![Healthy Eating For Seniors: How To Begin Eating Healthy - The First Step [Part 1]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5652f717e4b0070eb05c2f63/1652264237787-P7LSF35Q0Y236E19LYWE/healthy+foods+for+seniors.png)
THE FIRST STEP IN HEALTHY EATING FOR SENIORS
Often when I get asked a question on how I can improve a particular aspect of health, or even achieve fitness goals, I frequently mention the importance of a good diet or healthy eating.
I know you've heard this before, but I say this because I want to drive home how important what you eat is to your health.
You literally are what you eat!!
What goes into our mouth is just as important (and sometimes more important) than the exercise we do for health, and achieving fitness goals.
When eating healthy, often you'll see certain health symptoms decrease and even disappear…..
This, amongst other benefits such as more energy, looking better, feeling better, improved sleep, weight loss, toned muscles, better balance, greater strength.
It is something you want to get right to thrive!
However, nutrition can often be an overlooked area (and not to mention a very confusing area).
I know when I mention "to eat healthy," questions will arise like…… "Where do I even start with eating healthy?", "What do I do?" and "What do I eat?" to name a few.
And, It IS challenging to know how to start eating well. It really can be confusing, can get overwhelming and be too hard.
There are many new diets, health messages and superfoods that come on the market all the time.
They flood our computer screens, televisions, magazines, newspapers, Facebook feeds, and are all apparently best for us to eat, they'll turn back the clock and do wonders for health.
We are currently seeing the rise of the plant-based diets (where people only eat plant-based foods), and we see reports of great health from this diet. At the same time, we are witnessing the rise of another diet which is not given as much mainstream attention...…. The Carnivore diet, where people only eat animal-based products. These people, too, are reporting great health benefits.
You'll find doctors in favour of plant-based diets and other doctors in favour of carnivore diets.
These are just two of the many diets one can partake in, and already we can see how contradictory nutrition information can be.
Other popular diets include the Mediterranean diet, which was once supposedly the best diet for people to follow. We have the Ketogenic diet, the vegetarian diet, the Atkins diet, the Blood-Type diet, the Primal diet, the Medical Medium diet, intermittent fasting, we hear the heart association recommends this, the cancer council recommends that, to avoid diabetes eat like this…
We also hear many health messages… For example, you may have heard "stop eating eggs for your cholesterol" at a time in your life. Years later, eggs are now called "nature's multivitamin" due to new knowledge on cholesterol.
You may at one time have heard "butter is bad, eat margarine". Now I think it's quite safe to say most of us know that margarine is FAR from healthy.
We also have a large number of so-called superfoods popping up on the market that are meant to be the new best thing for health. (Hot Tip: they never usually are. Here today, gone tomorrow).
It really is very confusing…..
I could go on and on about the different diets, health messages (now and in the past) and all the superfoods out there causing all this confusion…
But, I want to help you end the confusion now!
I want to get you on your way to your healthiest self and to achieving your fitness goals by eating well.
Nutrition is a HUGE topic to cover, however, and I do wish it was just as simple as saying.. "Follow this diet"… Or "Just eat this food, it's super.."
But it's not that simple.
To really convey everything I have learnt from over 15 years of study on nutrition to get seniors eating healthy, I’d have to write a book. There is simply way too much to cover in one post.
But I have to get started somewhere and what these years of nutrition research have shown me is that what works for one person may not work for another. And there is still a whole lot we don't know!
However, all these diets and health messages usually agree on some things, which is EXACTLY the first step where we are going to get started on today for eating your way to better health and fitness.
And that is......
STEP 1: CUT OUT THE JUNK. EAT NATURALLY!
I'm sure it's safe to say that you knew cutting out the junk and eating natural healthy food (vegetables, healthy cuts of meat, fruit, dairy, eggs, nuts and so on), is the first step for everyone to do.
But it gets confusing to know what food is actually junk food and the reason why we cut it out.
So let's take this further now with what food item I recommend people cut out first to begin living a healthy life.
And that would be……… REFINED VEGETABLE (SEED) OILS.
More specifically, these oils:
Sunflower oil
Soybean oil
Safflower oil
Canola oil
Cottonseed oil
Peanut oil
Grapeseed oil
Rice bran oil
Corn oil
Vegetable oil (when you see "vegetable oil" listed as an oil - this refers to a blend of oils that are often based on canola, soybean or sunflower oils)
Now to some of you, this may come as quite a surprise.
