Heartsavers - Diet
The role of diet in the prevention of degenerative
diseases such as coronary heart disease is well known.
Prevention of coronary heart disease.
The role of a healthy diet
Many people go on a diet and fail. Why is this? The most probable explanation is that many diet plans are based on calorie counting or depriving yourself of food. These diets fail for the simple reason that people get hungry and revert back to their former eating pattern.
A good diet should not be based on deprivation you should be able to eat as much as you like of delicious filling food and never feel hungry.
Instead of concentrating on the amount of food you eat it's much better to pay attention to the type of food you eat. A high fibre diet where the main source of energy is complex carbohydrates will satisfy your hunger. You also need to drastically reduce the fat in your diet, eating fat makes you fat!
There is a vast choice of healthy cuisine available that tastes great. Following a healthy diet need not be a hardship, on the contrary you will find that you will enjoy your food more than you have for years.
First, consider the basic nutrients required for human health:
- Fats
- Carbohydrates
- Protein
- Vitamins
- Minerals
- Water
In the next few sections we will look at each of these in detail.