Eat Right! by Jill Gore

Eat Right! by Jill Gore The next time you order that double cheeseburger, large fries, and large soda and then have a chocolate bar for dessert, you may want to think twice. A healthier diet, along with exercise, is a key to maintaining good health and controlling your weight. Eating right also reduces your risk of developing a number of medical conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. What s a Healthy Diet? You ve heard it before: we need to make good food choices to be sure we re getting all the nutrients we require. Nutrients are chemicals our bodies use for energy, to build and maintain tissues, and to regulate body functions. They include vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates, fats and oils, and water. We get nutrients from the foods we eat. Because different foods contain different nutrients in different amounts, we need to eat a variety of foods every day to be sure of having all the nutrients we need. The Food Guide Pyramid, developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), is an easyto-use guide to the foods we should eat each day. The foods we need the most servings of appear at the bottom of the pyramid, and the foods we need the fewest servings of appear at the top. To have a healthy diet, we need to eat the recommended number of servings from each food group each day. Note that the pyramid provides a range of servings for each group of foods. The number of servings we should eat depends on the number of calories our bodies need in a day. Teenage girls should aim for the middle of the range; teenage boys, for the higher end. Watch the Fat Within the pyramid, some choices are better than others. For example, you should choose foods that are low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol. 1

People need some fat in their diets in order to stay healthy. But most Americans eat more than they should. Dietary cholesterol and some fats, including saturated fats, raise the level of cholesterol in our blood, which increases our risk of heart disease. Fatty foods are also high in calories, so they can cause us to gain unwanted weight. Teenage girls should aim for 24 grams or less of saturated fat and 73 grams or less of total fat per day. Teenage boys should consume 31 grams or less of saturated fat and 93 grams or less of total fat. For all teens, total cholesterol should be less than 300 mg. To find out how much fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol is in the foods you eat, you can check the product labels. Good choices include whole-grain breads and cereals, fruits, vegetables, chicken without the skin, fish, and low-fat milk and yogurt. Pass (Up) the Salt You should also be aware of how much salt you use and how much is in the foods you eat. Salt is our main source of sodium, which our bodies need to regulate fluids and blood pressure. But too much sodium puts us at risk for high blood pressure and stroke. Sodium is added to many packaged foods, as well as to foods prepared in restaurants, especially fast food. The USDA recommends less than 2,400 mg of sodium daily. That double cheeseburger and large fries we talked about earlier provide about 75 to 85 percent of that amount. Go Easy on Sugar The average American consumes 20 teaspoons of sugar a day, which adds up to 76 pounds a year! Most of this sugar is from processed or prepared foods to which sugar has been added. These include soft drinks, sweets such as candy, cookies, and ice cream, and fruit drinks like lemonade and fruit punch. Sugar does not give us any nutrients. But it does deliver a lot of extra calories. Eating too many sugary foods can make us gain weight. Plus, if we are eating more foods that are high in sugar, it is likely that we are consuming fewer foods that contain the nutrients we need. 2

Eat Whole Grains In the Food Guide Pyramid, the foods that we need the most servings of each day are in the grain group: breads, cereals, rice, and pastas. Several of these servings should be in the form of whole grains. Some examples of wholegrain foods are whole-wheat bread, oatmeal, popcorn, and whole-grain cereals. Whole-grain foods have two advantages. First, they retain vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that are lost when grains are processed. Second, they are a good source of fiber, which helps our bodies process wastes properly and may protect us against a variety of diseases. Teenage girls need about 27 grams of fiber a day; teenage boys, 33 grams. Food labels list the amount of fiber a product contains. Fruits and vegetables are other good sources of fiber. Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta Group 1 slice of bread About 1 cup of ready-to-eat cereal 1/2 cup of cooked cereal, rice, or pasta What Counts as a Serving? Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese Group 1 cup of milk or yogurt 1 1/2 ounces of natural cheese 2 ounces of processed cheese Vegetable Group 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables 1/2 cup of other vegetables cooked or raw 3/4 cup of vegetable juice Fruit Group 1 medium apple, banana, orange, pear 1/2 cup of chopped, cooked, or canned fruit 3/4 cup of fruit juice Source: www.usda.gov Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, and Nuts Group 2 3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans or 1 egg counts as 1 ounce of lean meat 2 tablespoons of peanut butter or 1/3 cup of nuts counts as 1 ounce of meat Grow Bones One essential nutrient that many of us don t get enough of is calcium. According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, just 52 percent of teenage boys get the amount of calcium they need every day. For teenage girls, the figure is an abysmal 19 percent. We all know calcium helps to build bones. By the time we are 17, our bodies will have developed about 90 percent of the bone mass we will have as adults. Later in life, we lose bone mass, so you can see that getting enough calcium right now is very important. When our daily diet does not supply adequate calcium, our bodies take it from our bones. 3

