- Health, Fitness & Weight Loss
- Sport Specific Performance
- Nutrition
- Adapting Recipes
- Avoiding the Runs while Running
- Breakfast Boycotters Beware!
- Dentist Dollars
- Don't De-Tox, De-Junk!
- Eat Well to Stay Healthy this Winter
- Food Additives
- Get Grainwise
- Healthy Eating - It's a Balancing Act!
- Healthy from the Inside Out
- How Alcohol can Contribute to your Weight
- How Food Choices can Influence your Sleep
- How Iron Deficiency Impairs Performance
- Is Sugar the New Fat?
- Improving your Power to Weight Ratio
- Portion Patrol and Control
- Sports Drinks - Do they Work?
- Supermarket Shopping Survival
- Sustainable Eating Practices
- Ten Top Tips when Out Eating
- Vitamin D - The Sunshine Vitamin
- Will Vitamin Supplements Keep the Bugs at Bay?
- Training with Specific Conditions
- References
Healthy from the Inside Out
Healthy Eating Tips for the End of Summer
The summer season is over and whether you achieved the bikini body you were searching for or have managed to stick to your News Years Resolution, it is worth remembering that you do not need to be fat on the outside to be fat on the inside. It is not uncommon for slim people to be ‘unhealthy’ and even fit individuals can’t be exempt from this group.
The most common dietary culprit that makes us ‘unhealthy’ on the inside is saturated fat (often referred to as animal fat). Saturated fat is the type of fat that raises blood cholesterol levels, a major factor in heart disease which is this countries biggest killer. Found in products like full fat dairy products, pastry items, fat on meat/ skin on chicken, and commercially baked items such as muffins and cakes.
Fats that are unsaturated or plant based (e.g. olive oil, avocado, nuts and seeds) help lower blood cholesterol and in turn your risk of heart disease. But remember they are still a fat so watch your portion sizes otherwise your waist line might start expanding!
Over summer we spend more time exercising outdoors and our diet tends to have items higher in saturated fat. Cheese for instance is a convenient protein source and it’s salty, which is often what we crave when exercising. Snack bars and chocolate are other examples. These types of foods can make a difference, particularly if you have a family history of heart disease.
Top Tips for Lowering Saturated Fat Intake:
- Use milk powder or choose skim milk powder, rather than regular.
- Choose snack bars that contain less than 5g saturated fat/ 100g
- Reduce your chocolate portion – include a small amount as part of a scroggin mix, rather than as a whole bar. This way you get the added benefits of the nuts as well
- Use tuna/salmon (in foil packs) as a protein in place of cheese. These pack easy, come in a variety of flavours and are also high in omega-3.
April is a bit of an in between month in terms of food. All that nice summer stone fruit has disappears and it’s not quite hot enough for salads, but not quite cold enough for vegetables. It is not uncommon for our fruit and vegetable consumption to reduce over this time, so it's important that you make an effort to get your 5+ serves a day of fruits and vegetables. Remember, they don’t always have to be fresh – try dried, canned, frozen and juiced varieties.
Red Cabbage is in season this April
Red cabbage is a great source of fibre, folate and vitamin C. It also has the added benefit of containing the ‘red’ phytochemicals that have health promoting properties. Red cabbage is very versatile – it is a great way to add colour to a plate and it can be eaten raw, shredded into coleslaw or cooked to give a tender but crisp texture to any dish.
By Kath Fouhy, BSc, PG DipDiet, NZRD - 27/03/09