All living beings require food in
the manner to sustain and to perform other activities. Now the question arises
that what should we eat? what is healthy for us? What is a healthy diet? A
healthy diet is the one which helps a person to stay healthy or free from
diseases.
A healthy diet consists of
appropriate amount of nutrients and water. Essential nutrients can be gained by
many different foods, so numerous number of diets can be considered as healthy
diets. A healthy diet have a proper amount of proteins, carbohydrates and fats.
Although there are many diets which are considered healthy as mentioned earlier, the World Health Organization makes the following recommendations:-
- Try to burn as much as you eat, and try to est as much as you can burn, this will maintain a healthy balance between those two.
- Increase the consumption of plant foods, particularly fruits, vegetables, whole grains and nuts.
- Limit the intake of oil and fats,avoid saturated fats,which are those that become solid at room temperature such as coconut oil and most animal fats including those found in red meat, dairy and eggs. Prefer unsaturated fats which remain liquid at room temperature.
- Limit the intake of granules sugar-- A 2003 report recommends less than 10% simple sugar
- Limit salt consumption from all sources and ensure that salt is iodized.
According to a research conducted by
World Cancer Research Fund the tomato cooked with oil, allium vegetables like
garlic, and calciferous vegetables like cauliflower, provide some protection
against cancer. It says that limiting the consumption of sugary drinks,
limiting energy rich foods, including "fast foods" and red meat, and
avoiding processed meats improves health and longevity. Overall, researches and
medical policy conclude that this healthy diet can reduce the risk of chronic
disease and cancer.
The Harvard School of public health
recommends that choose good carbohydrate source: whole grains, vegetables,
fruits and beans and to avoid white bread, white rice, and pastries, sugrated
sodas and other highly-processed food.
What a healthy diet must have?
- Fish, poultry, nuts and beans
- Choose foods containing healthy fats. Plant oils, nuts, and fish.
- Limit the consumption of saturated fats, avoid food with trans fat.
- Include whole grains, vegetable and fruits.
- Eat more vegetables and fruits.
- Milk is not a rich source of calcium.Its a myth. Good source of calcium are collards, bok choy, soy milk and baked beans.
- Coffee, tea, Artificially-sweetened drinks, 100-percent fruit juices, low fat milk and alcohol can be included.
- Consume Fresh food.
What to avoid?
- Fast foods
- Saturated fat
- Limit the intake of granulated sugar
- Limit salt consumption
- Avoid white bread and white rice
- Avoid processed foods
- Avoid red meat
- Avoid sugary drinks
Unhealthy diet
Unhealthy diet is a diet which have
excessive amount of unwanted nutrients. An unhealthy diet is the cause of many
chronic diseases such as: high blood pressure, diabetes, overweight and
cancer.The WHO estimates that 2.7 million deaths are attributable to a diet low
in fruit and vegetable every year. Globally it is estimated to cause about 19%
of gastrointestinal cancer, 31% of heart disease, and 11% of strokes, thus
making it one of the leading preventable causes of death worldwide.
Calories needed by a person per day:
·
2,500 calories per day for men (more
if you are very active)
·
2,000 calories per day for women
(more if you are very active)
·
If you need to lose weight, start by
eating 300 to 500 less calories per day and exercise more
[NOTE: These are the standard(not
precise) figures, as per the requirements of a normal human being]
Accurate methods of estimating your
basal metabolic rate is the Harris-Benedict formula:
Adult male: 66 + (6.3 x body weight
in lbs.) + (12.9 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years) Adult female: 655 +
(4.3 x weight in lbs.) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)
| FRUITS | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Amla | 60 |
| Apple | 60 |
| Banana | 115 |
| Cherries red | 65 |
| Chickoo | 100 |
