One word for healthy food

Food and Health Vocabulary

with word definitions, example sentences and quiz

The food we eat can affect our health in many ways. If we eat food that’s contaminated with bacteria, we’ll be sick and go to the toilet more often. We can also get sick if we eat dangerous foods like poisonous mushrooms or certain kinds of fish. These foods have short-term effects on our health, but food can also have long-term effects on our health.

These long-term effects vary depending on where we live and how much we eat. In a country with food shortages due to war or lack of rain, people might suffer from malnutrition. People with malnutrition lose a lot of weight and become very thin and weak. They can also develop long-term illnesses due to the lack of essential nutrients like vitamin C and iron. People in rich, developed countries can also develop food-related illnesses, but they’re usually related to eating too much, or overeating, rather than eating too little.

The term malnutrition is made from the combining form mal- (bad) + the noun nutrition (food, nourishment, eating). It therefore means «bad eating», and covers «wrong» eating, under-eating and over-eating. Other words formed with mal- include: malpractice, malfunction, malodorous

Overweight and obesity

People who overeat can become overweight, especially if they don’t exercise. Being a little overweight isn’t usually related to serious health problems, but putting on more weight and becoming obese definitely is. This is because obesity is a major risk factor for many serious illnesses that can be fatal and shorten our lives by many years.

People who are suffering from malnutrition can usually recover by simply eating nutritious food, but people who are obese face a far more difficult situation. To recover they must lose a lot of weight by eating less and changing to a healthy diet¹. This can be very difficult to do, especially if they live in a place full of Western-style fast foods and processed foods. And even if they lose weight by going on a diet², most people soon return to their usual diet and put the weight back on. So learning about food and health and how to prevent obesity in the first place is one of the most important things we can learn.

All the energy our bodies need comes from the food we eat, and it’s measured in calories. If we balance the calories we get from food with the number we «burn» each day as energy, our body weight stays the same. But if we eat more food than we need, the extra energy is stored as body fat and we put on weight. You can check to see if your body weight is healthy or not by measuring your height and weight and then calculating your body mass index (or BMI) with a special formula. If your BMI is between 18.5 and 25, your weight is healthy. If it’s between 25 and 30, you’re overweight, and if it’s over 30, you’re obese and need to change your diet.

The obesity epidemic

Before the 1970s obesity wasn’t a serious problem, but in the mid-70s obesity rates began rising in Western countries like the USA, UK and Australia. These were the first countries in which major food companies began increasing their profits by selling more snack foods, fast foods and processed junk food than ever before. Fast food companies opened hamburger, pizza and fried chicken outlets in every big town and city and spent huge amounts of money marketing them. Major food companies filled supermarkets with frozen «TV dinners» and convinced families they were as healthy as home-cooked meals. They marketed more and more sweets, snack foods and sugary drinks to children even though they knew they were damaging their health and ruining their teeth. They spent millions of dollars lobbying governments in order to stop them from regulating their industry and reducing their profits.

In the 1990s Western food companies began targeting people in developing countries as well, and many are now eating hamburgers, pizzas and other Western foods instead of traditional local foods. As a result, obesity rates have increased greatly in those countries as well. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), only 1% of the world’s children were obese in 1975, but the number is now 10 times higher. The number of overweight and obese adults has also increased greatly since 1975 and is now over 2 billion people. The situation has become so serious that it’s being called an obesity epidemic.

An epidemic usually involves just one disease, but the obesity epidemic is related to several diseases. It’s a major risk factor for heart disease and heart attacks, high blood pressure and strokes, diabetes and kidney disease, and many kinds of cancer, all of which can be fatal. And our risk of developing one of these diseases increases every time we eat certain dangerous or fattening foods.

Dangerous foods

Most nutritionists now agree that a diet of Western-style processed food and fast food is one of the unhealthiest diets of all. This is because it’s so high in saturated fats, trans fats, sugar and salt, all of which can be a danger to health.

Saturated fats and trans fats

Saturated fats and trans fats are dangerous because they increase our blood levels of cholesterol, a substance that can form fatty lumps that block blood flow and cause heart attacks and stroke. The worst foods for saturated fats include bacon, sausages, hamburgers, fatty steaks, ham and salami pizzas, high-fat cream, etc.

Trans fats are even more dangerous and harder to avoid because food companies use them so often. They can be found in potato crisps, donuts, pastries, cookies and other processed foods as well as in margarine and oils used to make French fries, onion rings and other deep-fried foods. They’re banned in New York City and certain other places, but still used elsewhere even though the WHO has said they cause over half a million deaths every year. (Source: WHO News Release, 14 May 2018)

Featured Reading: Trans Fats
(with vocabulary list and quiz questions)
Trans fats make cookies, donuts, French fries and many other foods taste better and last longer, but the World Health Organization (WHO) says they cause over 500,000 deaths EVERY YEAR!! To find out more, check out our Featured Reading!

