Nutrition Basics

By Bari Mandelbaum

 

Proper nutrition is important for building and maintaining good health. Eating well keeps your body in balance, working properly. You are what you eat – parts of the food you eat literally form the building blocks of all your body structures and responses, including muscle, skin, nerves, enzymes, hormones, etc. Eating junk food to support your body is like trying to build a house out of termite-infested wood. Not a pretty picture.

 

 

Let’s define food, shall we? “Food” can be defined as that which we eat which nourishes & sustains us. Here’s a thought to chew on - just because you can chew it up and swallow it doesn’t make it food. Donuts? Diet cola? Not food. But here’s another thought – nourishment may mean different things in different situations.

 

While it may not be a great idea to eat granny’s famous chocolate cake every day, it may be extremely nourishing to eat it while visiting her when she made it special for your birthday, or with family while remembering her after she’s passed on. Here we’re not nourishing our bodies necessarily, but food may also nourish our hearts or our spirits. So don’t let any food rule keep you from accessing true nourishment. And, you’re the only one who knows what truly nourishes you.

 

The goal of this article is to give you some basic tools for creating your own eating habits and meal plans based on basic nutrition information. I’ve also included some tips on where to start and how to put this information together in a cohesive and non-dogmatic way.

 

What are healthy food choices?

 

Aim for balanced natural whole foods, with a focus on healthy proteins, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds, fruits and vegetables. Limit or avoid processed and refined foods, especially simple sugars and carbohydrates and hydrogenated oils. A whole food is one that enters your mouth the way it entered this world: with all its (edible) parts intact. Examples of whole foods include whole grains (brown rice, kasha, millet), raw or steamed fresh fruits and vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds, eggs, fish, and other foods. The idea is that the food has not been processed, or has only been minimally processed. This simple and healthful way to eat and prepare foods presents the foods in their natural state, with all their naturally occurring nutrients still intact. This type of eating is called “nutrient-dense”, because natural, unprocessed foods are richer in nutrients than processed foods: processing and refining foods removes their nutrients.

 

Here’s a weight management tip: When we eat processed foods, we often find we eat a larger quantity of food than when eating natural foods – we’re still hungry. This is because in order to feel satiated, our body is waiting to get the broad spectrum of nourishment it needs to function. If our foods have been stripped of vitamins and minerals, we may find we’re still hungry because we haven’t gotten the nutrients. When we eat whole foods, our bodies need less food, and better utilize the foods that we’ve eaten.

 

The Basics: A Healthy Eating Primer

 

There are three main components found in food that we all need, every day, in order for our bodies to work properly. These are Carbohydrates, Proteins, and Fats. The relative amounts of each of these nutrients that a person’s body needs to function properly will be somewhat different for different people, but for most of us will fall somewhere within the following nutrient ratios: 40-60% carbohydrates, 15-30% proteins, and 10-30% fats.

 

Any diet plan that tries to demonize or eliminate any of these three basic macronutrients is suspect and probably not very healthy or sustainable.

 

 

Excess sugar gets stored as fat in our bodies, and can also contribute to health problems such as diabetes, hormone imbalance, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and other problems. Sugar plays a huge role in creating excess weight for many people – the average American, according to the CDC consumes 150 lbs of sugar per person per year. A single can of soda contains 12-16 tsp. of sugar. Starches eventually digest down into sugar, which means that starches should be eaten in moderation, but the sugar from digested starches gets released into our bloodstream more slowly, which helps our bodies better handle the sugar. Fiber is the indigestible portion of plant based foods and is crucial for general good health and therefore for healthy weight management. Fiber helps the body get rid of excess fat and toxins, and slows the absorption of sugar into the blood stream. Fiber also helps to lower cholesterol, balance hormones, and keeps your digestive tract working properly

 

 

Let balance be your guide! Meals and snacks will best benefit you if they include foods containing some protein and/or fat, paired with fruit and/or vegetables. Starches can be added in as needed, but may better serve you eaten with other foods. If you want something starchy, try eating it with foods containing some protein or fat.

 

Fiber, protein and fat all slows the absorption of sugar into your body, which helps your body to better use the sugar in the food and makes it less likely for the increase in blood sugar to upset your insulin levels.

 

Here’s another important tip – make small and gradual changes. While some of us can throw out a lifetime of eating habits (which include how we budget for food, where we buy our food and ingredients, how we prepare food, and how much time we allot for eating, as well as what we actually eat), most of us can’t. Decide on one or two simple and attainable changes and see if you can stick with them for 3 weeks – i.e.: I will add one piece of fruit to my day; I will take the dog out for a 10 minute walk three times per week; I will substitute one can of diet soda with one cup of green tea per day. Reassess at the end of the 3 weeks and see if the change is something you like and can maintain, and then add the next change.

 

 

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About the author: Bari Mandelbaum is the founder of Food Fairie Nutrition and Wellness Services. Bari’s background includes expertise in holistic nutrition, patient advocacy, stress management, herbalism and meditation.

 

Bari received her BA form Stanford University; and her four levels of nutrition certification from Bauman College, where she works as an instructor. She is registered with the National Association of Nutrition Professionals, and serves as Vice President for the California chapter of NANP.