What is a healthy diet?

According to many scientists, our physical health depends 50% on lifestyle and diet, 20% on heredity and environmental influences and only 10% on the level of medical care.

But.

What exactly is a healthy diet?

That is what this article is about.

Why should we eat healthy?

Before we turn to what a healthy diet means – let’s look at why it is important.

Firstly, food provides us with energy (calories) and the nutrients our bodies need to function.

And.

When we do not provide our body with enough calories and nutrients – our health deteriorates

Our health also deteriorates if we consume too many calories because we gain weight then.

And.

Obese people have a significantly higher risk of developing various diseases like:

1. Cardiovascular disease (the leading cause of death in the world today).
2. Type 2 diabetes.
3. Liver and kidney disease.
4. Obstructive sleep apnoea.
5. …

Moreover, the quality of diet affects not only disease risks but also longevity, mental health and even mood.

A diet high in highly processed foods is associated with higher mortality and a higher risk of heart disease, cancer, etc. It may also increase the risk of depressive symptoms, especially in people with sedentary lifestyles.

On the other hand.

A diet based on a variety of wholesome, nutrient-dense foods is associated with longevity and better protection against disease.

Besides, if our diet is high in highly processed foods and beverages – such as fast food, sugary fizzy drinks, high-sugar cereals, etc., and low in wholesome foods such as vegetables, nuts and fish, we are unlikely to be getting enough of certain nutrients, which in turn can negatively affect our overall health.

The problem is that poor nutrition worsens our health and shortens our lives unnoticeably – by causing initially small changes in our bodies (high blood pressure, overweight, bad cholesterol, etc.) which in turn contribute to the development of non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, etc.

In other words – although studies show that unhealthy diets, for example, shorten life more than smoking, most people begin to think about what they eat and how much they eat only when they are already experiencing real health problems.

What is a healthy diet?

The most common definitions are:

• A healthy diet is a diet that promotes growth and optimal development of the body, adequate livelihood, health promotion and prevention of non-communicable diseases including diabetes, heart disease, stroke and cancer.

And.

• A healthy diet is a diet that provides the human body with all the nutrients it needs without exceeding the recommended daily calorie intake.

A healthy and balanced diet is not just another weight loss or detox diet, but eating habits that make you healthier, give you more energy and yes – it’s a way of life.

And that’s why.

Cleaning up your eating habits is the first step towards your new you.

The main problem with modern diets is the rise in highly processed food consumption, which has led to health-threatening changes around the world:

• We consume too many foods high in calories, fat, sugar and salt.

But.

• Our diets contain less and less vegetables, fruit and whole grains.

With highly processed foods, we consume not only synthetic food additives but also:

• Too many calories (mostly from fat and sugar) which, if unused, turn into fat.
• Too much salt, which creates unnecessary water retention.

And we put all this in our bodies without realising it, because most people pay little or no attention to product labels, or don’t know how to translate the information they contain into “human language”, e.g.: if you eat this, you will gain weight or run for 40 minutes to burn off the calories you just ate.

The basics of healthy eating

The key to a healthy diet is:

• Variety/diversity and balance provide all the necessary nutrients.

And.

• Moderation, providing optimal calorie intake.

Nutrient content

When you think of healthy eating, your first thought might be about calories.

Yes, calories are important, but it’s the nutrients that you should focus on.

Because.

Nutrients (proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals and bioactive substances) are necessary for your body to develop (to sustain life).

There is even a special term for this in nutrition science – ‘nutrient density‘, which is the amount of nutrients in a food relative to the amount of calories it contains (or its weight).

In other words, all foods contain calories, but not all are also high in nutrients. For example, sweets or crisps are usually high in calories but low in vitamins, minerals, protein and fibre.

Similarly, products advertised as ‘dietetic’ or ‘low-calorie’ may be low in calories and nutrients. For example, egg whites contain far fewer calories and fat than whole eggs and provide only 1% or less of our daily intake of iron, phosphorus, zinc, choline and vitamins A and B12 while a complete egg contains 5-21% of these nutrients.

And.

While some nutrient-dense foods (e.g. fruit and vegetables) are low in calories, others are high in calories (e.g. nuts, whole milk products, egg yolks, avocados, oily fish, etc.).

And that’s not a bad thing!

Just because a food is high in calories doesn’t mean it’s bad for you.

Conversely, just because a food is low in calories does not mean it is healthy.

In other words, food choices should be based not only on calories (energy) but also on how much and what nutrients they contain.

Diet diversity

Another component of a healthy diet is dietary diversity, which means eating a variety of foods because there are no foods that contain all the nutrients we need and in the quantities we need, for example:

• Meat is high in protein but relatively low in vitamins.

But

• Vegetables are high in vitamins and minerals but low in protein and fat (and the composition and quantity of vitamins and minerals also varies from vegetable to vegetable).

I know that addiction has a lot of power, so it can be a challenge to include lots of different foods in your diet.