Sugar

Sugar is a natural carbohydrate found in fruits and vegetables, but it’s also added to thousands of products to make them taste sweeter. It’s added to soft drinks and energy drinks, flavoured yoghurt, cereals, cookies, cakes, sweets and candy, and most other processed foods. Too much sugar can cause obesity and diabetes as well as heart disease. Just one soft drink or energy drink contains nearly half the sugar we should consume in one day, so anyone on a diet of Western-style processed foods is sure to consume too much. In 2014 Dr. Frank Hu, professor of nutrition at Harvard University, wrote, «The effects of added sugar intake — higher blood pressure, inflammation, weight gain, diabetes, and fatty liver disease — are all linked to an increased risk for heart attack and stroke.»

Salt

We all need a little salt in our diets, but consuming more than 5 or 6 grams per day can lead to high blood pressure which is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke and kidney disease. A high-salt diet is also a probable risk factor for stomach cancer. Salt is added to so many products (often listed as sodium or sodium chloride on the packet) that it’s become yet another reason to avoid processed foods.

Healthy diets and foods

To learn more about food and health, nutritionists have studied diets in places where people are healthier and live longer than usual. They’ve found that in Japan and Mediterranean countries in southern Europe, rates of heart disease, diabetes, stroke and cancer are among the lowest in the world. Even though their traditional cuisines look and taste very different, Japanese and Mediterranean people eat many of the same foods. They eat lots of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans and nuts, and they cook in vegetable oils rather than animal fats. Their traditional diets also include plenty of fish and seafood, but not many dairy foods or eggs, and little or no red meat.

Many nutritionists now recommend low-fat diets like this, or the similar pescatarian/pescetarian diet that includes dairy products, fish and seafood, but no poultry or red meat like pork or beef. Some are even recommending a totally meat-free vegetarian or vegan diet, especially for people with heart disease or other diet-related illnesses. But if you become vegetarian or vegan, they say you must make sure you get all the essential amino acids from protein-rich plant foods like soybeans.

Summary

If we eat healthy foods in a balanced diet, there’s a good chance we’ll live long and healthy lives. A balanced diet should provide around the same number of calories as the body uses each day. This allows us to maintain a healthy BMI by ensuring we don’t lose or gain too much weight. Our diet should include a wide variety of fresh, natural foods with a good balance of nutrients plus all the essential vitamins and minerals. We should try to avoid fatty foods and processed foods that contain substances that can be dangerous like sugar and salt, and additives such as preservatives, colourings and artificial flavourings that might not have been tested for long enough. And we should definitely avoid Western-style fast foods that contain saturated fats and trans fats.

Healthy food!!! Healthy eating is a popular trend nowadays. People want to look good, so a healthy diet and regular exercise is the key. In this lesson, you will learn some of the English vocabulary words for healthy food.

Diet and health are very important topics nowadays. People are conscious that they have to eat healthy foods and look after their bodies.

• Fruits and vegetables are good sources of fiber.
• Meat and eggs are great sources of protein.

List of Healthy Foods

• Almond
• Amaranth
• Apple
• Apricot
• Artichoke
• Asparagus
• Avocado
• Avocado Oil
• Banana
• Barley
• Beetroot
• Bell Pepper
• Bison
• Black Bean
• Black Sapote
• Black Tea
• Bone Broth
• Brazil Nut
• Broccoli
• Brussels Sprout
• Bulgur
• Cabbage
• Capsicum
• Carrot
• Cashew
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Chard
• Cheese
• Chia Seed
• Chicken Breast
• Chili
• Cilantro
• Cinnamon
• Cocoa
• Coconut
• Coconut Oil
• Corn
• Cucumber
• Dark Chocolate
• Edamame
• Egg
• Eggplant
• Ezekiel Bread
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Grape
• Grapefruit
• Green Bean
• Green Tea
• Halibut
• Hummus
• Kale
• Kamut
• Kefir
• Kidney Bean
• Kiwi
• Kombucha
• Lamb
• Lean Beef
• Leek
• Lemon
• Lentil
• Lettuce
• Macadamia Nut
• Melon
• Mushroom
• Mustard Seed
• Oat
• Onion
• Oolong Tea
• Orange
• Ostrich
• Oyster
• Pacific Cod
• Papaya
• Pea
• Peach
• Peanut
• Peanut Butter
• Peanut Oil
• Pear
• Pineapple
• Pistachios
• Plum
• Pomegranate
• Pork
• Potato
• Pumpkin
• Quinoa
• Radish
• Raspberry
• Read Tea
• Rosemary
• Salmon
• Sardine
• Sauerkraut
• Shellfish
• Shrimp
• Spinach
• Spirulina
• Squash
• Strawberry
• Sweet Potato
• Teff
• Tomato
• Triticale
• Trout
• Tuna
• Turkey
• Turmeric
• Turnip
• Walnut
• Water
• Watercress
• Watermelon
• White Tea
• Milk
• Yogurt
• Zucchini

