight loss after 21 weeks. Of course, none of this diminishes the need for exercise—you need both to be as healthy as possible.
2. Support a Strong Immune System
You rely on your immunity to defend against bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other foreign invaders. However, poor nutrition starves your immune system of the proper vitamins and minerals it needs to produce antibodies. If you focus on eating well, you are less likely to become sick.
3. Increase Your Energy Level
The whole point of eating is to derive energy from it. Drinks, processed snacks, and other junk food may fill you up, but they don’t provide high-quality energy. This needs complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and protein. If you have inexplicable fatigue, increase your iron intake with seafood, poultry, dark leafy greens, and peas. Iron is also more easily absorbed by the body when paired with vitamin C, which is found in foods like broccoli, peppers, oranges, and tomatoes.
4. Save on Medical Expenses
It’s expensive to be unhealthy! With nearly two out of three American adults weighing in above average, many people have coronary heart disease, strokes, cancer, and diabetes. The Department of Agriculture estimates that if more people ate a balanced diet to avoid these preventable diseases, it could save $71 billion a year in medical costs and spare countless lives.
5. Reduce the Risk of Chronic Illness
A significant part of medical expenses is spent on treating diet-related chronic disorders such as type 2 diabetes. While genetics have a factor in how likely you are to get type 2, even the most at-risk person is unlikely to develop the condition if they consume a well-balanced diet. If diabetes runs in your family, it’s more vital than ever to limit your sugar intake to avoid increasing your risk.
6. Slow the Effects of Aging
Foods high in antioxidants—including berries, kale, spinach, red cabbage, nuts, beans, and dark chocolate—have anti-aging properties that help your body function better as you age. If you include antioxidants in your balanced diet, you may be less prone to wrinkles, heart disease, and even cancer.
7. Help You Live Longer
Although not an official cause of death, being overweight is a leading precursor of premature death in the US. According to research published in 2013, 18 percent of all deaths can be attributed to poor diet and/or sedentary lifestyles. If you want to live a long life with fewer health complications, focus on eating better.
8. Improve Your Mental Health and Wellbeing
Your body isn’t the only thing that benefits when you eat a balanced diet; your mental health also improves! You may routinely reach for junk food when you’re feeling down, but what you really need to boost your spirits is a diet full of vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, and complex carbohydrates. A 2017 study found that eating more fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, nuts, whole grains, fish, and olive oil reduced symptoms of depression among participants, which lasted for six months after the experiment.
9. Enhance Your Mental Focus
Healthy food not only improves your mood, but it also sharpens your mental focus. According to Harvard Medical School, saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol can damage brain tissue and even stroke. On the other hand, foods high in healthy mono- and polyunsaturated fats—such as olive oil, fish, and nuts—have been linked to lower rates of dementia.
Get Help Perfecting Your Balanced Diet
If you struggle with health problems, you can improve your well-being by increasing your nutrient intake and cutting out food allergies/intolerances. When you power your body with adequate nutrition, you enjoy all of the above benefits and more!
For help starting a balanced diet plan, or to treat existing health problems, please contact us now.
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