Tips for a Diet Good in Nutrition
Hello Everyone,
A Diet good in nutrition is important. Below are some helpful tips on proper diet.
Eat a Well-balanced Diet
You’ll want to choose foods that are as rich in nutrition as possible. Your daily diet should include the following:
Lean meats, poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, and legumes (dried peas and beans)
Low-fat dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt)
Whole-grain and enriched breads, cereals, and grain products
Fruits and vegetables According to the recent “Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005”, published jointly by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), you should have a mix of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Current recommendations based on the new food pyramids suggest that 45-65% of your calories should come from carbohydrates, with 20% to 35% of your calories coming from fat. Be sure to consider the types of fats that you eat.
Up to 20% of your calories should come from protein. However, if you are on dialysis, you may need to eat a high-protein diet. If you’re still on the waiting list for a kidney transplant you may need to limit the amount of protein you eat. Talk to your doctor about your specific protein needs.
Protein is particularly important, as it helps wounds heal. And remember, protein doesn’t come only from meats. In fact, leafy green vegetables like spinach have more protein per calorie than meatloaf. Dairy products, lentils, fish, peanut butter, and tofu are also great sources of protein. Try to eat meals that are well-balanced and include proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.
Get Enough Vitamins
Though you should try to get your vitamins from a balanced diet, you may want to talk to your doctor about adding a multivitamin. A multivitamin can help ensure that you get enough calcium, vitamin D, magnesium, phosphorus, and B vitamins like folic acid. You may have also thought about herbal supplements and whether they might help you with your dietary and health needs. Talk to your dietician and transplant team about herbal products, since they may cause problems with your transplant medications. Herbal supplements aren’t just the pills and capsules sold in jars, but also beverages and other products that contain supplements like guarana, milk thistle, Echinacea, and ginseng.
Avoid Salt
Sodium can cause complications with your medications and your blood pressure, so it is best to avoid adding salt to foods or eating foods that are salty—like packaged foods (potato chips, salted nuts, pretzels), canned soups, hot dogs, cured meats (ham and deli meats), and other high-sodium foods and condiments (soy sauce).
Limit Saturated Fats
Different kinds of fats are considered either good or bad because of their effects on your cholesterol levels. You probably know that saturated fats are bad for you, as are partially hydrogenated fats, which result in trans fatty acid (found in baked goods such as doughnuts and pastries, deep fried foods, imitation cheese, and snack foods like chips and cookies).
You should consider limiting your intake of saturated fat to below 10% of your total calories. The best kind of fat—monounsaturated fat—should make up about 20% of your total calories. Monounsaturated fat is found in olive oil and canola oil.
Good Fats / Bad Fats
Olives/olive oil / Palm kernel oil
Canola oil / Coconut oil
Flax seed oil / Vegetable oil/shortening
Nuts/nut oils / Animal fat (butter, whole-fat dairy, high-fat meats like bacon)
Fish oil / Candy
Tofu / Fried foods
Beans, not fried or refried / Partially hydrogenated fats
Avocado
Enjoy the Benefits of Fiber
Some studies have shown that fiber can help reduce cholesterol. In addition, fiber can help to slow the flow of sugar from your digestive system to your bloodstream—a factor that’s important if you experience hyperglycemia. Good sources of fiber include whole-grain bread, oatmeal, brown rice, barley, raw fruits, and raw vegetables.
Overall:
Things to Avoid:
High fat and salty foods like potato chips, doughnuts, and pretzels should be avoided. When taking some medications, grapefruit, grapefruit juice, and star fruit should not be eaten.
Getting Your Folic Acid:
Folic acid and other B vitamins are critical to maintaining proper levels of homocysteine in your body. Since high homocysteine levels can affect kidney function, it is particularly important to get folic acid. Some good sources of folic acid are leafy green vegetables (like spinach), whole-wheat bread, enriched breads and breakfast cereals that have added vitamins (fortified), unsalted nuts and seeds, sprouts, oranges, and poultry.
Hope all these tips help you come up with very healthy meals this holiday season!
To Good Health and Nutrition!
James
Source Cited:
Healthy Living and theDietary Guidelines for Americans, 2005. Assessed Online.