But give it a try – many participants in my slimming challenges have been sceptical at first about unusual food combinations but after trying them, have found them very tasty😊.

Proportions of macronutrients

Macronutrients are the main nutrients we get from food – proteins, carbohydrates and fats (fibre is considered a type of carbohydrate).

Meals and snacks should be balanced – each meal should contain 45-65% of calories from carbohydrates, 20-35% from fat and 10-30% from protein.

Keeping these proportions also increases satiety and improves the taste of foods, for example:

• Adding protein and fat to fibre-rich carbohydrates (e.g. wholemeal bread or pasta) makes your food more filling and tasty.

Or.

• If your snack consists of fruit, add a spoonful of nut butter or a little cheese – this will help you feel fuller than if you ate fruit alone.

On the other hand, counting macronutrients and obsessing about staying within a certain range can lead to unhealthy attitudes towards food and can cause eating disorders – so don’t overdo it!

Do I have to follow a certain diet to eat healthy?

Definitely not!

While some people may avoid certain foods for health reasons, most do not have to follow a specific diet.

This does not mean that certain eating habits cannot be beneficial. For example, some people feel better eating low-carbohydrate foods, while others prefer high-carbohydrate foods.

However.

Generally speaking, healthy eating has nothing to do with diet or following a particular set of dietary rules. “Healthy eating” means prioritising good health – providing the body with nutrients and balancing calories taken in and calories burned/used.

Ways of doing this can vary depending on where you live, your financial situation, your culture and your taste buds.

How can I change my eating habits towards a healthy diet?

Everyone can eat a varied, balanced and healthy diet. And the sooner you start, the less overweight and other health problems you will have.

I usually hear two types of excuses:

• I’m too busy, I don’t have time for cooking! Then what is more important to you – good health or a career? Do you really believe devoting yourself to your career, damaging your health and visiting doctors’ offices regularly years later will make you happier? A balanced and healthy diet gives you more energy – resulting in less fatigue and increased performance – maybe that’s what you need right now?
• Healthy food is not tasty. I agree – if you are constantly “sitting” on boiled chicken fillets and lettuce leaves – it is monotonous and not very tasty. But – there are so many healthy products and ways to prepare them. Look at the recipe section of my blog and give it a try.

How to start eating healthy:

1. Try to balance your energy intake – the average number of calories you take in per day with the average number of calories you consume. If you are already overweight, reduce your calorie intake by 10-15% of what you need. You can calculate the calories you need to lose weight HERE.
2. To avoid unhealthy weight gain, total fat intake should not exceed 30% of total calories consumed. This should include saturated fats less than 10% and trans fats less than 1% of total calorie intake. Replace saturated and trans fats with unsaturated fats and try to avoid industrially ultra-processed foods, which are the main sources of trans fatty acids.
3. Use a variety of fresh (non-industrially processed) foods as much as possible in your diet. In other words, do not use ready-made products, but cook them yourself. Follow the dietary guidelines of the Mediterranean diet – it is recognized as one of the healthiest diets and is on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list for a reason.
4. Daily consumption of vegetables, legumes and fruit should be at least 400 g per day (in addition to potatoes and other starchy root vegetables).
5. The consumption of free sugars should be less than 10% of total calorie intake, but given that sugar is often ingested unconsciously, a reduction to 5% would be preferable. Free sugars are all sugars added to foods or beverages (both those added by the manufacturer, e.g. to biscuits and those added by you, e.g. to coffee), as well as those naturally occurring in honey, syrups, fruit juices and their concentrates.
6. Try to consume less than 5 g of salt per day (a teaspoon without a heap) – this will help reduce the risk of hypertension, heart disease and stroke.
7. Drink enough water. You should drink 30-40 ml of water per kg of your body weight throughout the day. Read more about why you should drink water HERE and HERE.
8. Try to reduce the amount of alcohol you drink in your daily life or don’t drink alcohol at all. There is no set safe intake of alcohol for health, and some authors even believe that small amounts of alcohol are advisable (e.g. in the Mediterranean diet mentioned above, wine in small quantities with food is considered normal). By way of comparison, 100 ml of dry red wine contains around 80 kcal, while 100 ml of vodka is already around 240 kcal.
9. Breastfeeding, in combination with proper complementary nutrition, reduces the risk of obesity and other non-communicable diseases for the child in the future. Read about healthy eating during pregnancy HERE.

Do not exaggerate, remember that these are general recommendations. The exact composition of a healthy diet depends on the age, sex, lifestyle and level of physical activity of the individual.

See how the calculation of basic metabolism (calories/energy used to sustain life processes without additional physical activity) differs for men and women according to their age:

Dietary recommendations for certain foods

Vegetables, legumes and fruit

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), you should eat at least 400 grams of vegetables, legumes or fruit daily. This amount of fresh vegetables and/or legumes (beans, peas, lentils, etc.) and/or fruit has been shown to provide the body with the minimum amount of fibre it needs.

