There are many ways to define a healthy diet just like there are many healthy diet plans available. Generally speaking, however, a healthy diet is a balanced diet, both in terms of food groups and in terms of nutrients.
The type of food you eat can be reduced into three primary categories: protein, fats, and carbohydrates. An average person should consume 20-35% of daily calories from protein, 45-65% from carbohydrates, and 20-35% from fat. These categories are where the majority of a person’s energy come from in the form of calories.
Healthy Diet Guidelines
Eating healthy does require a person to pay attention to how much food they are eating, but it does not require them to not enjoy their food. A person can eat healthy and enjoy the process of eating so long as they take care to follow certain guidelines:
- Eat a variety of foods
Having a diverse diet is essential to eating healthy because different foods have different concentrations of nutrients as well as different health benefits. Don’t just eat different categories of food but eat different types amongst the same categories – different fruits will have different nutrients. - Eat frequently to regulate blood sugar levels
Generally speaking, people should try to consume some amount of food every four hours. A person does not have to eat entire meals – snacks are important – just make sure the food has a balanced amount of nutrients. - Eat breakfast daily
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, no matter what your diet plan is. A person should eat breakfast even if they are not feeling hungry in the morning. Breakfast jumpstarts the body’s metabolism and sets the metabolism’s pace throughout the day.
