Eating healthy is one of the best ways to keep the brain and body feeling its best. Whether it’s cutting out unhealthy foods or incorporating food groups that are more nutritious into a diet, there are many ways to improve daily food choices. Now more than ever it’s important to be aware of what people are putting into their bodies. Many food corporations are now prioritizing taste over nutrition, adding unhealthy and unnatural ingredients into foods to make them more appealing. With all of these unhealthy products going around, now is the time to start eating healthy.
Having good balance in a diet will effectively regulate the brain and its emotions. According to the National Library of Medicine, a balanced diet provides essential nutrients that regulate neurotransmitters–messengers that help the brain work quickly and effectively, stabilize blood sugar, and directly benefit mood, energy, and brain function. A great way to add a balance to a day to day diet is incorporating fruits and vegetables. This can be done in ways that aren’t unappealing to taste, such as adding dips, like hummus, or adding them to healthy meals.
“My favorite quick snack is cucumber and carrots with hummus,” junior Sienna Bokser said. “Eating healthy makes me feel better and have better overall energy.”
Adding fiber into each meal of the day is extremely beneficial to energy as well as physical activity. Incorporating foods with protein into a diet has just as many benefits. According to Harvard Nutrition Source, protein boosts metabolism and immunity, maintains muscle strength and growth, and also stabilizes blood sugar. Simple foods that contain protein to incorporate into meals include nuts, eggs, yogurt, white/red meat, beans, and more. All of these foods can be incorporated into each meal during the day, and adding them as well as other foods including fiber and protein to carbohydrate based foods is a great way to balance it out.
“I like to add avocados to a lot of my foods because it goes with everything, and it elevates all the flavors while being healthy,” Junior Emma Wagner said.
Eating healthy doesn’t have to be complicated—it’s all about balance. Also according to Harvard Nutrition Source, an ideal plate has ¼ protein, ¼ carbohydrates, and ½ fiber such as fruits and vegetables. It’s really easy to add these components to meals, and being mindful of that balance is very important. Replacing processed and fatty snacks is also important to keep a balance throughout the day, so maybe instead of eating from a store-bought bag of food, choose natural foods with actual nutrients.
“Since I’ve improved my eating habits I’ve honestly noticed a big change in my mood and energy throughout the day,” freshman Maya Shaul said.
Eating healthy doesn’t have to be hard or restrictive. It’s all about making small and consistent changes. By being more mindful of food choices, the improvements will come flooding through.
