The 3 Factors Common in Most Diets

When it comes to fad diets, there is usually profit to be made. This could be the ‘inventor’ of the diet (Dr Bernstein and Dr Atkins for example) or the authors of the ‘how to’ guides and cookbooks touting the diet. With the three factors common in the majority of mainstream diets below – there is little new or novel to market to the consumer. Therefore, the very things that promote good health often aren’t advertised. When is the last time you saw an add for onions, eggplants, carrots or an apple? …You get my point! If you are interested in eating well for health without going on a diet – choosing to work on one of the items below is a great place to start.

1. Eat more vegetables:

Around 2/3 of Canadians are not meeting minimum daily vegetable and fruit requirements. This is one area we could likely all work at to improve our eating habits and health. No matter your food philosophy, vegetables are a key part of the program. Vegetables are full of vitamins and minerals we need to keep our bodies healthy and provide fibre. Choose fresh, frozen or canned. All vegetables are a great choice!

To build a good veggie habit, try aim for filing half your plate with vegetables at dinner. If you already have that down, what about lunch? Snacks? If ½ your plate at dinner feels overwhelming, start with a more manageable amount. Does ¼ plate feel more realistic? Looking for some inspiration? Check out the recipes on www.halfyourplate.ca

2. Choose foods that come from the land or a farm (whole foods) over foods made in a factory (processed foods):

Many processed foods that come in a box or a bag have added salt, fat, and sugars. Just under 50% of Canadian’s intake comes from ultra-processed foods. Ultra-processed foods are mainly industrial ingredients and additives containing little whole foods, if any. These ultra-processed foods have been linked to weight gain. They don’t satisfy our hunger in the same way as less processed, higher fibre foods. As they are often marketed using terms like ‘natural’, ‘organic’, or ‘healthy’ it is a good idea to look at the ingredient list and nutrition facts table when purchasing food.

Focus on choosing foods without ingredient lists (vegetables, fruit, whole grains, proteins) or those that have minimal ingredients for which you can visualize their source when you can. Ultra-processed foods may be convenient, palatable and cheap but behind all the marketing and health claims exists a hidden cost – the cost on your health.

3. Be mindful of what you drink:

Our bodies don’t register the calories we drink in the same way they do when we have to chew and digest them.

Did you know your large coke has 20 tsp (1 sugar cube = 1 tsp) of sugar? Would you guess that your XL double double has as much sugar as a can of pop? How about that vitamin water…? It has about 8 tsp of sugar! Whenever I ask clients if they could imagine eating 20 sugar cubes or even 8 in a sitting they always laugh and say of course not, but we do it all the time through our drinks.

It is not that we can’t ever have these drinks, but if you are a regular coffee drinker slowly decreasing the amount of sugar you use over time can have a big impact. If you get thirsty on the go, taking a water bottle with you can reduce the temptation of buying a sugar sweetened beverage. Being mindful of what you drink means evaluating your regular drinking habits and seeing if there are any changes that could be made which would be sustainable long term for you.

… Hmm – does this messaging sound familiar? Eat Food. Not Too Much. Mostly Plants. Drink Water.