Diet VS Nutrition

Nutrition:

Nutrition is important in many regards to your health. Nutrition is basically the food that you eat and how it is able to fuel your body for your individual needs. Because everyone’s physical needs are different, nutrition can look a lot different for people. However general guidelines for nutrition and food intake remain.

Eating a properly nutritious diet helps individuals to stay healthy physically and mentally, build strength, maintain energy, and prevent chronic diseases or illness.

Food is made up of macronutrients and micronutrients. Each does different things in the body. Macronutrients are needed in large amounts in the body while micronutrients are needed in small amounts in the body.

Macronutrient: 3 categories

• Protein (10-35%, 0.8g per kg of bodyweight): Provides structure to tissue including muscles, tendons, ligaments, nails, organs, etc. Protein also is used to repair tissue in the body after fatigue or workouts, aiding in building muscle.
  • Often found in chicken, pork, steak, egg, and fish
• Carbohydrates (45-65% of calories): The body’s primary fuel to provide you with energy throughout the day and for physical movement/workouts.
  • Often found in breads, pastas, and fruits
• Fats (20-35% of calories): The body utilizes fat as a protection. Fat helps to protect organs as well as to absorb vitamins in the body.
  • Often found in oils, nuts, and seeds

Micronutrient: Vitamins and Minerals

• Calcium
• Folate
• Iron
• Vitamin B-6
• Vitamin B-12
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Zinc

Basil Metabolic Rate (BMR):

• Basil Metabolic Rate is the amount of calories your body burns while at rest. It is based on your height, weight, and age. This is basically how many calories are needed to just lay in bed all day and be alive. It does not factor in exercise.
• BMR can be used to calculate daily caloric needs based on activity level however as well.
  • How much you need to eat each day to fuel your body, is dependent on the amount of exercise or activity you perform each day.
  • This is also the calculation used in order to find out how many calories you burn each day. If weight loss is a goal, then consume less calories than you burn.

Men: BMR = 88.362 + (13.397 x weight in kg) + (4.799 x height in cm) – (5.677 x age in years)

Women: BMR = 447.593 + (9.247 x weight in kg) + (3.098 x height in cm) – (4.330 x age in years)

https://www.garnethealth.org/news/basal-metabolic-rate-calculator

What kind of diet should I be on?

Fad diets such as low carb or intermittent fasting, are often short lived and do not create any sort of behavior change. The best way to be healthy is to modify your overall diet, cover your bases in terms of protein, carbs, fats, and nutrients/vitamins, and burn as many calories as you take in. If you take in more calories than you burn each day, then you gain weight.

Weight loss shouldn’t always be the goal. It is important to have conversations with your healthcare providers and generate overall health goals to strive towards.

What is a Well Rounded Diet?

• Healthy Carbohydrate Intake:
  • Good carbs come from starchy vegetables such as sweet potatoes or peas
  • Whole Grains, such as brown rice, oats, quinoa, and wheat bread
  • Beans and lentils
  • Fruits and vegetables
• Healthy Protein Intake:
  • Fish
  • Lean meats such as chicken, turkey and lean beef
  • Beans and Lentils
  • Dairy such as milk, greek yogurt, or cottage cheese
• Healthy Fat Intake:
  • Avocados
  • Cheese
  • Dark Chocolate
  • Whole Eggs
  • Nuts and seeds
• Limit sugar to less than 10% of energy intake.
• Limit salt to less than 5g per day to avoid increased risk of hypertension and heart disease.
• Limit saturated fat and trans fats