It’s not another diet fad doing the rounds – eating clean is focused on a simpler, purer approach to food. Here’s why you should try it.
What’s the Deal?
Eating clean is about cutting out all the artificial ingredients and processed foods from your diet and choosing nutrients that are healthier for you instead. The focus is on natural foods. The bonus of eating clean is that you might also shed a few kilos in the process.
Smart Food
You can ensure you eat foods that are as natural as possible by reading labels. Don’t be fooled into thinking that a product which reads ‘less fat’ or ‘low sugar’ is healthy – flip the package over and make sure there aren’t unhealthy ingredients in it.
Some things to avoid include:
- Artificial colourants, flavours and sweeteners
- Preservatives
- Genetically modified organisms
- Hormones and antibiotics
You can avoid most of these by choosing organic foods and produce, because you prevent chemicals, pesticides, and altered and unnatural ingredients from entering your body.
Clean up!
Clean eating is not just good for you but the planet, too. It can feel a bit overwhelming to start this lifestyle change, so here is a guide to help you make healthier food substitutes:
Fruits and vegetables
Choose fresh produce over canned varieties as the latter don’t contain as many nutrients. If you need a processed option, always choose frozen produce instead of what is canned. This is because frozen vegetables are processed quickly and they lock in more nutrients. Added to this, canned produce usually have salt and sugar added to them to preserve the produce, as well as BPA (Bisphenol A), an industrial chemical in the can’s plastic lining that can leak into the food.
Add whole grains to your meals
Brown rice or millet are healthy for you and can work with various foods, such as vegetables and salads. These can also be excellent replacements for bread when you need something filling.
Avoid carbonated drinks and sugary drinks
When you need a sugary treat, opt for juicing your own fruits and vegetables. Healthy without the added preservatives!
DIY your diet
What simplifies clean eating is preparing the meals yourself. This might seem difficult at first, but by having a fully-stocked kitchen of clean ingredients it’ll be easier for you to satisfy your hunger. For instance, if you want some French fries, think of making them yourself – but bake them instead of frying them and swap regular potatoes for sweet potatoes. This is tasty and healthier for you!
Replace saturated fats with healthy fats
The good fats include fatty fish, sunflower oil, avocados and flaxseed.
Follow the ‘six or less’ rule
When shopping, try not to purchase products that contain more than six ingredients. The more ingredients, chances are the more processing the product has undergone.
Avoid the rut
Don’t fall into clean eating boredom where you eat the same fruits and vegetables! Eat produce of various colours, such as purple, red, yellow, orange and dark green as they keep your diet interesting while delivering many phytochemicals that can fight inflammation.
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