Examples of Healthy Foods

Almond

• This time she had brought him an almond cake and some chocolate.

Apple

• He gave me an apple in exchange for a cake.

Apricot

• Brush the top of the cake with the apricot glaze.

Artichoke

• Pour over the artichoke hearts and season lightly with salt and pepper.

Asparagus

• Carefully cook the asparagus and keep warm.

Avocado

• Simmer gently for 20 minutes. Serve with slices of avocado and sour cream.

Banana

• Spread 1/3 of the cream mixture on it. Lay banana slices on top to cover.

Barley

• Add celery, potatoes, and pearl barley and stir for 5 minutes more.

Beetroot

• Anyway, they taste much the same, and last year beetroot soup was added to the menu.

Bell Pepper

• Add onion and bell pepper. Cook and stir until onion is soft about 10 minutes.

Black Bean

• Black beans are used extensively in Cantonese cookery and are usually served with fish or beef.

Black Tea

• Which kind of tea would you prefer, black tea or green tea?

Broccoli

• Cook sweetcorn and broccoli in a small amount of salted boiling water.

Brown Rice

• Garnish with the chopped green olives and serve with brown rice and a green salad.

Brussels Sprout

• Cover pot and simmer until Brussels sprouts are just barely tender about 5 minutes.

Bulgur

• Vegetarians should be sure to eat a variety of whole grains such as whole-wheat bread, pasta and tortillas, brown rice, bulgur, and quinoa.

Cabbage

• When the water boils add the meat and the cabbage.

Carrot

• Mix the meat with the onion, carrot, and some seasoning.

Yogurt

• There’s a yogurt left if you’re still hungry.

Salmon

• That salmon dish was a success, wasn’t it?

Watermelon

• They bought watermelons and ate them as they walked, spitting out the seeds.

Water

• There isn’t any water in the bottle.

Tuna

•  The store was completely sold out of tuna fish.

Tomato

• Tomato sauce stains terribly – it’s really difficult to get it out of clothes.

Sweet Potato

• The sweet potato was the staple of their diet.

Squash

• The broccoli, peppers, and squash should be steamed.

Strawberry

• It is available in such flavors as strawberry, lemon, and even chocolate.

Healthy Food Infographic

Most Healthy Foods to Eat with Pictures

Pictures of Healthiest Foods on the Planet

Last Updated on November 16, 2020

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A healthy diet is a diet that maintains or improves overall health. A healthy diet provides the body with essential nutrition: fluid, macronutrients such as protein, micronutrients such as vitamins, and adequate fibre and food energy.^[2][3]

A healthy diet may contain fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and may include little to no processed food or sweetened beverages. The requirements for a healthy diet can be met from a variety of plant-based and animal-based foods, although additional sources of vitamin B12 are needed for those following a vegan diet.^[4] Various nutrition guides are published by medical and governmental institutions to educate individuals on what they should be eating to be healthy. Nutrition facts labels are also mandatory in some countries to allow consumers to choose between foods based on the components relevant to health.^[5][6]

Recommendations[edit]

World Health Organization[edit]

The World Health Organization (WHO) makes the following five recommendations with respect to both populations and individuals:^[7]

1. Maintain a healthy weight by eating roughly the same number of calories that your body is using.
2. Limit intake of fats to no more than 30% of total caloric intake, preferring unsaturated fats to saturated fats. Avoid trans fats.
3. Eat at least 400 grams of fruits and vegetables per day (not counting potatoes, sweet potatoes, cassava and other starchy roots). A healthy diet also contains legumes (e.g. lentils, beans), whole grains and nuts.^[8]
4. Limit the intake of simple sugars to less than 10% of caloric intake. (Below 5% of calories or 25 grams may be even better).^[9]
5. Limit salt/sodium from all sources and ensure that salt is iodized. Less than 5 grams of salt per day can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.^[10]

