Eating healthy starts with what, how much, and when to eat. As such, the need is to follow a balanced diet that includes food from all the major groups and completely fills the nutritional needs of a person. But what constitutes a balanced diet? How much veggies, meat, and grains should be in your plate to call it ‘balanced’? The answers to these questions are not known by most people.
So, let’s answer all these questions in detail today.
What is a Balanced diet?
A balanced diet (santulit aahar) is something that fulfills all the nutritional needs of a person. The human body requires a particular amount of nutrients and calories every day to remain healthy. So, they can get all those nutrients and calories from a balanced diet without overstepping the daily required calorie intake.
As per the recommendations of the USDA, half of your plate should have veggies and fruits and the other half needs to have proteins and grains. They also suggest having one serving of low-fat dairy products with each meal. The ones who are lactose intolerant are suggested to have any other source of the nutrition present in dairy.
What are calories?
A balanced diet definition is incomplete without explaining the meaning of calories. The total number of calories present in a food is equal to the amount of energy it stores. Your body needs calories to breath, think, walk, and other crucial bodily functions.
An average person requires nearly 2,000 calories each day to maintain a healthy weight. However, this amount depends on their sex, age, and level of physical activity. So, men usually need more calories than women, and the ones who exercise require more calories than the ones who don’t.
List of five main food groups for a Healthy diet
It is important to ensure that the best diet plans contain all the major nutrients and components. The best diet plan will always include five food groups, and it is imperative to include food items in all these respective groups. Here’s a quick look at the major groups:
1. Vegetables
When it comes to adding veggies in your diet, it is highly imperative to know which ingredients are the most important. Since vegetables can be further subdivided into the following subgroups, here are a few things you should know about it:
- starchy veggies
- leafy greens
- peas and beans
- orange or red veggies
- other veggies like zucchini or eggplant
In order to receive enough nutrients and not get bored from constantly eating veggies, try to mix it up and try different veggies. Just make sure that you eat veggies from all the five subgroups each week.
You can eat vegetables cooked or raw, though cooking tends to remove a bit of the nutritional value. Moreover, methods like deep frying tend to add unhealthy fats to the dish.
2. Fruits
Balanced diets should include loads of fruits. Rather than eating store-bought fruit juices, experts recommend eating the whole fruits. Such juices hardly contain enough nutrients. Moreover, the manufacturing procedure usually puts empty calories in the form of added sugar. It is better to go for frozen or fresh fruits or the fruits that are canned in water rather than syrup.
3. Grains
Grains can be divided into two subgroups, i.e., refined grains and whole grains. A healthy diet chart needs to have whole grains because they have more protein than the refined grains.
Whole grains tend to include all the parts of the grains, i.e., the endosperm, germ, and bran. Your body slowly breaks the whole grains down, which makes them leave less of an impact on the blood sugar of a person. In addition to that, whole grains have more protein and fiber than refined grains.
As refined grains undergo processing, they don’t have the three actual components. Also, the refined grains have less fiber and protein, which makes them easily lead to a spike in blood sugar.
Remember that grains form the basis of the food pyramid, which means that they form a major part of the daily caloric intake of a person. However, one of the most important diet tips is to only fill a quarter of your plate with grains.
Out of that, you should eat whole grains for at least half of your daily intake. Some of the healthy whole grains are:
- oats
- quinoa
- barley
- brown rice
- buckwheat
4. Protein
If you know the importance of balanced diet, you will also have to acknowledge the need for a protein-rich diet. Proteins need to make up one quarter of an individual’s plate. Some of nutritious choices in protein are:
- pork and lean beef
- turkey and chicken
- fish
- legumes, peas, and beans
5. Dairy products
Fortified soy products and dairy are vital sources of calcium. For better diet and nutrition, you need to consume low fat versions as much as possible.
Soy products and low-fat dairy include:
- soy milk
- yogurt
- low-fat milk
- cottage or ricotta cheese
The ones who are lactose intolerant may opt for lactose-free or low-lactose products, or go for soy-based sources of calcium and all other nutrients.
Importance of a Balanced diet
The best diet gives your body the nutrients it needs to work efficiently. With the lack of balanced nutrition, the body becomes prone to low performance, fatigue, infection, and diseases. Kids who do not get sufficient healthy foods tend to face developmental and growth problems, frequent infections, and poor academic performance.
Also, they can lead to unhealthy eating habits which continue into their adulthood. In case of a lack of exercise, the kids will also have a high risk of obesity and different diseases and disorders related to the metabolic syndrome, like high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.
1. Losing weight through healthy diet foods
The most common reason for people to struggle with their weight loss is a poor diet. On the other hand, when combined with a proper exercise routine, your balanced diet can help you mitigate the risk factors for gaining weight or obesity.
By following the right diet types, you can lose weight by:
- prevent binge eating
- increase the protein intake
- get essential nutrients, such as fiber, vitamins, and minerals
- avoid processed foods or excess carbs
People who are interested in losing weight should enhance or begin a proper exercise routine. If you want to start slow, simply add thirty minutes of walking every day and make a few minor changes, such as going by the stairs, can let you burn calories and gradually lose weight. You can turn it up a notch after a few weeks and add cardio to your routine. Move up to resistance training and your weight loss will be faster.
Foods you need to avoid
As one of the foremost tips for healthy lifestyle, here are the foods you should avoid:
- trans fats
- alcohol
- processed and red meat
- extra salt and sugar
- refined grains
- highly processed foods
A healthy diet food chart for one person might not be perfectly suited to another. For instance, whole wheat flour is a healthy ingredient for most people but it’s not suitable for the ones with the issue of gluten intolerance.
2. Making your balanced diet tastier
Now, when it comes to healthy food, the common notion is that it cannot be healthier. Thus, sticking to a balanced diet for a long period of time becomes a tad bit difficult for some people. However, the truth is that even healthy food can be made a lot tastier by knowing the right tricks.
For instance, it is outlined repeatedly that fast food like pizza is bad for your health. But instead of saying goodbye to pizza forever, you can simply use a whole wheat bread and load it with veggies and lean meat. The idea of a balanced diet is not to give up on your favorite foods, but to make it healthier.
So, if you feel like having fruit juice someday, make it at home with fresh oranges instead of chugging the store-bought ones. However, it is better to have whole fruits as well and not only fruit juices. Even stir-fried veggies and nuts for snacks can be filling and appetizing. The aim is to eat smart to make your body get the nutrition it needs, while you are happy and satisfied with the food you eat.
The bottom line
A balanced diet meaning is that you should eat foods from all the five major food groups. The dietary guidelines tend to change in time when the scientists discover newer information about the food groups and nutrition. As per the present recommendations, your plate needs to primarily have soluble fiber, some dairy, some lean proteins, and fruits and vegetables. The ones who are interested in losing weight should also think of introducing at least moderate exercise in their routines.
