You Are What You Eat

We’ve been told so many times, we are what we eat. It’s an old adage but it’s as true today as it was then. Simply put, eating healthy foods results in a healthy body, and, on the flipside, eating unhealthy meals results in a weak or sickly body. The more food you take in, the heavier you become. Maintaining a healthy diet will only be successful if one also makes it a habit to exercise regularly.

A healthy diet is a balanced diet. This consists of more fruits, vegetables and grain food products, just the right amount of meat, and the least amount of fats. Of course, eating a healthy, balanced diet must be complemented by regular exercise. Engaging in regular sports such as indoor cricket or netball can help keep the body healthy by burning calories that might otherwise turn into excess fats and by strengthening the muscles and maintaining healthy blood circulation.

To keep the body healthy, there needs to be discipline in food intake. Although it is more tempting and enjoyable to indulge in plenty of sumptuous, fatty meals, it always bodes well to stick to moderate eating. As well as not overeating, there is much need to lean more towards vegetables, fruits and fibre-rich food products. This group of foods provide the needed vitamins and minerals for the body, as well as energy from starch and fibre-rich foods. Fibre, which is found in abundance in whole grain bread and cereals, is essential for a healthy bowel and is acknowledged to be effective in minimising the chances of developing heart diseases. Discipline is also needed in reducing the intake of fatty foods, especially those containing saturated fats.

People who live in the city te    nd to eat more junk food and processed food, the appeal of which is that they are quick, convenient, or easy to prepare, therefore keeping pace with the fast life. City people also tend to get less exercise as they walk less and do more sedentary activities. This type of diet and living brings down the overall health quality of people.

It is a good thing that cultural changes are happening and there are more and more developments to encourage people to live healthy. There is more information about the right foods to eat and those to be wary about. There are also many initiatives designed to persuade people to exercise. For instance, health facilities are adjusting to the lifestyle of modern people to enable them to exercise more. There are more sport facilities that cater to the interests of the Average Joe who wants to play their favourite sport in a social setting. Beginners and amateurs can now enjoy being healthy by playing almost any kind of sport under cover, from indoor handball and indoor netball, to indoor cricket and even soccer.

Eating healthy can be very challenging but the rewards are worth it. Coupled with regular exercise, a healthy diet results in a better quality of life and, with a reduced chance of developing dangerous disease, a longer one! It pays to stick to eating healthy – after all, we are what we eat.

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