Columbia, SC (WLTX) - A simple way to eat more healthfully is to consider a “Food Swap”. Instead of depriving yourself, ask yourself what healthy choice can you be eating in place of the unhealthy food.
Let’s consider these Top 5 Simple food swaps:
Food Swap 1: Drink Green Tea instead of Coffee.
Green Tea (good quality green tea!) is full of antioxidants called “catechins” which are part of the natural phenol group and can help your body fight free radicals that damage your cells and cause premature aging.
There are some studies that say that caffeine isn't bad for you and might even be good for you. However, some people metabolize caffeine differently and for those people it can cause elevated heart rate and blood pressure and even heart flutters. And while there is some caffeine in green tea, that effect is blunted by a substance called L Theanine which is calming. Green tea also has EGCG. Both L theanine and EGCG boost both your cognitive and mental health. Most people who study green tea will recommend Green Matcha Tea from Japan or the high mountains of China as the best green tea. Always try to use the most fresh leaves and don’t over boil it as this will cause the tea to lose some of it’s benefits. Steep the green tea in warm to hot water slowly. Use Green Tea with caution if you are taking a beta blocker.
Food Swap 2: Healthy Snacks: Stop the Chips and Cookies and High Fructose Corn Syrup/Gluten/Pesticide laden prepared foods.
Nuts and dried fruits are a wonderful alternative. Use almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, dried blueberries, cranberries and raspberries can be a tasty treat. Nut contain Lignans (polyphenols) another immune booster. But don’t go overboard! Nuts aren’t for everyone. They are healthy and high in Omega 3 fats, they are calorically dense and it’s easy to overeat them. These are a snack, not a meal replacement. Also, if you have an unhealthy gut, these can be hard to digest. We can talk about gut health at a later time. I make a nice “trail mix” in the bulk food section of my local grocery store using the ingredients above. Raw is best! Make sure you aren’t getting the “sugared” nuts or highly processed or overheated nuts. This can also destroy some of the nutrients. You can even put Kefir or Real Yogurt (no sugar added) to make a great small snack.
Food Swap 3: Healthy Fats: We like to think of all fats as “bad” and that simply isn’t true.
We are learning so much more about fats. No Fat, Low Fat! It’s enough to confuse anyone. Generally, we consider Omega 3 fats as our “better fats” but mostly we are looking at this in a ratio of Omega 6 (generally found in processed foods and are considered not as healthy as it is “pro-inflammatory”) and Omega 3 fats (generally considered as a healthier fat because it is “anti-inflammatory”). Ideally, our Omega 6:Omega 3 ratio (this can be tested at your Dr’s office) should be a maximum of 4:1 or lower. Beyond this, we start to see disease develop. Our ancestors, the hunter gatherers, had a 1:1 ratio, and even some cultures who do not eat an “industrial diet” have a 1:4 ratio. In the US, most research reveals that our “SAD” (Standard American Diet) has us as a population at about a 10:1 or even 16:1 ratio. No wonder we have so many chronic illnesses which are due to this imbalance.
High Omega 6 intake (processed foods) is associated with heart disease and even violence and depression while Omega-3s improve all sorts of mental disorders like depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Two Omega 3 fats, EPA and DHA, which are primarily found in certain kinds of fish are very beneficial for our health. ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), is another omega-3 fat (or fatty acid), and is found in plant sources such as nuts and seeds. Not only does your body need these fatty acids to function, but also they deliver some big health benefits. Why is this? Research tells us that healthy fats:
- Triglycerides. Fish oil supplements can lower elevated triglyceride levels.
- Rheumatoid arthritis. Fish oil supplements (EPA+DHA) can curb stiffness and joint pain.
- Decrease depression, asthma, ADHD, and prevent Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
So what are some of these healthy fats? Wild caught salmon, mackerel, herring and other fish are highest in Omega 3 as are Krill. Other foods include pastured eggs, omega-3 enriched eggs, meats from grass-fed animals, grass-fed dairy products, hemp seeds, as well as some vegetables like spinach, Brussel’s sprouts and purslane. Some nuts also have a fair amount of Omega 3 fats.
Food Swap 4: Healthy Oils: Every cell in our body has a fat or “lipid bi-layer” so, again, this demonstrates that we need fats but we need healthy fats.
So along with our need for healthy fats to support brain, liver and cardiometabolic health we need healthy fats to support cell metabolism and cell structure. Let’s review the oils we use in cooking and baking. By simply replacing the unhealthy oils with healthier oil choices, we can significantly alter our Omega 6:Omega 3 ratio. Look in your cupboards and read the labels. Look for the words, “hydrogenated” and “trans-fat.” And, sadly, yes, we should strictly limit our use of our southern “lard” and “shortening.” These wreak havoc on our cardiovascular system.
It is time to remove the canola, soybean, corn, vegetable and cottonseed oils. These oils are treated by heating them and that causes oxidation which promotes free radicals, are pro-inflammatory and are detrimental to our health overall. Replace these with healthier oils such as olive oil (look for cold-pressed, extra virgin), grapeseed oil which has a higher heat threshold and can be used for cooking. Coconut oil has lauric acid which actually helps fight viral infections, burn fat and has a high heat threshold. This should be “unrefined” and should smell like a coconut!
Raw or Organic butter in small amounts is another good choice and can be used for cooking. In this category is Ghee, which is an amazing substance. It is an ancient technique for ensuring that butter lasts longer without spoiling. Ghee is actually clarified butter and has had the milk and butter fats along with lactose and casein removed. You can make your own but it is available relatively inexpensively at your local grocery store.
Remember with any fat that all of them have a “smoke point” which means the temperature at which that fat begins to smoke or burn. And just like the unhealthy fats above, this smoking alters even the good fats and can turn them unhealthy. So make sure you use the right fat for whatever temperature you are cooking. You can Google “smoke points” for any food, but the simplest way is just to turn the heat down when you see it beginning to smoke. Don’t use burnt oil, that is incredibly bad for our bodies.
Food Swap 5: Replace Pasta with “Spiralized” vegetables.
We all know that simple carbohydrates can add empty calories to our intake and unwanted inches to our waistlines. Instead of pasta, try Spaghetti Squash which, if baked for about 30-40 minutes depending on the size, has a center which looks a lot like noodles and is a MUCH healthier alternative. You can also use a “spiralizer” to actually make healthy veggies such as carrots, zucchini, squash, cucumbers and any other firm vegetable into a pasta shaped treat. Use this instead of processed pasta.
Soft drinks are full of sugar which is toxic to our cells in those amounts. And even the diet drinks are dangerous. The artificial sweeteners in those drinks are very unhealthy for our GI system and can alter the way our gut filters out toxins and absorbs nutrients. Drink filtered water, and put a fresh squeezed lemon or two in it to help give it a fresh taste and boost your antioxidant levels!
And, of course, there is an APP for all of this! The “Eat This Not That” app is a bit pricey at $4.99 but has thousands of ideas for food swaps and even has a GPS function to help you locate restaurants that serve healthier choices when you are on the road or even learning about healthy choices in your own home town.
Too busy to count calories? Fed up with complicated diet programs that are impossible to follow? Join the food revolution and download the new Eat This, Not That! app! Based on the best-selling book series, this new app provides thousands of simple food swaps, keeps track of the foods you eat, and uses GPS to guide you toward healthy meals—no matter where you are!