Healthy Diets

A Healthy Diets focuses on nutrient-dense foods from all of the major food groups. It helps reduce your risk for many chronic health conditions and may help prevent weight gain. A healthful diet limits saturated and trans fats and emphasizes unsaturated fats, particularly omega-3 fatty acids. It also contains less added sugar and sodium. This type of diet supports a healthy heart and lowers blood pressure, and may help protect against cancer, neurodegeneration and diabetes.

Healthy Diets That Support Your Rehab and Recovery Journey

A healthful diet also encourages whole, unprocessed foods over highly processed ones. This means skipping ice cream, candy, soda, fried foods and highly processed snack foods in favor of whole, nutrient-dense options like fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and nuts. It’s okay to have some of these foods, but they should be treats and not staples in your diet.

When designing a healthful diet, start by choosing one change to make at a time. It may be as simple as switching to brown rice or adding a serving of vegetables to dinner. Eventually, you’ll add more and more changes until your diet is a healthful one. This will give you the best chance to stick with it over time. You should also try to eat with others as much as possible since socializing while you eat can encourage mindful eating and a healthier diet. This is especially important if you’re trying to eat more healthfully to manage your weight or prevent other diseases.