Maintaining healthy eating habits

Five Tips to maintain or improve healthy eating habits

As we are taking strong measures to contain the spread of COVID-19, self quarantine and the temporary closing of businesses may affect normal food-related practices and fresh items are becoming less available.

Good nutrition is crucial for health, especially in times when the immune system may need to fight back, the limited access to fresh food can lead to a high consumption of processed food, which tend to be sugar, salt and fat.

For optimal health it is also important to remain physically active at home.

Here are 5 Tips to maintain or improve healthy eating habits even with few and limited ingredients :

1. Buy long lasting fresh fruit and vegetables: Citrus fruit like clementines, oranges and grapefruit are a good option,as well as bananas and apples, which can also be cut into small pieces and frozen for later consumption .Root vegetables for carrots and turnips, as well as cabbage and broccoli and cauliflower are relatively nonperishable . Garlic, ginger and onions are safe to keep at home for food flavor.

2. Frozen food and vegetables as mango, berries and pineapple are high in fiber and vitamins and are less expensive. They can be added to porridge, juices and you can add to smoothies after defrosting. Frozen vegetables are nutritious, quick to prepare and can reach the daily recommendation, even when fresh food is scarce.

3. Be strategic about the use of ingredients and prioritize fresh products. Dried and canned pulses as beans, chickpeas are great sources of fibers, vitamins, minerals and can be used for stews, salads, soups and spreads.

4. Try that dish you never had time to make before, but be aware of portion sizes. It can be difficult to get portion sizes right, especially when cooking from scratch. Being at home for an extended period with limited activities and/or alone can lead to overeating. Stay hydrated to avoid confusing hunger with boredom, if you want to enhance the taste of water you can add fresh or frozen fruit or slices of citrus fruit, as well as cucumber or herbs such as mint.

5. Limit your sugar intake, if you crave for sugar go for fresh or frozen fruit. Low glycemic fruits like apples, strawberries or oranges are highly recommended to maintain a healthy weight. Also, avoid trans fat as much as possible, read nutrition labels to ensure that hydrogenated oils are not listed in the ingredients. Avoid processed or fried foods and opt for cooking methods that require less or not fat such as steaming, grilling or sauteing.

Spending time at home is also a good time to involve your family in cooking healthy meals and learn about proper food safety.

We want to help you stay healthy and strong, please contact us for more information.

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