The Best Foods to Eat
Eating a variety of foods from all food groups can help you get the nutrients your body needs as you age. A healthy eating plan:
– Emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat or fat-free dairy
– Includes lean meat, poultry, fish, beans, eggs and nuts
– Should be low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium) and added sugars
Here are a few of the best foods to eat:
Wild Salmon: The Omega-3 fats in fatty fish like salmon may help reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. And wild-caught salmon has lower levels of PCB contaminants than farmed salmon.
Leafy Greens: Powerhouse greens like kale, collards, spinach, beet and mustard greens and Swiss chard are jam-packed with Vitamins C, A, K, and folate. They also contain minerals such as potassium, magnesium, calcium, and fiber.
Ginger: Health care professionals may recommend ginger to help prevent or treat nausea and vomiting from motion sickness, pregnancy, and cancer chemotherapy. It is also used to treat mild stomach upset, to reduce pain of osteoarthritis, and may even be used in heart disease control.
Blueberries: Ranked the highest of any fruit for antioxidants (those free-radical-fighting powerhouses), and one cup delivers 14% of the recommended daily dose of fiber and nearly a quarter of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C. They are also low in calories — fewer than 100 for a full cup.
Garlic: A recent study showed that less than one clove a day may cut prostate cancer risk in half, and other research links garlic to a lowered incidence of stomach, colon and possibly breast cancers, says John A. Milner, chief of the Nutritional Science Research Group at the National Cancer Institute.
Garbanzo Beans: All beans are good beans. They are rich in protein, fiber, iron, magnesium, and zinc. Garbanzos are very versatile. Toss them in your salad or add them to soups and stews.
Information retrieved from:
www.eatingwell.com www.umm.edu www.nutritionaction.com www.webmd.com