Strong, healthy bones are less likely to break or fracture. Not getting enough calcium puts us at an increased risk to develop osteoporosis, a disease in which bones mass is thinned so that bones break easily. Teenagers need 1,300 mg of calcium per day, a little more than the amount in four glasses of milk. Cheese, yogurt, calcium-fortified orange juice, and dark-green, leafy vegetables are other good sources of calcium. Control Your Weight A healthy diet, along with regular physical exercise, can help your body grow and develop properly. It can help you feel well every day and do the things you want to do. This combination is the safest and most effective way to manage your weight throughout your lifetime. Some 15 percent of teens are overweight, which means that they weigh more than their ideal weight. The safest and most effective way to lose weight is to reduce the number of calories consumed, along with exercising. Generally, teenage girls need about 2,200 calories a day to maintain their weight; teenage boys, 2,800. If you consume fewer calories, or use up calories through exercise, you will lose weight. Common sense tells us that while we are losing weight, our bodies still need the same amount and variety of nutrients every day. Fad diets that starve us of nutrients are a poor choice. Many of the foods in the Food Guide Pyramid are naturally low in calories. By choosing wisely, we can consume all the nutrients our bodies need and still lose weight. If you are considering a weight-loss program, you should talk to your doctor before you begin. Reduce Your Risk for Diseases A healthy diet can reduce your risk of developing several diseases. Let s start with heart disease, the number-one cause of death in the United States. Eating sensibly can also lessen your chances of having a stroke. Some 750,000 people each year suffer from strokes, and strokes can be prevented. By eating right, you reduce your risk of osteoporosis, diabetes, and certain types of cancer. According to the federal government, these diseases are leading causes of death and disability among Americans. 4

Choose Wisely Does all this advice mean that you can never have that double cheeseburger, fries, soda, and chocolate bar again? No, it simply means that other foods that are healthier should make up most of the foods that you consume each day. By eating a nutritious diet, you give your body what it needs to function properly, which makes you healthier and helps you feel better. Along with exercise, eating sensibly is the best way to control and lose weight. A healthy diet also reduces your risk of developing medical problems such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Make the best choice for yourself. Eat right! 5

Get Fit! by Jill Gore Couch potatoes get more colds! That s right the more active people are, the fewer colds they get. But avoiding a cold is small potatoes compared to the many other benefits of exercise. It increases our physical fitness and helps us manage our weight. It lowers our risk of developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and a host of other medical conditions. It can help us with feelings of depression and anxiety, improve our sense of well-being, and give us selfesteem. Being Physically Fit We know exercise can improve our physical fitness. But what exactly does that mean? Contrary to what some people think, physical fitness is more than being able to swim a dozen laps or do the most pushups at the gym. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, physical fitness is "a set of attributes that people have or achieve that relates to the ability to perform physical activity," and it has five parts. One is cardiorespiratory endurance that your circulatory and respiratory systems can keep you going during sustained physical activity. A physically fit person also has muscular strength, muscular endurance, and flexibility. Finally, physical fitness has to do with body composition, including how much of your body is fat. So you can see that exercise has everything to do with being physically fit. Managing Weight Americans are gaining weight in alarming numbers. Nearly one-third of all adults are obese, which means that they weigh more than 30 percent of their ideal body weight. From 1980 to 2000, the proportion of teens that are overweight (who weigh more than their ideal weight) tripled. Being obese or overweight is a concern because it increases the risk of developing heart disease, cancer, arthritis, and other health problems. 6

