As we wind down from March, which is Nutrition Month, there are so many things to keep in mind for your everyday diet that can help benefit your overall health. Here are just a few basics that you can easily incorporate in your nutritional habits:
Eat whole foods – eating foods in their most basic form ensures that they are free from any additives, preservatives, chemicals, or allergens. This also means your body will be able to digest them much more easily.
Avoid refined sugars and carbs – foods that have been overly processed can be hard for the body to digest, and refined sugars can especially be harmful to your mental health by contributing to stress, anxiety and depression, as well as promote weight gain.
Eat simple carbs before your protein or complex carbs – because it takes much longer to digest proteins and heavy carbs, it’s always preferred to eat them last. If you tend to eat fruits or other simple carbs after a meal, they will digest quickly and begin to ferment as they are sitting in your stomach with the other food, causing bloating and indigestion.
Stay alkaline! – eating heavy fats, proteins and carbs consistently can leave your body acidic, which can cause bloating, nausea, body odor, and more unpleasant symptoms. Eating more alkaline (or high pH) foods like dark leafy greens, fruits, nuts and legumes, can help alleviate these issues.
It’s all about variety – try mixing up the foods you eat! Don’t just stick to the same foods over and over, as overtime you could potentially develop a food sensitivity.
Eat more probiotics – fermented foods such as yogurt and sauerkraut are very high in probiotics, which will support your gut health, improve your mood, reduce bloating, improve mental clarity, and help absorb nutrients from your food.
