5 ways to clean up your diet
Every year, I look for ways to clean up my diet more than the last.
There is really no definition to eating “clean”; you can translate “clean up your diet” anyway that you see fit.
Here are five ways to clean up your diet:
1. Get rid of processed food-like substances.
Look at the ingredient list of a product. When you cannot pronounce most of the ingredients, you are probably in processed-food territory. Boxed food, frozen entrees, and snack foods often have many processed-food ingredients.
2. Eat more fruits and vegetables.
Look at the ingredient list of a product. When you cannot pronounce most of the ingredients, you are probably in processed-food territory. Boxed food, frozen entrees, and snack foods often have many processed-food ingredients.
3. Eat whole grains, not enriched grains.
Whole grains are grains in their natural form. Whole wheat, bulgur, barley, quinoa, oats, corn, and brown rice are all whole grains. These are packed with fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Enriched grains are stripped of their original fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
4. Choose unprocessed meats.
Bacon, sausage, chicken nuggets/patties/strips, jerky, and similar meets are all heavily processed. Sodium and other additives in these products are often to blame for health issues like high blood pressure, migraines, and even stomach cancer. Choose meat in its natural form! If possible, choose local, grass fed, organic meats.
5. Drink water…just water.
Consciously choose water instead of drinking sodas (diet or regular), juices, energy drinks, and other processed beverages. Water can hydrate you, flush out your kidneys and colon, as well as keep your metabolism working at full force.
“But it’s more expensive to eat this way,” you say? If you are not spending money on processed products, then you can put that money towards fresh, unprocessed, whole foods.
Karen Smith, a dietitian and mentor of mine, once said: “It doesn’t cost more to eat less.” She’s exactly right! Reduce your portions and just buy real food to clean up your diet!
Nicole Lindsey is a health education and wellness manager at Capital BlueCross.