The WHO has stated that insufficient vegetables and fruit is the cause of 2.8% of deaths worldwide.^{[10][failed verification]}

Other WHO recommendations include:

• ensuring that the foods chosen have sufficient vitamins and certain minerals;
• avoiding directly poisonous (e.g. heavy metals) and carcinogenic (e.g. benzene) substances;
• avoiding foods contaminated by human pathogens (e.g. E. coli, tapeworm eggs);
• and replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats in the diet, which can reduce the risk of coronary artery disease and diabetes.^{[10][failed verification]}

United States Department of Agriculture[edit]

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends three healthy patterns of diet, summarized in the table below, for a 2000 kcal diet.^[11][12][13]

The guidelines emphasize both health and environmental sustainability and a flexible approach. The committee that drafted it wrote: «The major findings regarding sustainable diets were that a diet higher in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in calories and animal-based foods is more health promoting and is associated with less environmental impact than is the current U.S. diet. This pattern of eating can be achieved through a variety of dietary patterns, including the “Healthy U.S.-style Pattern”, the “Healthy Vegetarian Pattern» and the «Healthy Mediterranean-style Pattern».^[14] Food group amounts are per day, unless noted per week.

The three healthy patterns

Food group/subgroup (units)	U.S. style	Vegetarian	Med-style
Fruits (cup eq)	2	2	2.5
Vegetables (cup eq)	2.5	2.5	2.5
Dark green	1.5/wk	1.5/wk	1.5/wk
Red/orange	5.5/wk	5.5/wk	5.5/wk
Starchy	5/wk	5/wk	5/wk
Legumes	1.5/wk	3/wk	1.5/wk
Others	4/wk	4/wk	4/wk
Grains (oz eq)	6	6.5	6
Whole	3	3.5	3
Refined	3	3	3
Dairy (cup eq)	3	3	2
Protein Foods (oz eq)	5.5	3.5	6.5
Meat (red and processed)	12.5/wk	–	12.5/wk
Poultry	10.5/wk	–	10.5/wk
Seafood	8/wk	–	15/wk
Eggs	3/wk	3/wk	3/wk
Nuts/seeds	4/wk	7/wk	4/wk
Processed Soy (including tofu)	0.5/wk	8/wk	0.5/wk
Oils (grams)	27	27	27
Solid fats limit (grams)	18	21	17
Added sugars limit (grams)	30	36	29

American Heart Association / World Cancer Research Fund / American Institute for Cancer Research[edit]

The American Heart Association, World Cancer Research Fund, and American Institute for Cancer Research recommend a diet that consists mostly of unprocessed plant foods, with emphasis on a wide range of whole grains, legumes, and non-starchy vegetables and fruits. This healthy diet includes a wide range of non-starchy vegetables and fruits which provide different colors including red, green, yellow, white, purple, and orange. The recommendations note that tomato cooked with oil, allium vegetables like garlic, and cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower, provide some protection against cancer. This healthy diet is low in energy density, which may protect against weight gain and associated diseases. Finally, limiting consumption of sugary drinks, limiting energy rich foods, including «fast foods» and red meat, and avoiding processed meats improves health and longevity. Overall, researchers and medical policy conclude that this healthy diet can reduce the risk of chronic disease and cancer.^[15][16]

It is recommended that children consume less than 25 grams of added sugar (100 calories) per day.^[17] Other recommendations include no extra sugars in those under 2 years old and less than one soft drink per week.^[17] As of 2017, decreasing total fat is no longer recommended, but instead, the recommendation to lower risk of cardiovascular disease is to increase consumption of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, while decreasing consumption of saturated fats.^[18]

Harvard School of Public Health[edit]

The Nutrition Source of Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) makes the following dietary recommendations:^[19]

• Eat healthy fats: healthy fats are necessary and beneficial for health.^[20] HSPH «recommends the opposite of the low-fat message promoted for decades by the USDA» and «does not set a maximum on the percentage of calories people should get each day from healthy sources of fat.»^[19] Healthy fats include polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, found in vegetable oils, nuts, seeds, and fish. Foods containing trans fats are to be avoided, while foods high in saturated fats like red meat, butter, cheese, ice cream, coconut and palm oil negatively impact health and should be limited.^[20][21]
• Eat healthy protein: the majority of protein should come from plant sources when possible: lentils, beans, nuts, seeds, whole grains; avoid processed meats like bacon.^[22]
• Eat mostly vegetables, fruit, and whole grains.^[19]
• Drink water. Consume sugary beverages, juices and milk only in moderation. Artificially sweetened beverages contribute to weight gain because sweet drinks cause cravings. 100% fruit juice is high in calories. The ideal amount of milk and calcium is not known today.^[23]
• Pay attention to salt intake from commercially prepared foods: most of the dietary salt comes from processed foods, «not from salt added to cooking at home or even from salt added at the table before eating.»^[24]
• Vitamins and minerals: must be obtained from food because they are not produced in our body. They are provided by a diet containing healthy fats, healthy protein, vegetables, fruit, milk and whole grains.^[25][23]
• Pay attention to the carbohydrates package: the type of carbohydrates in the diet is more important than the amount of carbohydrates. Good sources for carbohydrates are vegetables, fruits, beans and whole grains. Avoid sugared sodas, 100% fruit juice, artificially sweetened drinks, and other highly processed food.^[23][19]

