What is a healthy diet? It’s not about counting calories, measuring portions or cutting carbs. You won’t really find a healthy diet on the lite menu at your favorite restaurant and you certainly won’t find it at the local fast food joint. A healthy diet is all about what you eat rather than how much you eat.

If you think the latest fad diet is your panacea to health, you are in for a big surprise. Losing weight, staying healthy and getting back into shape after many years of diet neglect is not about fads or eating in some radical new way for six to twelve weeks and then going back to the way you used to eat.

The best thing you can do to keep yourself healthy is to eat a healthy diet…all the time, not just when you want to lose weight. Eating healthy is a long-term lifestyle choice, something you need to do for your entire lifetime.

But what is a healthy diet? Is it what we have been lead to believe – milk for strong bones and teeth, protein in the form of lean beef or chicken and maybe a “healthy” microwave dinner if we are “on the go.” Unfortunately this diet is what is identified as the Standard American Diet or the SAD.

And what’s so wrong with the SAD?

Well, has it made us a healthier people? Are we better off as a nation because of it?

With all of the health studies, advanced health care, the war on cancer dating back to the 70’s, and the most advanced technology available on the planet we have to ask ourselves why do we still need to spend $1.3 trillion a year on health care in the United States. Why aren’t we getting any healthier?

Other pertinent questions about your health beg for answers such as, why after more than 30 years since the “War On Cancer” was declared, do we still have an increasing cancer rate. Yes, we have many more people surviving, cancer but the rate at which people are getting cancer is increasing. We have come a long way in taking care of sick people, but we haven’t made any progress as a nation in preventing those people from getting sick.

Why do more than 15 million people in the United States have diabetes? Why do we still have more heart problems today than we did 30 years ago? Why is more than 50% of our population on some kind of prescription drug?

We spend more per person on medical care than any other nation in the world. Why is this happening in a country that seems to be able to solve nearly any technological problem? Why can’t we solve our medical problems? How would life be different for us if we were to be a nation of healthy individuals?

The secret to a healthy diet and a healthy life is living food – fresh vegetables, fruit, juices and green leafy salads. The answer to a healthier you is summed up in three words, breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s not a secret, it’s a lifestyle.

Living a healthy life and having a healthy family is all about eating a healthy diet, every day of our lives!

Alan LeStourgeon along with his wife Jean run the web site http://www.ezHealthyDiet.com where they explore what it means to eat a healthy diet, have a healthier home and live a healthier life.

In February, 2006, the Journal of the American Medical Association released the results of a long-term study of women and diet.

The surprising results were that those women assigned a low fat diet had the same rates of breast cancer, colon cancer, heart attacks and strokes as those who ate whatever they pleased.

Dr. Jules Hirsch, physician in chief emeritus at Rockefeller University in New York stated: “These studies are revolutionary…They put a stop to this era of thinking that we have all the information we need to change the whole national diet and make everybody healthy.”

This is not the first time that conventional wisdom about nutrition and health have been tossed on its ear by continuing medical studies.

Vitamin E is bad. Fiber doesn’t prevent colon cancer. Wine, coffee and dark chocolate are good.

Is there an easy way to determine if you’re eating a healthy diet? Fortunately yes.

First a list of the obvious factors in an unhealthy diet: too much sugar, too much fat, too much alcohol, too much caffeine and too much salt. Nobody recommends that you cut out any of these things entirely, but you must control your intake.

Some anti-aging experts such as Dr. Nicholas Perricone think American women, in particular, eat too little fat. This leaves them looking gaunt and older than their age. But the study cited above was about fat and disease, not fat and obesity.

Salt is necessary to life.

Almost everything we eat is made up of complex sugars.

Caffeine, red wine and dark chocolates are rich in antioxidants and flavonids.

So everything in moderation.

How do you determine what is a healthy diet?

Do you eat a variety of different foods? No one food contains all the nutrients you need to be fit and healthy. Fruits, grains, breads, vegetables, diary products, protein from meat and fish and poultry, beans, nuts and even herbs and spices should all be consumed.

There is some speculation that some of these foods interact in such a way as to improve their antioxidant or their disease fighting power.

Also by consuming all the food groups you are getting at least the minimum recommended dosage of vital vitamins and minerals as well as sufficient dietary fiber to not only help digestion, but also to prevent gastrointestinal diseases.

If possible, the optimum healthy diet consists of fresh foods, but you have to balance this out with the rest of your life. Few people can shop daily for the freshest ingredients for their meals.

A healthy diet will contain 5 to 9 servings of fruits and vegetables every day. When shopping follow Dr. Perricone’s advice and buy a rainbow of dark, rich colored produce. Those dark colors mean you are consuming healthy amounts of vital nutrients such as vitamins A and C as well as natural beta carotene.

Like your mother used to say (or maybe it was Kellogg’s) you have to start off your day with a good breakfast. Maybe you can’t face poached fish in the morning, but you can eat a healthy diet of whole grain bread or cereals, an occasional egg and a cup of coffee.

Are prepared foods worse than fresh?

Many experts say yes. Prepared foods do seem to have excessive salt if nothing else. But you can buy healthy prepared foods by reading the labels and looking out for high fat, sugar or sodium content.

We finally come to water. Our bodies are mostly water, as is the world around us. Drinking plenty of water is essential.

You will feel less hungry. You skin will look healthier and plumper (this is good once you start to age). It flushes toxins from the body. So drink as much as you can. It’s an essential part of a healthy diet.

One way to determine if you’re on the right track is if you gain weight without trying or even while dieting. This will not happen if you are eating right and exercising regularly.

Now for the goodies.

Have a piece of rich dark chocolate for dessert once in a while. It’s rich in antioxidants.

A glass or two of red wine a day is good for your heart.

Coffee is also rich in antioxidants.

And sex is one of the best exercises you can do.

Again: all in moderation (except maybe for the sex).

This article is for informational purposes only. It does not purport to offer medical advice. Consult a qualified physician before undertaking any change of diet.

For more articles about diet and nutrition, visit href=”http://www.ageless-beauty.com/antiaging-nutrition.html

Jean Bowler was a teacher, ballet dancer and instructor, personal trainer, cosmetics saleslady and more. She is the editor of Ageless Beauty – http://www.ageless-beauty.com