Everyone knows that eating well-balanced meals is important for individuals’ physical and mental health as good nutrition allows you to feel happier throughout the days and aids to prevent the risk of chronic diseases. As there have been changes made to the Canada’s Food Guide, it is important to look over guidelines to ensure you are obtaining all the right nutrients in sufficient amounts to support your health. The previous food guide was updated in 2007 and recently a new guide was posted in 2019 by the Government of Canada.
A major change was that from the 4 food groups in 2007 which included fruits and vegetables, grains, meat and dairy, it has been changed to 3 groups as they removed the government has combined the meats and dairy sections into a protein section. In addition, they also portray that water should be consumed more by making it the choice of drink to help lower sugar consumption in drinks. One major change in this food guide is that addition of mindful eating tips in which is used to help support people to not only think about eating healthy but also regarding their social health as well.
When looking in regards from a plate view, they emphasize that half the plate is vegetables and fruits and ¼ should be protein and grains. The guide has focused on the idea that the plate should have the largest proportion for vegetables and fruits with your choice of proteins and grain. This eat well plate can be in different forms and can be used for meals or snacks.
It can be a challenge to eat healthy as often many people think that eating healthy van be costly, requires a lot of time to make meals in advanced or understand what food is best for them to eat to help sustain their health. These challenges are possible to overcome by making some alterations to our daily eating routines and habits.
Some tips for making healthy changes to overcome barriers we face in our health include:
- Planning meals and snacks ahead of time. This allows individuals to plan their grocery lists and you can freeze some food when you’re on the go for quick meals.
- Create a healthy eating environment. You can learn to use food labels to make informed decisions, make ready-to-go snacks or simply keeping water with you
- Try to understand your habits. See what types of food you spend most time your time consuming and see if there are possible alternatives that can be used as well.
Some individuals may face challenges with maintaining such diet as they may be facing difficulty with keeping an optimal range for their blood sugar. For some people, they may be prescribed Ozempic which is an injectable medication used for adults with type 2 diabetes to improve their levels of blood sugar in coordination with diet and exercise. Overtime, the medication can be used to reduce the risk for cardiovascular events including heart attack or stroke. However, there are some potential side effects which can include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and more. If you do face type 2 diabetes, speak with your healthcare provider or our pharmacist at Guildview Pharmacy to learn more about Ozempic. To learn more about Ozempic, you can also visit: https://www.ozempic.com/
For more information and recipes to make quick, rapid meals or snacks visit:
https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/
Written by: Shenen Sivakumar