Guidelines for a Healthy Diet
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans were established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to help people choose diets that meet their nutritional requirements, promote health, support active lives, and reduce the risk of chronic disease. These Guidelines are simple and sensible suggestions for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
Guideline #1: Eat a Variety of Foods
To be well nourished, each day you need to eat a variety of foods that contain balanced amounts of nutrients. There are over 40 known nutrients that your body needs to stay healthy — no single food can supply all the nutrients you need.
Guideline #2: Balance the Food You Eat With Physical Activity — Maintain or Improve Your Weight
Sometimes, people do not make wise decisions concerning the calories in the foods they eat. A calorie is a unit used to measure the amount of energy produced by the food you eat. If a person eats food containing more calories than the body needs for energy, the extra calories may be stored as fat. In order to lose weight, you must use more calories than you consume. Physical activity is the only way to burn calories.
Guideline #3: Choose a Diet With Plenty of Fruits, Vegetables, and Grain Products
Because fruits, vegetables, and grains are loaded with vitamins and minerals and have little or no fat, they are good dietary choices. By increasing the amount of fruits, vegetables and grains in your diet, you may be able to:
- Help reduce your risk for heart disease and stroke
- Reduce your chances of getting cancer
- Make your immune system stronger
- Get slimmer and trimmer
- Lower your blood pressure
- Reduce your food costs (these foods are generally cheaper than meat and dairy products)
- Alleviate constipation (a common side effect of some medications you may be taking)
- Give you a full feeling, which can help reduce the amount of food you eat
- Reduce blood cholesterol levels
- Reduce the risk for bowel disorders and colon cancer
Some dietary fat is needed for good health. In fact, fats supply energy and help the body use vitamins A, D, E, and K. However, high-fat diets have been associated with heart disease, high blood pressure, and cancer.
Saturated fat is any fat that is solid at room temperature — both animal and vegetable fats can be saturated. Too much saturated fat in the diet can cause blood cholesterol levels to rise and may lead to health problems. Some foods high in saturated fat are bacon, sausage, lard, bologna, coconut oil, peanut butter, ham, butter, whole milk, ice cream, and cream cheese.
Cholesterol comes from animals, so only foods from animals contain cholesterol (egg yolks, meat, poultry, high-fat milk products/cheese, shellfish, and pork). Since the body produces all the cholesterol it needs, it is best to limit your cholesterol intake to less than 300 mg per day.
Guideline #5: Choose a Diet Moderate in Sugars
Foods made with simple sugars or carbohydrates provide very little vitamins or minerals. Sugar is the #1 food additive and is often listed on labels under names not familiar to most people. Some of these include corn fructose, maltose, dextrose, sucrose, fructose, lactose, and polydextrose. Several problems are caused by eating excess sugars:
- Excess calories from sugars are stored as fat unless they are burned up in exercise
- Simple sugars in the diet can promote tooth decay
- A diet high in sugar may uncover or worsen diabetes
Guideline #6: Choose a Diet Moderate in Salt and Sodium
Sodium is a mineral found in salt that occurs naturally in some foods. Sodium plays an important role in regulating body fluids and blood pressure. Although the body needs only 6 grams of salt (or 2,400 mg of sodium) per day, most people consume more than that amount. Foods highest in salt and sodium include snack foods (chips, pretzels, etc.), bologna, bacon, olives, ham, mustard, and ketchup. Ways to reduce sodium intake include:
- Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables
- Use herbs and salt-free spices to flavor foods
- Avoid processed and packaged foods
- Don't add salt at the table
Alcohol supplies large amounts of calories and few or no nutrients. Additionally, drinking alcohol can lead to high blood pressure, liver and brain damage, and increased risk for heart disease.
People with bipolar disorder should be especially careful about drinking alcohol because it is known to interact with many medications taken to treat bipolar disorder. Mixing alcohol and psychiatric medications may cause interactions that can worsen some side effects, like sleepiness and sedation. Mixing medication and alcohol can also cause symptoms to worsen. It is best to completely avoid the use of alcohol.
Talk to Your Doctor
If you have additional questions or concerns about this topic, talk to your doctor.
