In a nutshell, tips for eating healthy featured here whittle down to the time-tested strategy of balance, variety and moderation.

That said, let's see how you can use the tips to achieve this time-tested strategy.

1. Go For Varieties

According to food experts, you need more than 40 different nutrients for good health and no one food provides them all.

Hence, pick a variety of nutrient-densed foods that include fruits & vegetables; whole grain bread/pasta & other whole grain products; meat; poultry; dairy products; fish & other protein foods, to get the different nutrients.

2. Balanced Menu

If you eat a food high in carbohydrate, fat or sugar, go for other foods that are low in these ingredients.

If you miss out any food group one day, make up for it the next day.

Your overall menu in a week should assemble into a healthy one.

3. Eat Food Based On Total Eating Pattern

There are no good or bad foods. When you eat in moderation, all foods can constitute a part of your meals that give you healthy nutrients.

Don't feel guilty when you eat fried stuff, potato chips, chocolates, cookies, cakes; fast foods.....The most important thing - eat them in moderation and eat other foods to provide the balance and variety.

4. Pin On Plenty of Whole Grains, Fruits & Vegetables

Get 6-11 servings from the food group of bread, rice, pasta and cereal, out of which 3 servings should be whole grains.

P/S: 1 serving = 1 piece or 4 oz

P/S: Whole grains are foods such as oatmeal, whole-wheat bread/pasta, brown rice and barley

Eat 2-4 servings of fruits and 3-5 servings of vegetables

P/S: 1 serving of fruit = 1 piece or 4 oz; 1 serving of vegetable = 6 oz

5. Go For Moderate Portions

What's a moderate portion?

For instance, for cooked meat, the portion you should eat is 3 oz or same size as a deck of playing cards.

The thing to adhere to is to keep all portion sizes reasonable. You should be able to know how much is reasonable and moderate portion for you, going by the average daily intake you've been eating.

Stop eating when you're full. Don't over eat.

6. Don't Totally Eliminate Certain Foods

Remember, there are no good or bad foods?

So, don't totally cut certain foods out of your menu simply because they're perceived as "bad".....

Just reduce the intake of these perceived "bad" foods.

That means if you love fried chips; ice cream; cakes or pizzas, you don't have to give them up; just eat them less often and eat moderate or smaller portions.

7. Adhere To Regular Meals

Regular meals mean breakfast, lunch and dinner. Don't skip these 3 regular meals as skipping them could make you more hungry and you resort to over-eating. Snacking in between meals is OK provided you don't snack so much that you can't eat your regular meals.

8. "Feast" At Lunch Time

Whenever possible, eat your main meal at lunch and a light meal at dinner. This is a healthier way to eat and good for your body's digestive system.

9. Hydration

Drink plenty of water to keep your body hydrated.

Use these tips for eating healthy to make changes gradually in your menu. Don't suddenly change overnight; you won't be able to cope due to the overwhelming effect and it may hamper your goal of eating healthily.

Just start with small changes; you'd be amazed how they add up to become positive, permanent eating habits.

By: Cecelia Yap

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Cecelia Yap is an avid exerciser and author of the popular exercise website: perfect-body-toning.com - a web site born out of her passion which she successfully turns into a profitable business. Perhaps you have a passion or hobby you'd like to write about. Find out how you too can turn it into a profitable business like Cecelia does, here: www.perfect-body-toning.com/my-passion.html