Ziqitza - What is a balanced diet and what impact does it have on physical and mental wellbeing?

 

The link between food and mood is clear. What you eat affects your mental wellbeing. In fact, poor diet may not only be a reaction to feeling depressed, but may be one of the factors that trigger it. If you are feeling depressed or anxious, you are more likely to want to eat unhealthier foods and eat fewer healthy foods. But, eating unhealthy foods can actually make you feel worse.

 

You can improve your mental wellbeing by making changes to your diet. And luckily, the same eating habits that keep you mentally well are those that support your physical health too. Choose a diet high in vegetables, fruits, unprocessed grains and fish, with smaller portions of lean meat and dairy and limit those sugary, salty and processed foods.

 

The importance of a balanced diet can’t be emphasized enough for a healthy lifestyle. Ziqitza Rajasthan says a healthy lifestyle can be attained by maintaining a balanced diet and keeping into consideration to meet all the essential nutrients required by the body. A proper meal plan helps to attain ideal body weight and reduce the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular and other types of cancer. But what exactly is a balanced diet?

 

ZHL Rajasthan explains it in a simple wordsit’s a diet that offers the nutrients to help your body function properly. The importance of diet lies in the intake of the right amount of calories. Your body gets the right nutrition when you consume a wide variety of food rich in calories such as fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and proteins. 

 

What falls under a balanced diet? 

 

Ziqitza tells a balanced diet includes some specific healthy food groups under it: 

§  Vegetables such as leafy greens, starchy vegetables, legumes like beans and peas, red and orange vegetables, and others like eggplant

§  Fruits that include whole fruits, fresh or frozen fruits but not canned ones dipped in syrup

§  Grains such as whole grains and refined grains. For example, quinoa, oats, brown rice, barley, and buckwheat

§  Protein such as lean beef and pork, chicken, fish, beans, peas, and legumes 

§  Dairy products such as low-fat milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, and soy milk 

 

Ziqitza Limited recommends a wide variety for the selection of food choices should be from each of five food groups in the specific amounts. These food sources from each food group provide a similar amount of key micro and macro-nutrients to meet the body requirements.A balanced diet typically contains 50 to 60 percent carbohydrates, 12 to 20 percent protein, and 30 percent fat. All the organs and tissues need proper nutrition to work effectively by consuming the right amount of nutrients and calories to maintain an ideal weight.

The overall health and well-being of a person are dependent on good nutrition, physical exercise, and healthy body weight.Physical activity particularly improves brain-related function and outcomes. As with physical activity, making small changes in your diet can go a long way to attain the ideal body weight. Consuming the right kind of carbohydrates is important. Many people rely on the simple carbs found in sweets and processed foods. Fruits and vegetables are rich sources of natural fiber, vitamins, minerals, and other compounds that your body needs to function properly.

 

Dr. Santosh Datar- Medical Director , Ziqitza Healthcare Ltd (ZHL) says about importance of a healthy lifestyle it not just a balanced diet but also healthy practices of eating. Some of them which you can follow are eat-in smaller portions you can do this by eating in small bowls to trick your brain into thinking it to be larger portions. Take time to eat by not rushing your meals in between other work but taking the time to nourish your meals can send signals to your brain that you’ve had enough food necessary for functioning. Cut down on snacks unhealthy snacks are a strict no as they hamper your hunger. Switching to healthy bite-sized food can help. Curb emotional eating binge eating can be extremely harmful.

 

Using it to relieve yourself from stress, sadness, or anxiety may affect your health. Instead, you can use healthier alternatives to beat negative emotions