Eating a nutritious diet comes with many benefits. It helps you maintain a healthy weight, reduces your risk of developing chronic diseases and can aid your body to feel better overall. Choosing to follow a whole foods diet can also help you nurture your body back to its most natural state, the way God created you when he put you on this earth. That means cutting out processed foods, refined sugars and even minimizing meat, dairy and egg consumption. By following a whole foods diet, you can restore your health and reap the endless benefits that aid healthy aging.
"Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are healthy fats because they do not raise the "bad" LDL cholesterol in your body and may actually help raise your "good" HDL cholesterol," she said. "They also seem to have an anti-inflammatory affect and studies have shown that people who have (sic) diets rich in these types of fats have lower rates of heart disease and diabetes."
Whole foods rich in healthy fats include avocados, olives and nuts such as almonds and peanuts.
Phytonutrients
According to WebMD, the past 10 years of research conducted by scientists have proven there are hundreds of biologically active plant-food components, also known as phytonutrients. These nutrients include a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, which is found mainly in tomatoes. Another antioxidant, pterostilbene, helps cells break down fats and cholesterol and is found in berries. These powerful phytonutrients can only be found in plant foods in their natural, unprocessed form, which makes for an excellent reason to switch to a whole foods diet.Berries are rich in phytonutrients.
Fiber
Many processed foods lack richness in fiber, while many whole foods are chock-full of the stuff. Fiber is beneficial in a number of ways - it helps you feel fuller faster, which keeps you from overeating. It also helps keep your GI tract moving and can even reduce your chance of developing heart disease and diabetes. Some high-fiber health foods Heath magazine suggested eating include beans - white, black, kidney and Garbanzo; whole grains - whole-wheat pasta, brown rice and lentils; berries - raspberries, blueberries and blackberries, and vegetables such as peas and broccoli.Good fats
When you hear the word "fat" you probably don't automatically associate it with health foods. However, there are many whole foods that are rich in good fats - monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats - and those are the kind you need to sustain a healthy wellbeing. Dr. Rachel Johnson, professor of Nutrition at the University of Vermont told the American Heart Association that these fats are extremely beneficial to your heart health.“Good fats are extremely beneficial to your heart health.”
