Feeling tired? No Energy? It could be what you're eating!
The way we eat is very individual.
What might be good for one person may not be good for another person. What most of us can agree on is that food is foundation and what we eat makes a big difference on how we feel, how we look and our risk for certain diseases. In this blog I will put forth some ideas on the benefits of eating less meat and moving towards more of a plant-based diet and avoiding refined starches and added sugars for feeling better physically and reducing your risk for illness and disease.
“An estimated 90% of the population of the United States is omnivorous, and the vast majority of people aren’t going to give up meat. The good news is, they don’t need to. A 2017 study published in JAMA showed that consuming just 3% less animal protein and replacing it with plant protein was associated with up to a 19% lower risk of death from any cause.”
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/eat-more-plants-fewer-animals-2018112915198
Since having diabetes means a significant risk in heart disease, focusing on a heart healthy diet will curb your risk for a heart attack or stroke. Much research has been done to prove the many benefits of a plant-based diet.
What is a plant-based diet?
“A plant-based diet focuses primarily on fruits, vegetables, potatoes, whole grains and legumes (beans and peas) and excludes animal proteins, including meat, dairy and eggs. A plant-based diet also focuses on “whole” foods that are unrefined or minimally refined, and it limits or excludes highly refined foods such as bleached flour, refined sugar and oil.” https://www.virtua.org/articles/prevent-and-reverse-heart-disease-with-a-plant-based-diet
If my focus is plant-based will I get enough protein?
“The amount of protein is varied depending on many factors such as age, physical activity, etc. If you’re at a healthy weight, don't lift weights and don't exercise much, then aiming for 0.36–0.6 grams per pound (0.8–1.3 gram per kg) is a reasonable estimate. This amounts to: 56–91 grams per day for the average male and 46–75 grams per day for the average female.” https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/how-much-protein-per-day#increased-protein-needs
What are the benefits of a plant-based diet?
Lower blood pressure, lower blood sugar, lower rates of cancer and weight loss.
Basing your meals on plant foods you are adding to your diet what your body is craving; fiber, vitamins, minerals and healthy fats most Americans are not getting.
“Americans need to avoid processed foods that are made with refined starches and added sugar, like bagels, white bread, refined flour and sugary snacks and beverages”, said Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.
To get yourself moving in the right direction, here are suggested Action Steps:
To start you might want to focus on decreasing the amount of processed meat you eat such as bacon, deli meats, hot dogs and sausage. For example; Instead of 5 days a week having a deli meat sandwich, cut down and have only 3 days of deli meat sandwiches.
Simply increase your vegetable and fruit servings/week. Sneak vegetables or fruit in to every meal. For example; add romaine lettuce to your sandwich at lunch, mix berries in to your oatmeal or have 2 non-starchy vegetables at dinner instead of 1. Possibly a salad and a cooked vegetable such as green beans, cauliflower, asparagus or other vegetable..
Meatless Mondays (or another day during the week) to eliminate all meat and animal products (dairy and eggs) for the day.
When you do plan to eat meat, plan not to eat too much. A serving of meat is about 3 ounces (size of a deck of cards). This would be about ¼ of the plate. The rest of the plate filled with ½ of non-starchy vegetables and the remainder ¼ would be whole grains.
To reduce the amount of sugar consumed, start by not drinking any fluids with added sugar.
Realizing that just starting and making one small change can put you on the road to losing some weight, feeling better and may even prolong your life