If you rarely ate these foods in the past, increase the amount of them in your diet by:

• Including vegetables at every meal.
• Using fresh vegetables and fruit as snacks.

Prefer seasonal vegetables, legumes and fruit. Eat as many fruits and vegetables as possible and expand the variety of the foods. Try low-calorie recipes with celery, turnip, pumpkin, and broccoli!

Fats

The WHO recommends limiting intake of all vegetable and animal fats to 30% or less of total daily calorie intake, reducing intake of trans-fats and replacing saturated fats and trans-fats with unsaturated fats – preferably polyunsaturated fats:

• Eat fresh, unprocessed foods. Avoid highly processed (packaged) products, often high in trans-fatty acids;
• When cooking, replace margarine and refined oils with raw, cold-pressed oils like Extra Virgin Olive Oil;
• It is better to steam, boil or grill the products if frying then choose an oil suitable for frying and only brush the pan with it (rather than bathing the products in oil). Eliminate or at least reduce the proportion of deep-fried products in your diet;
• Replace butter and lard with vegetable oils rich in polyunsaturated fats such as unrefined olive, sunflower, rapeseed, avocado, and corn oils;
• Buy dairy products that are naturally low-fat or reduced-fat (skimmed cottage cheese, cheese and cream cheese with around 10-20% fat, milk up to 2%, sour cream up to 15%, or even better, replace sour cream with natural yoghurt);
• Buy lean meat (ideally turkey, chicken or young beef) and cut off any visible fat before cooking.

Sugar

Excessive sugar consumption contributes to weight gain and obesity, as well as increasing the risk of tooth decay. Studies have shown that sugar affect blood pressure and serum lipid levels. This suggests that reducing sugar consumption helps to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Remember, sugar itself is not harmful, harmful is excessive sugar intake, as this will exceed your daily calorie requirement, which in turn means that the excess is more likely to be converted into fat. Snacking can add up to a lot of extra calories during the day, and as a result, it’s like eating nothing but gaining weight. Especially with sweetened fizzy drinks and packet juices lots of extra liquid calories can be taken in. Read more about sugar HERE.

Sugar consumption can be reduced by:

• Limiting the amount of sugary snacks, sweets and sweetened drinks in your diet (fizzy and non-carbonated soft drinks, fruit and vegetable juices, energy and sports drinks, ready-made teas and coffees, flavoured milk drinks, etc.).
• Replacing sugary snacks with fresh fruit and vegetables.

Salt (sodium and potassium)

According to World Health Organisation data, reducing salt intake to the recommended level (less than 5 grams per day) could help prevent 1.65 million deaths a year. Again, don’t misunderstand – salt is not a poison and our bodies need it, but we shouldn’t intake too much of it.

People often don’t know how much salt they are consuming as most of it comes from industrially processed products (processed meats, bacon, ham, sausages. Cheese. Various salty snacks. Cubes of broth. Soy and fish sauces, etc.).

Salt consumption can be reduced by:

• Using spices that increase the sensitivity of taste receptors to salt (e.g. hot peppers or chillies).
• Limiting the proportion of processed foods in your diet.
• Avoiding salt and sauces high in sodium,
• Limiting the consumption of salty snacks.
• Reading product labels and choosing products with lower salt content.
• Including more vegetables and fruits with a higher potassium content in the diet, as potassium can reduce the negative effects of excessive sodium intake on blood pressure.

Key takeaways

“You are what you eat” – these words from Hippocrates are more relevant than ever today when we eat less and less fresh and unprocessed food because our cells, tissues and organs are made up of what we put in our mouths. Consequently – it is up to us whether they are made from good ingredients and how many unnatural, foreign and harmful substances are present in our bodies in the form of artificially synthesised food additives (preservatives, stabilisers, emulsifiers … ) and the compounds they produce.

Our bodies get almost all the substances they need from food and water. Food composition and its properties directly affect our health, physical development, working capacity, emotional state and the length and quality of our lives.

These are not just fine words – there have been many studies on how diet affects our health, for example: Diet quality and major chronic disease risk in men and women.

On the other hand.

For many people, food is just one of the many elements of daily life. Food may be the last thing on your list of concerns among business, family, social and many other daily activities.

That’s why.

The first step towards a healthier diet is to make food one of your priorities.

It doesn’t mean you have to cook complicated meals for hours, but you do need to put some attention and effort into it, especially if you have a busy lifestyle.

But.

There are solutions here too – for example, going to the grocery store once or twice a week and shopping according to a pre-prepared list can help you keep only healthy products in your fridge and pantry.

And a well-equipped kitchen makes it much easier to prepare healthy meals and snacks quickly.

A healthy diet combined with exercise is a great way to stay healthy throughout your life!

Eat delicious, eat a balanced diet, exercise and – stay healthy!