Other than nutrition, the guide recommends staying active and maintaining a healthy body weight.^[19]

Others[edit]

David L. Katz, who reviewed the most prevalent popular diets in 2014, noted:

The weight of evidence strongly supports a theme of healthful eating while allowing for variations on that theme. A diet of minimally processed foods close to nature, predominantly plants, is decisively associated with health promotion and disease prevention and is consistent with the salient components of seemingly distinct dietary approaches.
Efforts to improve public health through diet are forestalled not for want of knowledge about the optimal feeding of Homo sapiens but for distractions associated with exaggerated claims, and our failure to convert what we reliably know into what we routinely do. Knowledge in this case is not, as of yet, power; would that it were so.^[26]

Marion Nestle expresses the mainstream view among scientists who study nutrition:^[27]: 10

The basic principles of good diets are so simple that I can summarize them in just ten words: eat less, move more, eat lots of fruits and vegetables. For additional clarification, a five-word modifier helps: go easy on junk foods. Follow these precepts and you will go a long way toward preventing the major diseases of our overfed society—coronary heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes, stroke, osteoporosis, and a host of others…. These precepts constitute the bottom line of what seem to be the far more complicated dietary recommendations of many health organizations and national and international governments—the forty-one «key recommendations» of the 2005 Dietary Guidelines, for example. … Although you may feel as though advice about nutrition is constantly changing, the basic ideas behind my four precepts have not changed in half a century. And they leave plenty of room for enjoying the pleasures of food.^[28]: 22

Historically, a healthy diet was defined as a diet comprising more than 55% of carbohydrates, less than 30% of fat and about 15% of proteins.^[29] This view is currently shifting towards a more comprehensive framing of dietary needs as a global need of various nutrients with complex interactions, instead of per nutrient type needs.^[12]

Specific conditions[edit]

In addition to dietary recommendations for the general population, there are many specific diets that have primarily been developed to promote better health in specific population groups, such as people with high blood pressure (such as low sodium diets or the more specific DASH diet), or people who are overweight or obese (weight control diets). Some of them may have more or less evidence for beneficial effects in normal people as well.^{[citation needed]}

Hypertension[edit]

A low sodium diet is beneficial for people with high blood pressure. A Cochrane review published in 2008 concluded that a long-term (more than four weeks) low sodium diet usefully lowers blood pressure, both in people with hypertension (high blood pressure) and in those with normal blood pressure.^[30]

The DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is a diet promoted by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (part of the NIH, a United States government organization) to control hypertension. A major feature of the plan is limiting intake of sodium,^[31] and the diet also generally encourages the consumption of nuts, whole grains, fish, poultry, fruits, and vegetables while lowering the consumption of red meats, sweets, and sugar. It is also «rich in potassium, magnesium, and calcium, as well as protein».

The Mediterranean diet, which includes limiting consumption of red meat and using olive oil in cooking, has also been shown to improve cardiovascular outcomes.^[32]

Obesity[edit]

The most effective treatment for obesity is bariatric surgery.^[33]
However, people who are overweight or obese can use healthy diets in combination with physical exercise in an attempt to lose weight, although this is particularly effective for only a short period (up to one year), after which some of the weight is typically regained.^[34][35] A meta-analysis of six randomized controlled trials found no difference between diet types (low-fat, low-carbohydrate, and low-calorie), with a 2–4 kilogram weight loss in all studies.^[36]

[edit]

Gluten, a mixture of proteins found in wheat and related grains including barley, rye, oat, and all their species and hybrids (such as spelt, kamut, and triticale),^[37] causes health problems for those with gluten-related disorders, including celiac disease, non-celiac gluten sensitivity, gluten ataxia, dermatitis herpetiformis, and wheat allergy.^[38] In these people, the gluten-free diet is the only available treatment.^[39][40][41]

Epilepsy[edit]

