What forms the part of a balanced diet?

A nutritious diet needs to include all the seven nutrients, as mentioned above. It has to include several foods from different groups like vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy, and protein-rich items. As a protein source, you can opt for legumes, nuts, beans, fish, meat, and eggs. If you are a vegan, you will have to focus entirely on plant-based food items. Thus, dairy, fish, or meat are completely cut off from your diet, but it needs to include other food from which you can get similar nutrients. For instance, beans and tofu are good sources of plant-based protein. It is important to remember that the concept of healthy food might differ from one person to another for multiple reasons. You’ll have to choose the right alternatives as per your dietary constraints. Many people are lactose intolerant, but even they can have a balanced diet by choosing other nutrient-rich substitutes for dairy. Similarly, the ones with gluten intolerance can’t have wheat flour. Food items to stay away from for a nutritious diet Having a balanced diet is as much about what you eat as it is about what you don’t eat. So, if you are aiming for a healthy lifestyle, your diet needs to exclude processed foods, extra salt and sugar, processed and red meat, refined grains, and alcohol. If you keep indulging in all these items every other day, all your efforts to eat healthy will go in vain. So, eating a nutritious diet means saying goodbye to those extra helpings of sugar in the morning tea. Even sugar-laden candies and sweets are best kept away from. A good substitute for sugar is jaggery, which can be a great addition to your food and drinks. In fact, instead of all those store-bought candies, why not use jaggery to make dishes at home that can satiate your sweet tooth? Bring home the natural goodness of jaggery with the products from Bebe Foods, and make mouth-watering dishes like ‘narkel naru’ or ‘modak.’ Add a bit of Immunity Booster jaggery to your tea or warm water in the morning, and raise your defences against diseases. After all, who needs processed sugar when you can get the delicious taste of Bebe Jaggery? Place your order today, and make it a part of your daily meal. Putting together a healthy plate of food Now, the question arises regarding how much of each food group you need to remain healthy. An excellent way to remember the necessary quantity for each group is to eat by the plate method.

As per the plate method of having a balanced diet, you should:

• Fill half your plate with veggies and fruits.
• Fill a little over one quarter with grains.
• Fill a little under a quarter with proteins.
• Add a dairy or non-dairy replacement on the side.