Any healthy eating experts out there? (1 Viewer)

[Dan Whalen]

My wife and I are really wanting to start eating healthier, but we are having some troubles. We can't seem to find a way to plan out healthy meals, so that when we go shopping we buy only what we need and not a lot of extra crap. Does anyone know of any good websites or books that can help us out?

Dan

 

[Jonathan Burk]

What exactly do you mean by "healthier"? What do you not like about your current diet? While I'm not an expert, here's my advice:
-Avoid any fad diets, especially those that glorify one particular food over any other, or villify one food (or kind of food) over any other. Healthful eating can incorporate all different kinds of food.
-Don't make sudden, drastic, changes that take a lot of time, money and effort to follow. Make small changes that you can keep for the rest of your life. Look for ways to "upgrade" your diet by making what you usually eat more healthful.
-Subscribe to the free email newsletter "Nutrition News Focus". You'll get a brief article in your email everyday, and over time you will find yourself much more knowledgeable about the science of nutrition. Link Removed
Good luck

 

[Kenneth]

I found this link using google that might be a start. Without knowing your specific needs it is hard to select the best links:
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/heal_eat.htm
As an aside I started dieting (and exercising) last month to try and drop a lot of weight. I am currently down about 25lbs since early September. I kept it fairly simple. I am eating normal type foods (in my case mostly microwave varieties) but carefully counting calories and monitoring my distribution between fats, carbs, and protein. I think generally a good rule of thumb is to keep your fats less than 30% of your total calories. Also, try to favor good fats (Polyunsaturated, Monounsaturated) and minimize saturated fats. For carbs try to avoid too many simple carbs (sugar) and make sure to include more complex carbs. I personally don't favor high or low protein diets but try and keep protein under 30% of total calories. If you are looking to go vegetarian then do careful research. That diet is very easy to do improperly (from what I've heard).
Hope that helps.
Kenneth