Eat healthy this Ramadan

Tag : mustard leaf

With the fast of Ramadan upon us, we thought it might be useful tolook at ways of trying to maintain a healthy diet whilst fasting.Fasting for 12 to 24 hours or more can lead to dizziness andfatigue and a lowering of metabolic rate as a means of conservingcalories or energy. Here are some simple guidelines to make surethat your diet remains balanced and healthy during this fastingperiod:
Don't skip breakfast!
Even though the thought of sleep may be far more appealing thanwaking up to force down some food, don't skip breakfast. Breakfastis the most important meal of the day.
For years, research has shown that breakfast (the breaking of theovernight fast) provides the essential nutrients and energy neededfor concentration while keeping hunger symptoms like headaches,fatigue, sleepiness and restlessness at bay. In addition, it alsogets our metabolic rates up and going  it is therefore vital toensure an adequate intake at breakfast time.
Eat a wide variety of foods
Especially now, when your daily intake is limited to two meals perday, you need to put extra effort into including foods from all thefood groups.
Our bodies need at least 40 different nutrients every day to ensurethat we grow adequately and maintain good health. Although mostfoods contain more than one nutrient, no single food provides allthe necessary nutrients.
Moreover, foods have benefits that can't be replicated by a pill.It is thus important to eat a wide variety of foods every day, soas to ensure that we get all of these nutrients. The way to ensurevariety, and with it a well-balanced diet, is to select foods eachday from each of the five food groups: Breads, cereals and other grain products
Fruit and vegetables
Meat, fish and poultry
Milk, cheese and yoghurt
Fats and sugars (these contain very little nutrients and are highin calories and therefore their intake should be limited).
Use low glycaemic foods at breakfast to help control blood sugarlevels
Carbohydrates are now classified according to their glucoseresponse or glyceamic index (GI). The GI measures how fast thecarbohydrate of a particular food is converted to glucose andenters the bloodstream. It therefore tells you which carbohydratefoods satisfy hunger for longer.
The lower the number of the GI, the slower the food is converted tosugar and the better it is. Selecting low GI foods therefore helpsmaintain normal blood sugar control, minimises hunger pangs andsatisfies appetite without providing excess calories.
Also, by controlling blood sugar levels, you prevent excessiveeating binges as a result of low blood sugar levels. Remember toinclude low GI foods at each meal, and to avoid eating high GIfoods on their own, but rather to mix them with low GI foods, whichwill give an intermediate GI overall.
Be aware of your cooking methods
By making small changes in your cooking habits, you can creategreat tasting foods that are also healthy for you. Although specialrecipes are an important part of family tradition, many of thosetreasured favourites have too high a fat content for today'sgeneration of health-conscious cooks. You do not have to give upthose old favourites  convert them!
Here's how:
Always trim off all excess fat from before cooking or use veal,venison, chicken and soya as lower fat options. Remove poultry skinbefore or after cooking. Choose light meat (breast) instead of darkmeat (leg, wing).
Cut down on fat: Cook onions in a small amount of water or even vegetable stockrather than oil or butter.
Use non-stick frying pans and non-stick sprays (like Spray 'n Cook)rather than oil or margarine if frying.
Bake, grill or roast foods rather than frying.
Cook roasted meat or poultry on a wire rack so that the fat candrip off.
Vegetables should be steamed or boiled with as little cream ormargarine as possible.
When preparing rice, noodles and other grains, season with herbs,spices and broths rather than added fat.
Prepare soups, gravies and sauces in advance, so that they can berefrigerated and the layer of fat that forms on top removed.
Experiment with herbs and spices to add flavour and zest to low-fatcooking. Herbs, such as basil, bay leaf, oregano, or rosemary addsdistinctive flavours and colours to meat and vegetables. Spices,like cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg enhance the sweet taste of foods,and seasoning blends, such as chilli powder, curry powder provide acomplex array of flavours.
Avoid taking in too much salt Use garlic, dry mustard, pepper, onions, mushrooms and tomatoes toadd flavour to meat and vegetables.
Add sliced lemon or lemon juice to white meats and fish.
Use herbs and spices instead
Make healthy changes to recipes
Use your regular recipes, but start cutting the fat in half. If arecipe calls for cream or whole milk, use evaporated or fresh skimmilk. If a recipe calls for a whole egg, use two egg whites, etc.
Eat enough fibre-rich carbs
These foods provide the body with energy. They are oftenincorrectly labelled as fattening and unnecessarily limited. Theyare rich in vitamins belonging to the B group, and are an excellentsource of fibre. Bear in mind that hi-fibre foods have a greatereffect on satiety than their low-fibre counterparts. Examples offoods high in fibre include brown rice, wholegrains, fresh fruitand raw veggies.
Remember your fruits and vegetables
Fruit and vegetables add colour and variety to the menu. They areoften termed our 'protective' foods as they help the body fight offsickness and disease. This is because they are rich sources of avariety of vitamins and minerals. An added benefit is that they arerelatively low in calories and also contribute to our daily fibreintake.
Drink sufficient fluid
Always include water in your diet and limit your intake ofcaffeine-containing beverages. Caffeine is a diuretic and will notprovide adequate hydration.
We all know that maintaining a balanced diet by eating healthilyhas a vital influence on your well being. Try following the aboveprinciples so that this fast period does not sway too much from theprinciples of good nutrition.