What to REMOVE from Your Anti-Aging Diet
Since as our bodies age the rate of metabolism slows, we don’t need nearly as many calories, so removing these from your diet will be a good thing. Otherwise they will be converted to fat and stored in the body causing it to gain weight. Excess sugar is also stored as fat instead of burned up as energy, so removal of sugar from the diet will help to keep our weight down.
So fat and sugars should be reduced, but salt is another important ingredient to reduce, as it will help to reduce blood pressure in those who suffer from hypertension. The trouble is that these three – sugar, fat and salt – are often hidden in processed foods. Even those that claim to have low amounts still contain much more than you would get in fresh fruit and vegetables.
It’s a good idea to limit your use of processed foods and one easy way to do this is to eat a wholegrain breakfast cereal like oats. You may have to cook it yourself, but the benefits will outweigh the trouble in doing so. In fact, you can cook a double or triple portion and keep it in the refrigerator to be heated up for the next few days. That means you only need to cook it two or three times a week instead of every morning.
Substitute a fruit snack for bought biscuits and cake. Those packaged snacks that are supposed to be so healthy are no more so than any other bought biscuit or snack. Advertising is usually aimed at our wants, not our needs. Using whole grain or whole wheat breads will be healthier and more filling than white breads even with added vitamins, because the amount added is so very small.
Chips and candies should be limited to the occasional treat, as should fast foods. If the kids want to eat out at fast food places, then encourage them to choose the healthy options that are available these days. Grilled meat and salads are so much healthier, but go easy on the salad dressing that can be high in fat, salt and sugar.
Even excessive protein such as a meal high in red meat will cause a great amount of oxidation (and free radical damage) as the body digests it. When you feel sluggish after a big meal, you know that you’ve had too much of the wrong kind of food. Fish and white meat can be used to replace red meat and then you can gradually change over to nuts and legumes to provide the protein you need. When eating chicken or turkey, remember to avoid those fatty parts like the skin.