nutrition tips
Does eating carbohydrates make you fat?
When trying to lose weight most people think that cutting out breads, cereals, pasta and rice will help. Excess calories and lack of exercise are a sure cause of weight gain. Excess calories can come from protein, fat or carbohydrates. A healthy diet consists of 40-60% complex carbohydrates, 12-20% protein and 30% healthy fats.
Your muscles and brain depend on carbohydrates for energy. Whole grains can help guard against heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Unhealthy carbohydrates like refined sugars, white starches and carbohydrates are quickly digested and have a negative effect on your blood sugar leaving you hungry and craving more sugar. Whole grains have the opposite effect on your blood sugar levels and help to control food cravings. It is important to be aware of our portion sizes of complex carbohydrates.
Does everyone need to drink 8 glasses of water every day?
Water is a very important part of a healthy diet. Your body needs water to regulate its temperature, transport nutrients to every cell, to cushion your joints and keep your skin moist. Every day the average adult body loses 2–2.5 litres of water through breathing, sweating and excreting wastes.
The amount of water that your body requires depends on your weight, sex, exercise level, fitness level, climate, humidity... and your diet. Most foods contain water especially fresh fruits and vegetables. Some items can be dehydrating to the body like caffeinated beverages and alcohol.
Take all these things into account before you decide how much water you want to consume every day. Too much water can cause minerals to be excreted from the body. On the other hand if you find yourself thirsty this could be a sign of dehydration. Listen to your body and eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and to aid digestion remember to try to drink most of your water between meals, not at meal time.
Does skipping meals help you lose weight?
Skipping meals, especially breakfast can actually have a negative effect on losing weight and can actually cause weight gain. Missing meals or going for longer than 3-4 hours without eating can have a negative effect on your metabolism. When you miss a meal your body thinks it is in a starvation mode and burns fewer calories to compensate for the decrease in calories eaten.
Those who skip breakfast and/or lunch usually end up eating more calories later in the day. When you find yourself raiding the fridge late at night this could be your body asking for nutrients that it did not get during the day.
Eating smaller healthy meals more frequently during the day helps increase weight loss and decrease evening binging. The best approach to weight loss is to eat 3 balanced meals and 1 to 3 small, healthy snacks every day to help keep your blood sugar stable and your cravings at bay.
Are fresh vegetables more nutritious than frozen?
Fresh is best when it really is farm-fresh and ripe. However, many commercial fruits and veggies are picked before peak ripeness – which also means before their nutritional peak – to avoid spoilage during transport and storage. And just a few days after harvest, fruits and vegetables begin to lose some of their nutritive goodness. What’s more, the longer they sit on the shelf – during transport, in the supermarket, and in your fridge – the fewer nutrients they have left to pass on to you.
Research shows that many frozen vegetables (and fruits) have a higher content of vitamins and minerals. Buying fresh, organic and local is always best but not during our colder months of the year. When vegetables and fruits are frozen they are picked ripe and flash frozen immediately locking in many nutrients. When produce has to travel many miles it is picked unripe and nutrients are lost right from the start. When fresh produce is out of season or out of your price range, frozen can be a good alternative. Try to avoid food sold in tins because their sodium content is far too high. Local and in season is always your best choice.
Healthy Tip To help retain the highest levels of vitamin C, don’t thaw frozen veggies before cooking. Studies show that vegetables cooked directly from frozen retain more vitamin C than vegetables that are thawed first.
Nutrition Tips courtesy of Shawn Nisbet, Registered Holistic Nutritionist, Certified Fitness Consultant & Nordic Pole Walking Master Instructor. For more information visit shawnnisbet.com or contact Shawn at 416-804-0938 or info@shawnnisbet.com
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