Best food choices
IMPORTANT FOOD GROUPS
THE POWER OF PROTEIN:
The ideal recommendations
Red Meat
Chicken
Fish
Legumes also fall under the protein group, even though they are partly made up of carbohydrates.
Examples of legumes are peas, lentils, kidney beans, butter beans, sugar beans and chickpeas. Legumes also contain essential fibre, vitamins and minerals.
Pure proteins (e.g. chicken, fish, eggs and red meat) have no GI value and therefore when eaten on their own have very little effect on blood sugar levels. In fact, pure protein may lower the total GI value of a meal.
THE FATS OF LIFE:
There should be a balance of mono-unsaturated fats and poly-unsaturated fats in a healthy eating plan. Mono-unsaturated fats are found in olives, olive oil, avocados and nuts. Poly-unsaturated oils are found in oily fish, sunflower oils and walnuts.
FRUIT AND VEGETABLES:
Fruit and vegetables are a crucial part of a healthy diet. They supply us with a wide variety of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients that contain essential health boosting properties.
ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS – THE “GOOD” FATS:
don’t go hungry
If you are unsure about which foods you can snack on – foods that are low in guilt and high in nutrients – here is a list to help you out.
Whenever you are hungry, fill up on the following fresh vegetables:
Carrots, (chopped, sliced or whole), lettuce, mixed peppers – green, red, yellow or orange; cucumbers, tomatoes, gherkins, celery, cauliflower, asparagus, broccoli, mushrooms, onions, spring onions or courgettes.
It may surprise you to see carrots on this list as they have an intermediate GI. However, dieticians largely agree that you would have to eat large quantities of carrots for them to have an effect on blood sugar levels.
- Foods that keep you full
- Foods that stabilise your blood sugar
- Eat a varied diet
- Avoid energy slumps