Eating a healthy well-rounded diet is one of the best ways to keep your body fit, your immune system strong, and to live a long and healthy life. It's true what they say: you are what you eat. So, eating healthy plays a huge role in staying healthy. If your diet consists of junk food and processed foods you will notice a significant decrease in health and energy levels as well as an increase in weight.
But what food is considered healthy? The answer you receive will change depending on who you ask. Typically, you're safe with sticking to a diet high in vegetables and lean proteins. However, there is a lot more to eating healthy than only eating chicken and broccoli.
A few good rules to remember while changing your diet and lifestyle are to eat the same healthy and well-balanced meals often, don't drink your calories, have a cheat day once a week (but don't get too crazy,) and avoid white carbohydrates like bread, rice, and pasta. Finally, always make sure you are drinking plenty of water throughout the day. To take this idea of healthy eating for longevity even further, we turn to the book titled The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World's Healthiest People by Dan Buettner.
According to Buettner, there are 5 rules to live by when it comes to your diet; "95% of your food should be plant-based, eat your largest meal at breakfast, a mid-sized lunch, and small dinner, stop eating when you’re 80% full if you need to snack, make it a piece of fruit or handful of nuts, and cook most of your meals at home and eat with friends and family as much as possible."
Buettner suggests eating plenty of beans, greens, sweet potatoes, oats, nuts, barley, and fruit. When cooking, you should use plenty of olive oil and the spice turmeric. He also suggests limiting drinks to only water, tea, coffee, and red wine. Building on the base of this lifestyle plan, you can still eat eggs, meat, dairy, sugar, and whole wheat or sourdough bread. You can absolutely not eat or drink sugary drinks like soda, processed meat, salty junk food like chips, and packaged or processed sweets like cookies.
The idea behind Buettner's book is not only about eating healthy but living a healthier life overall. This includes staying active, being social, knowing your life purpose, having faith and being a part of a faith-based group, committing to a romantic partner, having sex, and getting enough sleep each night.
Eating healthy can give you energy, help keep your immune system running properly, keep your body in shape and fit, and give you a better feeling of overall well being. At LongevityMed we want to help you live a healthy life. It's what we do, every day, and our specialty. We offer treatments for weight loss, and we can help you start a nutrition or supplementation plan. Contact us today to schedule a consultation
