Health & Fitness
5 Simple Tips To Eat Better This Fall
The changing of the seasons brings delicious produce and opportunities to try mindful eating, allowing you to feel your best this fall.
Making educated food choices allows you to fuel not just your body, but your mind. The food we eat can influence our moods and mental health, as well as support our bodies in carrying out their daily activities.
If you’re ready to begin a journey towards healthier eating, there’s no better time of year than fall. Autumn is a time of transition and a great opportunity to try out new eating habits to help you feel your best. Banner Health is here to support you in eating better this fall with these five simple tips.
1. Embrace Seasonal Produce
Although we may have access to a variety of produce year-round, eating seasonal produce can save you money, benefit the environment and supply you with nutrients. While out-of-season produce may be underdeveloped, seasonal produce picked at its peak has optimal nutrients. Plus, eating seasonal produce at the right time of year helps you enjoy fruits and vegetables when they taste their best.
Fall is an opportune time of year to work pumpkins into some of your favorite recipes. Those orange gourds are rich with beta-carotene to help boost your immune system, skin and vision. Pumpkin can be tossed in paprika and roasted in the oven, or blended up and poured over pasta. Don’t forget to enjoy the whole pumpkin — roasted seeds make a great snack and offer magnesium, iron and fiber.
In addition, Brussels sprouts are an excellent autumnal green filled with vitamin K to promote bone health and prevent blood clotting, as well as alpha-lipoic acid, which can help regulate blood sugar levels. If plain Brussels sprouts aren’t your favorite, try crusting them with Parmesan or making them into a slaw with feta cheese.
2. Drink Enough Water
Your body runs on water. To keep your organs working properly, your joints moving easily and your blood pressure regulating, your body needs an ample amount of water. Water is also better for your body than sugary beverage alternatives, as it is more hydrating and has no sugar or calories. In addition to drinking plain H2O, you can also sip on flavored seltzer or infused water for a tasty hydration boost. You can also ramp up your hydration by eating fruits and vegetables that are high in water content, including watermelon and cucumbers.
Though you may have heard that everyone should drink eight cups of water per day, there is no easy rule to know exactly how much water you should be drinking. Everyone is different, so you will have needs and requirements unique to your body. In general, your urine can be a good guide: it should be light yellow and should not have a strong smell. Dark urine is a good sign that you should be drinking more water — it can take days to recover from being dehydrated, so make sure you stick with it.
However, keep in mind that drinking too much water can also be harmful. As a general rule, stay under a liter of water per hour. You can talk to a health care professional familiar with your health to get more specific guidelines on how much water you may need.
3. Create Balanced Meals
To meet all of your body’s nutritional needs, try to build colorful, balanced plates. Each plate should contain carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Vitamins and minerals come from all of those groups: carbs give us energy and help our brains function, proteins help build cells and fats carry all the nutrients throughout our bodies.
Diets and trends may say to skip meals or avoid eating carbohydrates. However, building balanced plates is the best way to fuel your body. Many foods we eat have nutrients, sugars and fiber — whether they’re branded as “healthy” or not. When picking your carbohydrates, consider filling at least half your plate with whole grains, fruits and vegetables. For proteins, you can choose some fish, poultry or eggs in a serving size similar to a deck of cards. Alternatively, beans and seeds are also a great source of protein.
Remember that getting your nutrients and vitamins is the most important thing — not the way you get them. Whether your veggies come in the form of a salad, a salsa or a soup, the important thing is that you’re eating and enjoying them.
4. Explore Intuitive Eating
A desire to eat healthier doesn’t always mean you need to adopt the latest fad diet. In fact, for some, a non-diet approach like intuitive eating can support healthier habits for the long term. With intuitive eating, you learn to tune into and honor your hunger and fullness cues, find enjoyment in eating what you want and avoid using food to cope with negative emotions. No foods are restricted; the focus is on eating in a way that nourishes your body and your mind.
Intuitive eating can help you achieve your healthiest weight — whether that is lower than, higher than or the same as your current weight — and reduce the risk of chronic diseases associated with caloric deficits or yo-yo dieting. Additionally, eliminating shameful messaging around food and your body, as well as the stress of maintaining a specific strict diet, can help improve your mental health.
If you are interested in exploring intuitive eating, it is recommended that you consult with a health care professional to ensure your nutritional and mental health needs are addressed appropriately.
5. Consult With A Dietitian
A dietitian is a health professional who supports individuals in making informed nutrition choices. They can provide education and suggestions about your diet based on your needs and lifestyle. Dietitians tailor their services and recommendations to special conditions like diabetes, prenatal needs, food allergies and digestion issues.
Banner Health offers nutrition programs led by dietitians; their services may include evaluating your current diet and nutrition, conducting body composition analyses and/or developing custom meal plans. These services are available to clients of all ages, which can help children meet their nutritional needs at crucial stages of development.
To get started with Banner Health’s nutrition counseling, you’ll need to obtain a referral from your primary care physician. In your first nutrition consultation, you’ll receive an assessment of your overall nutritional status with respect to any diagnoses you may have; from there, your dietitian will work with you to develop a personalized treatment plan to meet your individual nutritional needs.
