Note: this post has been updated in February 2022.
Boost Energy with Good nutrition
Good nutrition means getting the right amount of nutrients from healthy foods in the right combinations. Having nutritional knowledge and making smart choices about the foods you eat can and will help you achieve optimum health over your lifetime, and be a key to avoiding obesity, poor immunity, cardiovascular diseases, and type-II diabetes among many other illnesses. See my article on What is Good Nutrition
What to eat to boost your energy
Feeling a little sluggish at work lately? You don't need to! Making sure to get the right nutritional balance can revitalize your energy each day. It's easy! Check out these tips to put the power of healthy food to work for your body. Use proper nutrition to boost your daily energy.
The amount of each nutrient you need depends on your age, height and weight, and activity level. “You can see a dietitian to get your own personalized plan, or go online and use the USDA’s My Weight Manager tool to determine your needs,” Stephens suggests.
In addition, an easy, memorable way to balance what you eat is to fill your plate at each meal using the USDA’s Choose My Plate method. This strategy involves dividing the space on your plate at each meal this way:
- 1/2 for fruits and vegetables
- 1/4 for grains, preferably whole grains
- 1/4 for lean protein
Then round out each meal with 1 cup of milk (or 1 serving of other type of dairy) on the side.
“This method is balanced in carbohydrates and adequate in protein — Americans tend to overeat protein — and provides the vitamins and minerals we need every day,” Stephens says. “Add a glass of water to each meal to stay hydrated and prevent overeating, and you’re all set.” – via EverydayHealth.com
Science Says: Whole, Real Foods Beat Every Diet
Ever wonder if there’s one single “wonder diet” that really is the best for everyone? Scientists say probably not… But there ARE fundamental principles that everyone can follow for their best health and energy. Use proper nutrition to boost your daily energy.
Among the salient points of proven health benefits the researchers note, nutritionally-replete plant-based diets are supported by a wide array of favorable health outcomes, including fewer cancers and less heart disease. These diets ideally included not just fruits and vegetables, but whole grains, nuts, and seeds. Katz and Meller found “no decisive evidence” that low-fat diets are better than diets high in healthful fats, like the Mediterranean. Those fats include a lower ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids than the typical American diet.
The Mediterranean diet, which is additionally defined by high intake of fiber, moderate alcohol and meat intake, antioxidants, and polyphenols, does have favorable effects on heart disease, cancer risk, obesity, metabolic syndrome, and “is potentially associated with defense against neurodegenerative disease and preservation of cognitive function, reduced inflammation, and defense against asthma.”
They also found carbohydrate-selective diets to be better than categorically low-carbohydrate diets, in that incorporating whole grains is associated with lower risks for cancers and better control of body weight. Attention to glycemic load and index is “sensible at the least.” Eating foods that have high glycemic loads (which Katz says is much more relevant to health outcomes than glycemic index—in that some quality foods like carrots have very high indices, which could be misleading) is associated with greater risk of heart disease. – via The Atlantic
The solution and action to take now
Science confirms that a diet rich in whole, plant-based foods can help you live to the fullest. In fact, a growing number of physicians advocate a completely plant-based diet for many of their patients who suffer from diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Three great sources:
Plant-Based Nutrition, 2E (Idiot’s Guides) and
Nutrition Facts: The Truth About Food
The Forks over Knives plan shows you how to put this lifesaving, delicious diet into practice in your own life. This easy-to-follow, meal-by-meal makeover is the approach Doctors Alona Pulde and Matthew Lederman (featured in the documentary) use every day in their nutritional health practice—a simple plan that focuses on hearty comfort foods and does not involve portion control or worrying about obtaining single nutrients like protein and calcium.
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How could you alter your diet to give yourself more nutrition and more energy? Have you ever noticed certain foods that make you feel energetic?
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