In my last post I mentioned about the Healthy Food pyramid and highlighted the tip of the pyramid which is often neglected. Realisation is the first step to solving an issue. The issue now is what action to take next.
So how do I eat less of these?
1) Fat
Not all fats are bad. You might want to refer to my previous post 7 Fatty Facts and Myths for examples on how one can fall trap to bad fats unknowingly. Some simple steps you can take to avoid eating too much of such fats are to:
| - | Remove the skin of meat when cooking. If you really need to include the skin, skim off the floating fats using a filter after cooking. |
| - | Pan fry instead of deep fry. If you are cooking meat with skin, there is no need to add more oil. Let the oil from the skin cook the meat itself. |
| - | Oil bloating paper is my favorite when I really have to deep fry some food occasionally. |
2) Salt
NaCl. Not to flaunt my chemistry but to bring across that sodium and chloride ions in salt are so commonly found that you don’t really need to purposely include extra amounts in your intake in normal circumstances. You will naturally consume them in the food and drinks you take.
| - | Many are worried that without adding salt, the food will be tasteless. One way without compromising the taste is to use herbs and spices. Basil, parsley, pepper, chilli, cinnamon, chives etc are all good seasoning that adds a dose of excitement and uniqueness to your food. Come and get excited over this. |
| - | Try to reduce intake of preserved food. |
| - | Discard the water in canned food such as sardine and tuna and rinse the meat to rid of some salt. |
3) Sugar
Some say replacing white sugar with brown sugar helps. However, do remember that brown sugar is still sugar at the end of the day and also contributes to empty calories.
Artificial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose, sorbitol, xylitol and mannitol may be an alternative to sugar but overeating is a no no. Diarrhoea is one common side effect to overuse of these sweeteners. There have also been cautions about the association of artificial sweeteners with cancer (Source: NCI)!
In the end the only solution I can think of is to limit the intake of sweet food.
| - | Set yourself a limit to the amount of sugar you want to consume a day and not exceed it. |
| - | Look out for food labels bearing ‘reduced sugar’ to help maximise the variety of sweet food and still keep within the limit you have set. |
| - | Remember, sugar does not only include glucose. Dextrose, fructose, lactose, sucrose and maltose which you see on food labels are also sugar. |
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