Physical activity, combined with reducing the number of calories consumed, is the safest and most effective way to lose weight. Watching what you eat and exercising is the healthiest way to control your weight as well. Helping Prevent Diseases Exercise can help reduce the risk of heart disease, the most prevalent disease in the United States. By exercising, you strengthen your heart muscle and lower your blood pressure. Exercise raises the level of HDL in your bloodstream, the good cholesterol that protects against heart disease. At the same time, physical activity lowers your level of LDL, the bad cholesterol that puts you at risk for cardiac problems. Exercise improves blood flow and increases your heart s working ability. In fact, medical experts have determined that people who are regularly active have about half the risk for heart disease of those who lead sedentary lifestyles. Physical activity helps ease the effects of some diseases associated with aging or to reduce the risk of developing them. For instance, strengthening muscles and maintaining good joint movement through exercise can limit the effects of arthritis. Since physical activity helps the body build and maintain bone, osteoporosis is another disease that may be prevented or reversed by exercising. Exercise also improves strength and agility. That means fewer falls, which are the leading cause of death from injury in people over age 65. Feeling Good About Yourself Physical activity not only helps reduce the risk of disease, it helps people to be mentally healthy. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, chemicals that improve your mood and make you feel more relaxed. Physical activity relieves stress and tension. Studies even show that it reduces depression. Researchers also say that exercise helps people sleep better and increases brain power and memory. 7

Getting Exercise Despite the many benefits of physical activity, too many people do not get enough exercise. One in four adults in the United States has a sedentary lifestyle, and nearly half of all teens and young adults do not exercise regularly. It s not hard to figure out why. People are busy, and it s hard to fit a walk or a half-hour at the gym into our schedules. Often, our daily activities don t require much exertion. We sit at desks at work or school, drive or take a bus to get around, work or play on computers, and watch TV. So, how much exercise does a person need? In 1996, the Surgeon General recommended at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise most days of the week. Some examples of moderate exercise are walking at a brisk pace, climbing stairs, playing touch football, raking leaves, washing and waxing a car, and riding a bike. Three 10-minute sessions yield the same good results. So does a single, shorter workout that involves more intense activity, like playing basketball or shoveling snow. For even greater health benefits, an individual may want to work up to a vigorous exercise program for example, a 60-minute workout that involves running instead of walking. These are all aerobic exercises activities that speed your heart rate and breathing and improve cardiovascular fitness. To be physically fit, you need to do two other types of exercises as well. Flexibility exercises include the kind of gentle stretching that many athletes do at the beginning and end of their workouts. These exercises help keep your body limber and stretch your muscles and tissues. They can prevent injuries and speed up recovery. Activities like yoga, dancing, and karate can increase flexibility. The third type of exercise is resistance or strength training. Resistance training forces muscles to work harder than they are used to by setting them against a weight. Working with weights, doing pull-ups, pushups, or sit-ups, or even carrying groceries are examples of resistance training. Resistance training increases muscle strength and helps build and maintain bone. New research even suggests that it can be good for the heart, too. 8

No matter how much exercise you do, any type of exercise is better than none at all. With all there is to be gained from being physically active, why would someone who can exercise choose not to? No more excuses get up and get moving! Benefits of Getting Fit Makes you feel good Increases your fitness level Helps build and maintain bones, muscles, and joints Builds endurance and muscle strength Source: www.usda.gov Enhances flexibility and posture Helps manage weight Lowers risk of disease Helps control blood pressure 9