Why is a healthy diet important?
Food is the body’s source of fuel. When you pay attention to what you eat, your body runs at its best. With a healthy diet, you can improve your energy level and appearance while preventing illness and disease. How do I maintain a healthy diet? The food pyramid below shows us how to design a healthy, well-balanced diet. Try to eat a wide variety of food, but in general, you should eat more from the bottom of the pyramid, and less from the top. The food pyramid supports these important nutritional guidelines: Eat less fat • By cutting down on fatty foods, you will reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke, high blood pressure, and obesity. • Limit your intake of foods in the “Others” category, like butter, salad dressing, chips, cookies, and rich desserts. It’s okay to have a “treat” every so often, but fatty foods should not be a major part of any diet. • Dairy products like milk, yogurt, and cheese are major sources of calcium (which helps keep your bones strong), but they’re
A healthy diet will help ensure your body is getting the nutrition it needs, and will help you maintain a healthy weight. People who are overweight or obese are at an increased risk for certain health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and stroke. Your weight is directly affected by your diet and physical activity, and the food you eat greatly affects your body and how blood flows through your heart and arteries. High fat and high cholesterol diets can cause a buildup of plaque in your arteries. A blockage in a heart artery can cause a heart attack just as a blockage in your brain can cause a stroke. A healthy diet will help prevent buildup in your arteries and blood vessels and reduce your risk of acquiring weight-related health problems.
Other Videos • Quit Smoking This video series will show you how to quit smoking. Eletta Hansen, RN and Certified Tobacco Treatment Specialist, describes the addiction to nicotine, how to quit smoking, and the approved medications to help with cravings. This video is designed for tobacco users who may be thinking of quitting as well as those who want more information about the products they are using. The questions and answers are also helpful to non-smokers who want to learn more about the addiciton and the hazards of second hand smoke. • How to Do Rip-ups a demonstration of the very difficult “rip-up” exercise as featured on bodyweightculture.com. • Pilates for Beginners Certified Pilates instructor, Dori Markakos will take you through a complete beginners Pilates workout. This video is designed for someone just starting out in Pilates and wants to learn the basic postures, alignments and positions, all the while getting a great work out that will tone and lengthen their entire body.
