How do you have a balanced diet? 11 basic principles of respect
We know that our diet has a huge impact on our health. What should you eat to keep fit? What foods do you prefer, and what foods are best to avoid in order to have a good, balanced diet? Discover 11 basic principles to apply on a daily basis.
What is a balanced diet?
The definition of a balanced diet is to eat all food categories in the appropriate quantities and quality, with the aim of providing the optimal nutritional intake for our body and health. In other words, it's about eating everything, without overdoing it and for the long haul, not just one day in a while! A balanced diet is drawn up every week. Another reason to start: A balanced diet contributes to weight loss without sacrificing your health.
Nutritional Balance: Say “Yes” to the House
To eat better every day, cooking is essential. Preparing your own meal is a guarantee that you know exactly what you're eating: no dyes and no preservatives that are harmful to health. By betting on household products, we are also limiting our consumption of sugars, salt and saturated fats, which are just as dangerous to health as it is.
Food Balance: Mix the colors
A nice plate is an unbalanced plate. And, on the contrary, the “Rainbow” palette is rich in vitamins, antioxidants and minerals necessary for our body. examples? Yellow fruits and vegetables (carrots, melons, sweet potatoes, etc.) provide beta-carotene, which is good for the eyes and skin. Green vegetables (spinach, broccoli, etc.) provide lutein, a well-known anti-cancer drug. Red plants (cherries, beets, tomatoes, etc.) can delay some diseases associated with aging, etc. So the standard dish for a balanced diet is a colorful dish!
Food balance: which menu for breakfast?
A breakfast rich in carbohydrates has been shown to promote drowsiness while a breakfast rich in protein stays more powerful and allows you to stay well focused throughout the morning. Eating 25 to 30 grams of protein every morning would better regulate blood sugar. Top in the case of type 2 diabetes, or simply to keep fit like the streak.
Nutritional Balance: Long Live the Good Fats!
Fats are not our enemies: on the contrary, fats should account for 35% to 40% of daily intake. It is recommended to avoid saturated fats found in ready meals, pastries, industrial pastries, some meats and hot vegetable oils. For other fat sources, the key words are: veggies, fish, alternation and quality!
Nutritional balance: take our foot off the salt
Salt is a powerful enemy: it raises blood pressure, and thus promotes cardiovascular disease. To reduce its daily consumption, we take the reaction to reading the labels of industrial products (ready-made meals, charcuterie, sauces ...) and replace them in the kitchen with spices or herbs.
Nutritional Balance: Take It Easy on Sugar
Excess sugar is seriously harmful to health - it is even the second leading cause of death in the world after tobacco! Sugar is addictive, encourages obesity, some heart diseases, certain types of cancer, some neurodegenerative diseases, type 2 diabetes... Thus a glass of fruit juice turns into a glass of water with lemon juice added, and a morning brioche becomes a slice of wheat bread. Whole + a piece of butter, and the chocolate bar disappears from the snack in favor of a handful of almonds ...
Nutritional balance: limit meat and fish
If meat remains a food of high nutritional value (animal protein, iron, zinc, vitamins ...), then there is no point in eating it every day. Right Rhythm: 3 to 5 servings per week, 400g to 500g per person, alternating with eggs and fish. As for charcuterie, its consumption should still be occasional! With regard to fish, it is better to avoid predators whose meat is concentrated in heavy metals - this concerns swordfish, ski, monkfish, tuna, marlin ... So we prefer sea bass, anchovies, sardines or even salmon. Health authorities recommend eating two servings per week for a balanced diet.
Food Balance: We Shop Better
A balanced diet necessarily depends on what you buy and what you put on the menu! Now that you know more about which foods to prefer or avoid, you're already better armed. You can also help yourself with very practical tools: the traditional shopping list, the forecast lists for the week, or the more modern applications: the applications. The ConsoMieux app developed by Intermarché as part of
the Eat Better curriculum is the perfect illustration. You enter your criteria (more vegetables, less salt, etc.) and the app filters the product catalog for you while calculating the nutritional score for each according to your profile. It is easier in this case to put the balance of food in the menu! In the context of Better Eating, the Mousquetaires brand has also carried out a global overhaul of its recipes to improve the nutritional quality of its products, while reducing salt, sugar, fats and additives.
Food balance: We prefer gentle cooking
Cooking changes the nutritional values of foods, especially their vitamin and mineral content. Should be avoided: Barbecue cooking that causes the formation of carcinogenic compounds due to high temperature and direct contact with flame. Cooking in a frying pan (or in the oven) is a good option, provided you keep the temperature on average. We limit cooking in water and cooking in casseroles, which leads to loss of vitamins. The best option? Gentle steaming that preserves nutrients - same goes for papillary-style cooking.
Nutritional balance: We hydrate ourselves on a daily basis
Our body consists of about 65% of water: it is enough for this reserve to decrease by 1% until you feel fatigue and a decrease in mental and physical abilities by about 10%. Health authorities recommend consuming about 1.5 liters of water per day, a number that varies depending on obesity, diet and temperature. Preferable: plain water (which provides minerals and trace elements without calories).
Nutritional balance: we take the time to eat
The ideal lunch lasts at least 30 minutes: sit down, take the time to chew and swallow each bite before eating another, place eating utensils regularly and stop eating when you feel hungry. Taking the time to eat can limit snacking between meals and weight gain: which is essential to a truly balanced diet!