10 Food Rules to Keep You Healthy in 2012
January 9, 2012
•Le Cordon Bleu
•Las Vegas
• 0 Comments
10 Food Rules to Keep You Healthy in 2012
As any nutritionalist will tell you, it’s not just what you eat but when, where, why, and how you eat that makes the difference. There are many reasons to make poor nutritional choices. Maybe you have a demanding career. Maybe you’re a busy Las Vegas college student. Maybe you shuttle the kids to and from school and sporting events.
No matter what the reason, there are easy ways to avoid those poor choices. We’ve put together this list of 10 food rules to help keep you healthy in the New Year.
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Don’t Eat Junk
This might be self-evident, but with an epidemic of obesity facing our nation, it might not be. Salty snacks, processed, candies, and pre-packaged and canned foods must be cut way back or avoided altogether to maintain weight and health. This is the hardest for you Las Vegas college students, but if you look carefully you’ll be able to find healthy alternatives for those inevitable midnight snacks
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Buy the Highest Quality Foods You Can Afford
Following on number one, the better food you eat, the healthier you’ll be. We’re not talking Beluga caviar or wagyu beef, but we are saying local organic options for produce, dairy, and meat are the way to go. They have fewer additives, hormones, and pesticides than their industrial farm counterparts
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Don’t Drink Your Calories
With the abundance of varieties of sodas, sports drinks, energy drinks, fruit juices, and other highly sweetened drinks on the market, most Americans drink far too many calories, especially kids. And unfortunately most of these heavily sweetened drinks are consumed with meals too high in fat and carbohydrates. Some of the best alternatives include water, unsweetened teas and coffees, and soy beverages.
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Eat More Slowly
When you eat too fast, you tend to eat too much. If you eat quickly you can eat right past the point of being full because your body can’t keep up the pace. Eating too fast also impairs digestion and raises insulin and cortisol levels, which cause you to store instead of burn fat.
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Eat Food as Close to Its Natural State as Possible
The raw food movement is big right now, and for good reason. Processing or cooking food too much removes many of its beneficial vitamins and minerals. The best candidates for raw consumption are vegetables, nuts, fruits, and seeds. Increasing your intake of these raw foods will help keep you more satisfied and greatly increase your intake of fiber
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Fat Is Your Friend, Just Be Smart
Don’t eliminate fat from your diet. It is a necessary nutrient for your body. You must, however, be smart about how much, and especially what types, you eat. Omega-3 oils found in fish, nuts, and some vegetables are nutritional powerhouses. Trans fats found in highly processed foods are actually now illegal in some states and cities because of their negative health affects
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Eat More Often, But Eat Less
The more your metabolism is exercised; the harder it will work for you. Keep your metabolism revved by eating more frequently but consuming fewer calories. The old rule of three square meals a day is out, and the new one of five to six meals a day is in. The key, of course, is too keep each meal balanced, healthy, and in the 400 to 500 calorie range, depending on your activity level.
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Veg Out
Eat as much as you want; they’re free. Notice we didn’t say fruits. While fruits are healthy and beneficial, you can go overboard on sugar. Sure it’s natural sugar, but eating too much sugar is no good no matter how you do it. Vegetables are another matter. Most are lower in sugar and lower in fat than nearly all other foods. Too much of a good thing just isn’t possible when it comes to eating vegetables
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P
â
tisserie? Not for Me
Okay, so you love pâtisserie. Who doesn’t? But those fancy muffins, croissants, and breads are loaded with carbohydrates that you just don’t need. We’re not suggesting you go on the Atkins Diet, but you will be amazed at how many calories you consume as carbohydrates when you start counting them. Begin by replacing empty carbs of salty snacks and desserts with complex carbs like whole grains and vegetables. Your insulin levels will drop and your body’s natural fat burning machine will be ignited
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Avoid Dieting
Dieting is unhealthy. Radical alterations of eating patterns are not sustainable and lead to the yoyo effect of losing and gaining large amounts of weight. Healthy eating is not a restriction. It is a lifestyle choice that you must get in the habit of making all the time. Eating moderate amounts of anything is possible when you follow an overall plan of balanced eating and vigorous exercise. In fact, you may find that when you make the right lifestyle choices you may be eating more while still losing weight.
This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Las Vegas. Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Las Vegas offers culinary arts and pâtisserie and baking training programs in Las Vegas, Nevada. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit Chefs.edu/Las-Vegas for more information.
Find disclosures on graduation rates, student financial obligations and more at www.chefs.edu/disclosures. Le Cordon Bleu® and the Le Cordon Bleu logo are registered trademarks of Career Education Corporation. Le Cordon Bleu cannot guarantee employment or salary. Credits earned are unlikely to transfer.