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How to start and keep a healthy diet without feeling overwhelmed

15 year-old Oliver Stachowiak examines the harms of added sugars offering steps for a balanced diet without feeling deprived

Added sugar is ‘worse than fat’ claims Dr. Robert Lustig, an American health expert, highlighting a critical issue in modern nutrition. When it comes to both, ‘either results in elevated levels of artery-clogging’ but sugar damages the liver much more.

Calls to address fast food consumption amid increasing obesity concerns

Nutrition plays a fundamental rolein maintaining overall health, especially in children’s development.

A balanced diet, rich in essential nutrients, enhances immune defenceand promotes overall vitality.

However, contemporary eating trends increasingly lean towards fast foods and processed items which has resulted in a surge of health issues.

Understanding a healthy diet

First, it is important to understand what constitutes a healthy diet. According to the UK National Health Service (NHS), this is defined as eating ‘a wide variety of foods in the right proportions, and consuming the right amount of food and drink to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight’.

Despite this straightforward guidance, new research reveals our current eating habits are causing serious health problems. For example, a study in 2022 found that high consumption of added sugars strongly correlates with metabolic syndrome, a group of conditions that elevate blood pressure, raise blood sugar, and cause obesity.

The NHS recommendsthe following adjustments to achieve better eating habits.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Common issues with maintaining a healthy diet

Fast paced lifestyles, however, can make the above mentioned steps hard to follow. According to MD Anderson US Cancer Center, there are three key reasons why people struggle.

Feeling deprived from your favourite meals is one. Having a healthy lifestyle doesn’t mean you can’t eat all of your favourite meals, it just means that you should consume them with a regulated amount, balanced with other meals that provide other nutrients and vitamins.

Attempting drastic changes too suddenly is also a recipe for failure. When people decide to change their diet, they usually make a lot of sudden changes in their diet which can lead to them being overwhelmed and their body not being prepared for such changes which can lead to self-doubt.

The final issue is the lack of time. Many people don’t have time to constantly cook or prepare healthy meals and often decide to consume fast food. This can be avoided by preparing the meals the day before or in the morning, in order to be prepared for the day.

Be aware of diet culture

While the remedies may appear clear cut, psychological elements can sometimes hamper healthy eating habits. Eating disorders, propelled by social media, toxic diet culture, and other stressors, also result in worsened relationships with food.

The US National Institute of Mental Health highlights that eating disorders are a serious issue and can significantly impact the eating habits of a person. The main disorders are recognised to be: Anorexia, Bulimia and Binge eating. These three disorders have different symptoms, however they all involve similar concepts such as an extreme focus on weight, avoiding eating, and fears of changing weight.

Studies show that these disorders lead to unhealthy eating patterns and nutritional imbalances, with sufferers often facing a distorted body image and extreme fear of weight gain. The stigma and misunderstanding surrounding these conditions result in underdiagnosis and inadequate/inaccurate treatment, further complicating healthy eating efforts.

Written by:

author_bio

Olivier Stachowiak

Contributor

Warsaw, Poland

Born in 2009 in Warsaw, Olivier studies in Warsaw, Poland. He is interested in economics and business management and plans to study business management in the future. For Harbingers’ Magazine, he writes about Business and Economics.

In his free time, Olivier plays a lot of sports, like Tennis, Golf, and Badminton. He has also studied finance for 3 years and has been investing and analysing stocks and crypto currencies for the past 2 years.

Olivier speaks Polish, English, and Spanish.

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