The ketogenic diet is a treatment to reduce epileptic seizures for adults and children when managed by a health care team.^[42]

Research[edit]

Preliminary research indicated that a diet high in fruit and vegetables may decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and death, but not cancer.^[43] Eating a healthy diet and getting enough exercise can maintain body weight within the normal range and reduce the risk of obesity in most people.^[44] A 2021 scientific review of evidence on diets for lowering the risk of atherosclerosis found that:^[45]

low consumption of salt and foods of animal origin, and increased intake of plant-based foods—whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts—are linked with reduced atherosclerosis risk. The same applies for the replacement of butter and other animal/tropical fats with olive oil and other unsaturated-fat-rich oil. […] With regard to meat, new evidence differentiates processed and red meat—both associated with increased CVD risk—from poultry, showing a neutral relationship with CVD for moderate intakes. […] New data endorse the replacement of most high glycemic index (GI) foods with both whole grain and low GI cereal foods.

Scientific research is also investigating impacts of nutrition on health- and lifespans beyond any specific range of diseases.

Research suggests that increasing adherence to Mediterranean diet patterns is associated with a reduction in total and cause-specific mortality, extending health- and lifespan.^{[46][47][48][49]} Research is identifying the key beneficial components of the Mediterranean diet.^[50][51] It shares various characteristics with the similarly beneficial Okinawa diet.^[52] Potential anti-aging mechanisms of various nutrients are not yet understood.^[53] Shares of macronutrients^[54][55] and level of caloric intake may also be of significance, including in periods when no dietary restriction occurs^[54] – such as not having a fat-intake that is too low^[55] and not having a prolonged caloric surplus or caloric deficit that is too large.

Studies suggest dietary changes are a major cause of national relative rises in life-span.^[56]

Microbiome[edit]

Mechanistically, research suggests that the gut microbiome, which varies per person and changes throughout lifespan, is also involved in the beneficial effects, due to which various diet supplementations with prebiotics, various diverse (multi-strain) probiotics and synbiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation are being investigated for life extension,^[57][58][59] mainly for prolonging healthspan,^[60][61][62] with many important questions being unresolved.^[63]

Optimal diet[edit]

Approaches to develop optimal diets for health- and lifespan (or «longevity diets»)^[55] include:

• modifying or further particularizing the Mediterranean diet as the baseline via nutrition science. For instance, via:
  • (additional) increase in plant-based (but protein-rich)^[65][55] foods alongside additional restriction of meat intake^[66] – meat reduction is (or can be) typically healthy,^[67]
  • regular moderate consumption of green tea or (filtered)^[68] coffee while ensuring adequate calcium intake^[66][69]
  • (additional) increase in omega-3-containing seafoods^[50] (see also: algal oil)
  • adding various foods thought to be healthy (e.g. due to results about various mechanistic effects) to the regular dietary consumption patterns (see also: functional food)^[70]
    • increasing the intake of high-spermidine foods – studies suggest spermidine could extend lifespan, with high amounts that are larger than common supplements being present in fungi (e.g. mushrooms) and green peas^{[71][72][73][74][75][76][77]}
    • increasing resistant starch-intake – legumes, especially e.g. green peas contain large amounts of resistant starch,^[78] especially if pre-cooked as cooling the cooked peas in a refrigerator substantially increases the resistant starch content due to starch retrogradation.^[79] It is a prebiotic (see Microbiome) and may promote healthy aging.^[80][62]
  • keeping alcohol consumption of any type at a minimum – conventional Mediterranean diets include alcohol consumption (i.e. of wine), which is under research due to data suggesting negative long-term brain impacts even at low/moderate consumption levels.^[81][82] Anthocyanins which are present in red wine^[83] and suggested along with other flavanols to be a candidate for further longevity research^[84] are also present in comparable concentrations in bilberry and elderberry
  • fully replacing refined grains – some guidelines of Mediterranean diets do not clarify or include the principle of whole-grain consumption instead of refined grains. Whole-grain are a significant source of spermidine^[76] and are associated with longevity.^[85][48][75] They are a main characteristic pillar of Mediterranean diets according to multiple reviews.^[86][87][88]
  • aiming for a sufficient level of food variety and diversity – which some guidelines of Mediterranean diets do not clarify or include. One review suggests that food variety and diversity could be a factor of diet quality,^[89] and another review indicates that sufficient food variety may at least in some specific cases «increase intake of important nutrients and positively affect the gut microbiome structure and function».^[90] The required level of food variety may or may not be low and vary per person and diet.
  • completely eliminating processed foods from the diet – some guidelines of Mediterranean diets may not clarify this principle. Diets associated with longevity are characterized by minimally processed foods.^[91]
  • adjusting the diet for personal characteristics such as age as effects of e.g. macronutrient intake can vary per age (see below)^[55]
• inferring an optimal diet indiscriminately for all levels and forms of physical activities and age and other person-characteristics by integrating the available meta-analyses and data from mostly observational studies.
  • This has been done for a tool and visualizations that show populations’ relative general life extension potentials of (shifting diets towards) different food groups, suggesting i.a. that a 20-years old male in Europe who switches to the «optimal diet» could gain a mean of ~13.7 years of life and a 60-years old female in the U.S. switching to the «optimal diet» could gain a mean of ~8.0 years of life. It found the largest gains would be made by eating more legumes, whole grains, and nuts, and less red meat and processed meat. The optimal diet contains no consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (moving from «typical Western diet» of 500 g/day to 0 g/day). The study notes of uncertainty in «the effect of eggs, white meat, and oils, individual variation in protective and risk factors, uncertainties for future development of medical treatments; and changes in lifestyle».^[64][55]