| Currants black | 315 |
| Custard Apple/ Seetaphal | 105 |
| Dates dried | 315 |
| Dates fresh | 146 |
| Figs | 35 |
| Grapefruit | 45 |
| Grapes | 70 |
| Guava | 50 |
| Jackfruit/ phanas | 90 |
| Jambu fruit/ jambu/ jambhool | 60 |
| Lemon/ limbu | 55 |
| Litchi | 60 |
| Papaya | 30 |
| Pineapple | 70 |
| Pomegranate/ anar | 65 |
| Mango | 75 |
| Orange | 50 |
| Pear | 50 |
| Plum | 50 |
| Raspberry/ rusbhory | 55 |
| Strawberry | 45 |
| Sweet lime | 35 |
| Watermelon/ tarbuj | 15 |
| Vegetables | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Ash gourd/ petha | 10 |
| Bitter gourd/ Karela | 25 |
| Bottle gourd/ dudhi | 10 |
| Brinjal/ baigan | 25 |
| Broad beans | 50 |
| Capsicum/ Shimla mirchi | 25 |
| Cauliflower | 30 |
| Cluster beans/ gawar | 15 |
| Cucumber | 15 |
| Drumstick | 25 |
| French beans | 25 |
| Green peas/ mattar | 25 |
| Jackfruit seeds | 135 |
| Ladies finger/ bhindi | 35 |
| Mango green | 45 |
| Parwar/ padval | 20 |
| Papaya green | 30 |
| Pumpkin fruit/ lal bhopla | 25 |
| Ridge gourd/ thuria | 15 |
| Tinda | 20 |
| Tomato | 20 |
| Leafy Vegetables | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Ambat chuka/ khatti palak | 15 |
| Cabbage | 25 |
| Cauliflower greens/ phool gobi saag | 65 |
| Coriander leaves | 45 |
| Curry leaves | 110 |
| Drumstick leaves | 90 |
| Fenugreek leaves/ methi | 50 |
| Lettuce | 20 |
| Mint/ pudina | 50 |
| Mustard leaves/ sarson ka saag | 35 |
| Radish leaves | 30 |
| Spinach/ palak | 25 |
| Turnip greens | 65 |
| Roots & Tubers | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Beetroot | 45 |
| Carrot | 50 |
| Onion big | 50 |
| Potato | 100 |
| Radish pink | 30 |
| Radish white | 20 |
| Sweet potato | 120 |
| Turnip/ Shalgam | 30 |
| Yam/ suran | 110 |
| Cereals & Cereal Products | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Bajra | 360 |
| Jowar | 350 |
| Maize, dry | 340 |
| Maize, tender | 125 |
| Ragi | 330 |
| Riceflakes/ poha | 345 |
| Rice parboiled - Handpounded | 350 |
| Rice puffed/ murmura | 225 |
| Sabudana/ Sago | 350 |
| Wheat bread brown & white | 245 |
| Wheat flour – refined | 350 |
| Wheat flour – whole | 340 |
| Wheat semolina/ rawa | 350 |
| Wheat vermicelli/ sevaiya | 350 |
| Milk & Milk Products | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Cheese | 350 |
| Curds | 60 |
| Khoya/ thickened milk | 410 |
| Milk buffalo | 115 |
| Milk cow | 65 |
| Milk goat | 70 |
| Paneer/ cottage cheese | 265 |
| Skimmed milk powder cow milk | 360 |
| Whole milk powder cow milk | 495 |
| Pulses & Legumes | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Bengal gram/ channa dal | 370 |
| Bengal gram/ whole chick pea/chole/channa | 360 |
| Bengal gram roasted/ bhuna channa | 370 |
| Chowli | 325 |
| Masoor dal/ Red gram | 345 |
| Moong dal | 350 |
| Moth beans/ matki | 350 |
| Peas dry | 315 |
| Peas roasted | 340 |
| Rajmah | 345 |
| Soya beans | 430 |
| Nuts & Oil Seeds | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Almond | 655 |
| Cashew nut | 595 |
| Coconut dry | 60 |
| Coconut fresh | 445 |
| Coconut milk | 430 |
| Coconut tender | 40 |
| Coconut water | 25 |
| Gingelly seeds/ til | 565 |
| Groundnut roasted | 570 |
| Groundnuts | 565 |
| Pistachio nut | 625 |
| Piyal seeds/ chironji/charoli | 655 |
| Walnut | 690 |
| Fats & Oils | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Butter | 730 |
| Cooking oil Sunflower/ Postman/ Saffola/ Groundnut Oil etc. | 900 |
| Ghee | 900 |
| Hydrogenated oil/ vanaspati | 900 |
| Sugars | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Honey | 320 |
| Jaggery cane | 385 |
| White sugar/ Sugarcane | 400 |
| Sea Food | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Bombay Duck | 295 |
| Crab small | 170 |
| Indian Herring | 120 |
| Lobster | 90 |
| Mackerel | 95 |
| Pomfret, black | 110 |
| Pomfret, white | 90 |
| Prawn | 90 |
| Rawas | 110 |
| Sardine | 110 |
| Small dried Shrimp | 350 |
| fresh Surmai | 90 |
| Meat & Poultry | |
| FOOD ITEM | CALORIES per 100 gms |
| Beef | 115 |
| Buffalo | 85 |
| Chicken | 110 |
| Duck | 130 |
| Egg hen | 175 |
| Egg duck | 180 |
| Lean Goat meat | 120 |
| Mutton with fat | 195 |
| Pork | 115 |
