Keeping Your Body Healthy: A Guide To Nutrition

Eating healthier is something that we almost all strive for. Getting better nutrition can seem like a daunting proposition, though. It is not necessary to change everything about your diet to do this though. This article has some tried and true methods and ideas you can use to make your diet better in steps you can handle.

Heres a scary one. Have you ever wondered why dogs only live 10 to 15 years while humans live typically 60 years or more? It all lies within our cells and our metabolism where oxygen plays a big part. Oxygen moves energy throughout our cells breaking the carbs we consume into energy. The problem is, oxygen also breaks down our cells in the same process. This is called "oxidation." But our cells also have a buffer against the oxygen, these are called "antioxidants" and are prevalent in fruits and veggies.

Dogs have faster metabolisms than humans, which breaks down energy quicker and pumps much more oxygen into the cells. The cells die faster because of oxidation. Dogs also dont or cant eat many fruits and veggies, which carry those all important antioxidants.

While humans have slower metabolisms, you can actually speed yours up almost to the speed of a dogs, simply by eating pure sugar, which the body converts to energy almost immediately. Pure sugar is a high energy carb. Cells turn the sugar into energy, but harm the cells in the process. Cells take time to grow back and they dont grow back indefinitely! So if you want to live a longer life, eat lots of fruits and veggies and keep away from the pure sugar!

Exercise

Follow a few simple steps to avoid LDL cholesterol in your diet. Eat in moderation, avoid saturated fats, and enjoy raw fruits and vegetables. Moderate exercise three times a week is also an important factor. High LDL cholesterol levels have been linked to heart disease and other health concerns. Avoiding it can help you to stay healthy.

If youre an athlete and need to keep your body in peak condition, its crucial to eat a healthy, nutritious diet. Never exercise on an empty stomach. Eat a carbohydrate-rich and easily digestible meal about an hour before you work out. Fruit, whole-wheat bread and oatmeal, all make great fuel for a workout.

A great nutritional tip is to start eating prawns. Prawns are loaded with quality nutrition, including protein, essential fats, and alanine. Alanine is an amino acid, and its important because it produces carnosine, which is an antioxidant that helps the body respond better to the acid produced by exercise.

A good nutritional tip is to start drinking green tea. Green tea is rich with antioxidants, and studies have shown that green tea can actually delay fatigue during harsh exercise. Drinking green tea also provides us with more energy and causes more fat to be burned during exercise.

Nutrition

Mom always said to eat your potato skins and apple peels. She was right. Though its unclear whether, as she used to say "all the vitamins are in the skin," it is true that eating the peels of many fruits and vegetables provides the added nutrition of the foods fiber. Of course, its important to thoroughly wash fruits and vegetables whose skin or peel you plan to eat - or better yet, if you can afford to, buy organic.

Vegetarianism is quite popular today; many vegetarians choose to forgo animal products entirely (vegans). Vegans need to work a bit harder at maintaining good nutrition since the foods they eat do not naturally contain certain substances, primarily vitamins B12 (from meats) and D (from milk). To maintain good nutrition, vegans need to make sure they are getting enough B12 and D, either from natural sources or supplements, and also ensure they are eating enough protein-based foods to maintain muscle mass.

Start your children off right. Early nutrition builds healthy eating habits. Giving in to your childs demands for high sugar, high fat and fried comfort foods will only set them on a path for obesity and malnutrition later on. Insist that they eat fruits, vegetables, healthy low fat proteins and whole grains.

AS with any other worthwhile pursuit, a healthy lifestyle takes some effort at first. Fortunately, you can break this undertaking down into little steps. Each small step takes you closer to what you want most, and that is a healthy eating plan. Use the tips youve just read to make small changes, and improve the quality of your overall nutrition.