Moreover, not only do the components of diets matter but the total caloric content and eating patterns may also impact health – dietary restriction such as caloric restriction is considered to be potentially healthy to include in eating patterns in various ways in terms of health- and lifespan.^[92][93]

Unhealthy diets[edit]

An unhealthy diet is a major risk factor for a number of chronic diseases including: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, abnormal blood lipids, overweight/obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer.^[94] The World Health Organization has estimated that 2.7 million deaths each year are attributable to a diet low in fruit and vegetables during the 21st century.^[95] Globally, such diets are estimated to cause about 19% of gastrointestinal cancer, 31% of ischaemic heart disease, and 11% of strokes,^[6] thus making it one of the leading preventable causes of death worldwide,^[96] and the 4th leading risk factor for any disease.^[97] As an example, the Western pattern diet is «rich in red meat, dairy products, processed and artificially sweetened foods, and salt, with minimal intake of fruits, vegetables, fish, legumes, and whole grains,» contrasted by the Mediterranean diet which is associated with less morbidity and mortality.^[98]

Fad diet[edit]

Some publicized diets, often referred to as fad diets, make exaggerated claims of fast weight loss or other health advantages, such as longer life or detoxification without clinical evidence; many fad diets are based on highly restrictive or unusual food choices.^{[99][100][101]} Celebrity endorsements (including celebrity doctors) are frequently associated with such diets, and the individuals who develop and promote these programs often profit considerably.^{[27]: 11–12 [102]}

Public health[edit]

Consumers are generally aware of the elements of a healthy diet, but find nutrition labels and diet advice in popular media confusing.^[103] Fears of high cholesterol were frequently voiced up until the mid-1990s. Later research shows that the distinction between high- and low-density lipoprotein is vital when considering the potential ill effects of cholesterol.

Different types of dietary fat have different effects on blood levels of cholesterol. For example, polyunsaturated fats tend to decrease both types of cholesterol; monounsaturated fats tend to lower LDL and raise HDL; saturated fats tend to either raise HDL, or raise both HDL and LDL;^[104][105] and trans fat tend to raise LDL and lower HDL.

Dietary cholesterol is only found in animal products such as meat, eggs, and dairy. The effect of dietary cholesterol on blood cholesterol levels is controversial. Some studies have found a link between cholesterol consumption and serum cholesterol levels.^[106] Other studies have not found a link between eating cholesterol and blood levels of cholesterol.^[107]

Vending machines in particular have come under fire as being avenues of entry into schools for junk food promoters, but there is little in the way of regulation and it is difficult for most people to properly analyze the real merits of a company referring to itself as «healthy.» The Committee of Advertising Practice in the United Kingdom launched a proposal to limit media advertising for food and soft drink products high in fat, salt or sugar.^[108] The British Heart Foundation released its own government-funded advertisements, labeled «Food4Thought», which were targeted at children and adults to discourage unhealthy habits of consuming junk food.^[109]

From a psychological and cultural perspective, a healthier diet may be difficult to achieve for people with poor eating habits.^[110] This may be due to tastes acquired in childhood and preferences for sugary, salty and fatty foods.^[111] In 2018, the UK chief medical officer recommended that sugar and salt be taxed to discourage consumption.^[112] The UK government 2020 Obesity Strategy encourages healthier choices by restricting point-of-sale promotions of less-healthy foods and drinks.^[113]

Other animals[edit]

Animals that are kept by humans also benefit from a healthy diet, but the requirements of such diets may be very different from the ideal human diet.^[114]

See also[edit]

• Healthy eating pyramid
• List of diets
• Meals
• Nutritionism
• Nutrition scale
• Nutritional rating systems
• Planetary Health Diet
• Plant-based diet
• Table of food nutrients

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Diet, Nutrition, and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases, by a Joint WHO/FAO Expert consultation (2003)
• Hu, Frank; Cheung, Lilian; Otis, Brett; Oliveira, Nancy; Musicus, Aviva, eds. (19 January 2021). «The Nutrition Source – Healthy Living Guide 2020/2021: A Digest on Healthy Eating and Healthy Living». www.hsph.harvard.edu. Boston: Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Archived from the original on 5 October 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2021.

