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(Here is some quick information on healthy eating, just to get you started. Please see other sections of this website for more in-depth information.)
What we eat has a huge impact on our health and well-being, so food choices deserve our attention. We can learn about what our bodies need to thrive and then work to make sure healthy options are present and simple to make as we move about our days — from home, to work or school, to places we play and worship.
The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, produced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, describe a "healthy diet" as one that:
- Emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat milk and milk products or other foods rich in calcium;
- Includes lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts;
- Is low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars; and
- Stays within daily calorie needs, based on your age and how active you are:
Seniors need: 1,600 calories per day
Children: 1,600 calories per day
Inactive women: 1,600 calories per day
Inactive men: 2,200 calories per day
Moderately active women: 2,200 calories per day
Teenage Girls: 2,200 calories per day
Teenage Boys: 2,800 calories per day
Active men: 2,800 calories per day
Active women: 2,800 calories per day
Pregnant & breastfeeding women: 2,200 to 2,800 calories per day
Quick Tips for Healthy Meals:
- Think of ways to add more fruits and vegetables to your diet. You can get a lot of veggies in soups and stir frys or by adding them to pasta. Fresh fruit makes an easy snack, or consider adding fresh or dried fruit to other foods, like cereal or plain yogurt.
- Try building at least some of your meals around fruits and vegetables and grains (especially whole grains such as brown rice) and treating meat and dairy as the side dishes.
- Choose vegetarian proteins often, such as beans and tofu, nuts, and low-fat dairy products. Stick to lean cuts when choosing meat, and baking or roasting instead of frying.
- To avoid added sugars and fats and other ingredients that don't help you be healthier, serve foods as close to their natural state as possible: like fresh fruit instead of jam, whole wheat bread instead of white, and fresh meat instead of deli slices.
- Be prepared. Plan to have healthy snacks and meals with you if you know you'll be out all day.
- For more ideas, check out Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon's fact sheets on: "Quick Tips for Healthy Eating" and "Tips for Feeding Picky Eaters" (en Español) as well as the Take Action section of this website.
Quick Tips for Getting Healthy Food on a Budget:
- Plan meals and snacks ahead of time, make a shopping list, and stick to it. Look for sale items that are on your list.
- Use coupons with caution, they are often for more expensive - and less nutritious - items.
- Buy fresh produce, whether from a store or farmers market, when it is at its peak. Eating fruits and vegetables when they are in season is a lot less expensive, and they taste better too.
- Look for creative ways to get the most nutrition from your food dollars: consider buying healthy items in bulk and splitting the cost with a friend, or buy direct from a farm.
- Grow some of your food at home or in a community garden. You don't necessarily need to dig up a lot of land; you can grow produce in containers or a "raised garden bed" (wooden box with soil dumped in) instead. If you don't have the space or sunlight, see if there is a community garden near you, or ask friends, family or people at your faith community if you could grow some food in their yards.
Other Tools for Finding Healthy Food:
Check the Take Action: Food and Nutrition section of this website for more tips on planning healthy meals, healthy cooking suggestions, ways to obtain healthy food that is affordable, and how to use policies and guidelines - as well as your indoor and outdoor space - to make sure healthy foods will consistently be available at your congregation, in your neighborhood, (and at home).
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