Sunday, March 4, 2012

National Nutrition Month 2012 - Get Your Plate in Shape!


March is National Nutrition Month & the theme this year is Get Your Plate in Shape!

Based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans  there are several simple changes suggested for consumers to make starting this month, so their plate (& food intake!) are healthier.

Let's start with the first recommendation:

Make half your plate fruits and vegetables 


Why? Well, by covering half your plate with fruit & vegetables this will automatically mean your portions of other foods will be more controlled.   I would go further than just saying 'make half your plate fruit & veg' & say - eat your fruit & veg first!

Fruit & veg are low calorie foods that are packed with nutrition.  By filling up on this food group first you'll be nourishing your body and controlling calorie intake in one simple step!

Fruit & veg add color and interest to food making it visually appealing and can be eaten raw, steamed, baked, roasted or stir-fried - they're so versatile!

I love the phrase 'eat a rainbow' and by doing this you'll be supplying your body with a wonderful variety of the nutrients it needs every day as each different colored food provides different vitamins & minerals.

Fresh, frozen and canned varieties are all good - choose vegetables that state 'reduced sodium' or 'no salt added' and fruit canned in water or 100% fruit juice.  Avoid frozen veg in a creamy or butter sauce or fruit in any kind of syrup.

Add herbs & spices to them when cooking or serving and the tastes & options are limitless!

For more information visit The Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.



2 comments:

David Franklin said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Fitness News said...

Really great article about Nutrition, it will very helpful for fitness, Thank you for this blog!

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