Цели урока: повторение и активизация
лексики по теме “Продукты”, применение ранее
изученного грамматического материала (настоящее
простое время), развитие навыков говорения и
чтения.

Задачи:

Образовательная

• активизировать лексику по теме “Еда”;
• обучить использовать новую лексику для решения
  коммуникативных задач;

Развивающая

• развивать коммуникативные навыки учащихся;
• развивать внимание, память, логическое
  мышление, языковую догадку и воображение;
• развивать навыки чтения и диалогической речи.

Воспитательная

• воспитывать здоровые привычки;
• развивать сознательное отношение к
  употреблению здоровой пищи;
• воспитывать умение работать в парах.

 Ход урока

1. Introduction.

— Good morning , dear girls and boys. I’m glad to see you. I hope you are ready for
your English lesson.

2. Warming-up.

Pupils answer the following questions:

• What’s your favourite food?
• What do you usually drink?
• What do you have for breakfast?
• Do you have soup for lunch?
• Do you like fruit?
• Do you eat vegetables every day?
• Do you like chocolate?

3. Phonetic exercises.

Let’s read the poem together. Be careful with your pronunciation.

Get up, little Freddy,
Breakfast is ready:
Butter and cheese
All that you please
Milk and bread for little Fred.
Tea and jam for brother Sam.

4. Lexical activities.

Look at the pictures and think what we are going to speak about.Yes, you are right.
Today we will speak on the topic “Healthy food”.Divide these words into two groups.
Which foods do you think are good for you? Why? Which foods do you think are bad for you?
Why?

We need healthy food to stay healthy. Good food has a lot of vitamins, protein and
minerals. Vitamins are important for your eyes, your skin, your bones, for hair and for
other parts of your body. There are vitamins in many types of food. Protein helps you to
grow and give you energy. There is protein in meat, fish and milk. Minerals make your
bones and teeth strong. There are different types of minerals in milk, vegetables, eggs,
meat and cereals. Water is important for your blood. It also cleans your body from the
inside. Drink lots of water every day.

5. Read and comment the proverbs.

An apple a day keeps doctor away.

Health is above wealth.

6. Listening.

Listen and complete the text. Use these words.

sugar, diet, vitamins, protein, fat, vegetables, minerals

I eat healthy food. I drink milk for ——. I don’t eat lots of cake. Cakes have
lots of ——. Sometimes I eat sausages. They have lots of good ——, but they’ve got
——. I eat lots of fruit and—-. There aredifferent types of —-in milk, vegetables,
eggs, meat, cereals and many other foods. I eat soup every day. It’s very good for you.
I drink lots of water every day. I have a healthy —

7. Comprehension. Are these sentences true or false?

1. Vitamins are important for your eyes, your skin, your bones, for hair and for other
   parts of your body.
2. There are some vitamins in milk.
3. There isn’t any sugar in cake.
4. Sausages haven’t got fats.
5. Protein is good for you.
6. Water is important for your blood.
7. Fruit isn’t healthy.

8. Work in pairs. Ask your friend about his or her diet?

• What is your favourite food?
• How many meals you eat every day?
• How often do you eat vegetables and salad?
• How often do you eat fruit?
• How often do you drink cola or other ‘fizzy’ drinks?
• How often do you eat sweets?

Is your friend’s diet healthy? Write about it.

9. Now I think that you know what food is healthy. I wish you to be
healthy and wealthy. Let’s read the poem and follow it.

If you want to live the healthy way,
Eat FIVE fruits every day.
Have juice for breakfast, carrots with lunch,
Grapes for snack (eat a big bunch).
Peas and potatoes with tour dinner-
That adds up to five, and you are a winner!

10. The conclusion of the lesson.

• What did we do at the lesson today? 
• Did you learn something new?
• Was it interesting at the lesson?
• What task of our lesson did you like most of all, why?

Homework. Write a healthy menu for a day. Write a list for each meal.