By Maryam Shahid :Healthy Eating: What really is it?

‘Healthy Eating’ is a term excessively being used nowadays by multiple platforms for multiple reasons. It could be to spread a recipe video or market a product or target customers, further adding to the existing confusion on what it really is. Healthy eating is not as complicated as it seems to be. It is not strict limitations, staying unrealistically thin, or depriving yourself of the foods you love. Rather it is providing your body with all the nutrients it needs through a balanced diet. A balanced diet is the one that includes protein, fat, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. None of the categories should be completely eliminated as our body needs all of them, rather the healthiest choices from each category should be selected.

A balanced diet is attained by including all the food groups in your meal. Therefore, at every meal your plate must look like:

• Make half of your plate Fruits/Vegetables.
• Focus on whole, unprocessed, fresh fruits rather than fruit juices.
• Keep a variety of vegetables and choose brightly colored ones.
• Make half of your grains as whole grains.
• Keep varying your Protein. Choose from eggs, lean meats, poultry, and seafood, as well as beans, peas, lentils, nuts, and seeds.
• Limit foods and beverages higher in added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium.

Healthy Eating is not difficult and can be budget friendly as well. One does not need to buy all the expensive imported fruits and vegetables but can rely on the less costly local produce. Also, one must make better choices by saving money spent on processed food and using it on healthier fresh products. Moreover, prevention is always better than cure. Buying costly but healthy food products is like investing in one’s own health. Making better choices today is going to keep us healthy and protected from a multitude of diseases in the future.

Healthy Eating is not something one does for a period of time, but it is a lifestyle that one adopts. A lifestyle that results in one being more energetic, positive and healthy. To start this journey, one must begin with small steps by bringing about small changes like going from deep frying to air frying/baking, controlling portion sizes, mindful eating, opting for fresh rather than processed and pairing it all with 30 minutes of physical activity. Slow changes are better sustained, and smaller steps bring slower but lasting results.