What Is Good Nutrition and a Healthy Diet?

Typically, a balanced diet should consist of the following:

• Protein: Fish, chicken, red meat, dairy products, eggs, nuts, and beans.
• Complex carbohydrates: Fruits, starchy vegetables, whole grains, beans, and legumes.
• Healthy fats: Fatty fish (such as cod), avocados, flaxseed, nuts, and oils.
• Vitamins: Foods that contain vitamins A, B, C, D, E, and K such as leafy greens and citrus fruits.
• Minerals: Calcium, potassium, zinc, folate, magnesium, and iron which can be found in legumes, dairy, and various fruits.
• Water: Essential for hydration, calorie control, skin and muscle health, and kidney and bowel function.

Each person has a different set of nutritional requirements depending on their age, gender, level of physical activity, overall health, and lifestyle. Work with a dietician to determine nutrients you will benefit from in higher amounts. You may be eating plenty of healthy foods, but your body may not be getting the right amounts of certain nutrients.

Most people know that good nutrition and physical activity can help maintain a healthy weight. However, the benefits of good nutrition go beyond weight. Good nutrition can help:

• Reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, osteoporosis, and some types of cancer
• Lower  high blood pressure
• Lower high cholesterol levels
• Improve your mental well-being
• Improve your ability to fight infection.
• Improve your ability to recover from illness or injury
• Increase your energy levels

It’s important to try to eat at the same time every day. Follow this general schedule for your meals:

• Breakfast at 8:00 a.m.
• Lunch at noon
• Healthy snack at 3:00 p.m.
• Light dinner at 6:30 p.m.

When serving yourself a meal, fill half of your plate with fruits and vegetables and split the other half between whole grains and lean protein. 

If you’re trying to lose weight, your daily calorie burn must be higher than your daily calorie intake, so determine how many calories you should get per day and stick to that budget. Balance a high-calorie food or meal with a low-calorie food for the next meal or next day. 

Also, make sure that you drink at least 8 glasses of water every day as part of your nutritional diet. Water is a major nutritional component that regulates body temperature, lubricates your joints, and protects your major organs and tissues. It also aids in transporting oxygen throughout your body. 

Myplate.gov is a government-owned site that can help you with your personalized diet planning as per your age and food preferences.

The Mediterranean diet is considered good because benefits include:

• Short-term and long-term weight loss
• Effective for cardiovascular disease prevention
• Effective for preventing diabetes
• Nutritional completeness
• Reduced risk of depression, reduced levels of inflammation (a risk factor for heart attack), and reduced risk of cancer and Alzheimer's disease

The Mediterranean diet consists of:

• Olive oil rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Whole grains
• Fish (at least a couple of times a week)
• Chicken
• Beans
• Nuts
• Legumes
• Herbs and spices
• Occasional eggs, red meat, and a glass of wine
• Cheese and yogurt in moderation