By now, the first week in February, most people have given up on their New Year’s resolutions because they are too challenging or unrealistic.
But wait a minute. You were serious when you said you wanted to eat more healthfully in 2018, right?
Here is my best advice. Pick some simple things that you can change and stick to them consistently. It’s not what you do once in a while, but what you do every day that will make an impact on your health.
Here are some ideas to get you started. Just pick 3 and practice them mindfully every day.
Five easy ideas to get you started
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Manage your microbiome
Your microbiome is the mix of some 100 trillion organisms that reside in your gut, your mouth and on your skin. One of the best ways to tune up your immune system and your brain is to heal your gut. It’s practically impossible living in the modern world with stress, toxins and genetically modified foods to maintain a health gut microbiome unless you work at it. Check out a recent blog post for more info HERE. Choose one or two of these tips to get you going.
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Experiment with ancient grains
Ancient grains are a grouping of grains and pseudo cereals have been minimally changed over centuries. Compare this to more widespread cereals such as corn, rice and modern varieties of wheat, which are the product of thousands of years of selective breeding. Turns out all this selective breeding may not be good for our gut health. These grains are nutritional powerhouses and a great way to add variety to your meals. Check out these recipes to get you started.
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Eat more seeds
Seeds are a great source of fiber and omega 3 fatty acids, protein and important minerals such as calcium, zinc, copper and magnesium. They are easy to add to the diet as snacks and to add to salads, smoothies and casseroles to up the ant nutritionally. Some seeds, like flax seed are considered a good source of phytoestrogens which help to balance your hormones. Check out the Super Seed Sprinkle recipe that you can use in a lot of different ways (Recipes page).
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Focus on quality not quantity
Calorie for calorie, foods such as vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, whole grains, lean meats and fish, and dairy offer greater satiety and more total nutrition than low-quality foods. So, by increasing the overall quality of your diet you will reduce your calorie intake without failing to meet your body’s demands and without the need to count calories. Become a qualitarian. -
Eat for Type 3 diabetes
Alzheimer’s is now being referred to as “Type 3 diabetes” and “brain diabetes”. Both conditions involve insulin resistance and nutrient deficiencies. A randomized control trial of the MIND diet (very similar to the Mediterranean Diet) is looking into the benefits of a nutrient-rich diet emphasizing foods such as green leafy vegetables, nuts and berries in preventing Alzheimer’s disease.
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