Through false and misleading health messages in the past 100 years touting these oils as "healthy", they are now present in many of our foods we buy. They are also still used extensively for cooking in restaurants, despite much research now proving the harmful effects of these oils.
Furthermore, certain health organisations still promote these oils as being healthy.
It's now becoming known that substituting in these vegetable oils (which are predominantly made up of a type of fat known as polyunsaturated fats) for other forms of fat can have a detrimental effect on our health.
WHY ARE REFINED VEGETABLE OILS UNHEALTHY?
Let's take a look at the reasons why you should do your best to cut these oils out of your diet.
HIGH OMEGA-6 TO OMEGA-3 RATIO AND INFLAMMATION (OSTEOARTHRITIS & RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS)
As touched on above, these oils are predominantly polyunsaturated fats.
Polyunsaturated fats are required in our diet and come in two forms: omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids.
An optimal balance between both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are required for good health.
However, studies show that the modern Western diet contains much more omega-6 fats than the optimal ratio. This optimal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats is 4:1 or less, whereas, in our modern Western diets, the ratio is usually around 16:1 and up.
With the vast use of these high omega-6 vegetable oils, we see this imbalance in the omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio away from what is optimal.
A high intake of these omega-6 fatty acids, with a low intake of omega-3 fatty acids over the past decade, has coincided with increases in chronic inflammatory diseases such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cardiovascular disease, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and Alzheimer's disease [1].
Research has looked at the effects of polyunsaturated fats on osteoarthritis. In arthritis, the synovial membrane (the connective tissue that lines the inner surface of joints) is often inflamed, and inflammatory substances (known as cytokines) contribute to cartilage deterioration.
One study on 535 subjects with an average age of 60 showed an increase in omega-6 polyunsaturated fats was associated with inflammation of the synovial membrane.
This study also showed that when omega-3 polyunsaturated fats were increased, leading to a more optimal omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, this was associated with less inflammation of the synovial membrane and cartilage loss.
REFINED VEGETABLE OILS BECOME RANCID EASILY
These polyunsaturated filled oils, when exposed to air, heat and light oxidise and harmful substances are produced - mainly trans fats and aldehydes.
Trans fats can be found in both animal based foods and in vegetable oils. The trans fats in animal based foods are not considered harmful. However, when found in refined vegetable oils, they have been shown to have serious health consequences, including the development of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Aldehydes have been linked to illnesses including cancer, heart disease and dementia. The accumulation of these aldehydes in the body promote the development of chronic disease and ageing.
REFINED VEGETABLE OILS CAN CAUSE OTHER HEALTH ISSUES (INCLUDING MENTAL HEALTH & VISION ISSUES) ESPECIALLY WHEN REPEATEDLY REHEATED
Refined vegetable oils have also been linked to decreased mental health (mood disorders, anxiety and depression), cognition and memory issues and dementia [2, 3].
These oils may also contribute to vision loss and have been shown to increase the risk of age-related macular degeneration.
Additionally, when you walk into fish and chip shops or fast food restaurants, you'll see deep fryers like this:
As these oils are frequently reheated (a practice commonly used in restaurants to save on costs and time), they become filled with unhealthy byproducts that are associated with diseases [4, 5].
And finally, these oils are often produced from Genetically Modified (GMO) crops, the full health effects of which are yet to be known.
So now I'm sure you know why I recommend cutting these oils out as the first step to eating for improved health.
Let's now take a look at where these oils are hiding and how you can cut them out of your diet. We'll also look at what oils (fats) you can consume instead that are beneficial to health and can be safely used when cooking.
REFINED VEGETABLE OILS TO CUT OUT
As mentioned above, limit the following oils best you can: canola oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, grape seed oil, peanut oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil and rice bran oil.
If you have these oils in your pantry - throw them out! There are healthy alternatives which we’ll discuss soon.
Also, look into cutting back on foods that contain plenty of these refined fats as well. Some of the products you should avoid or limit best you can include:
Margarine (use butter), deep-fried foods (chips/fries, nuggets etc.), supermarket freezer/refrigerator foods, pastries, doughnuts and other baked goods (biscuits/cookies and cakes), chocolate, movie/microwave popcorn, mayonnaise, frozen pizzas and pies.
Something else to think about is eating out. Most of us enjoy eating out.. I certainly have places I love going to, and I do enjoy catching up with friends.
There are times when avoiding these oils is very difficult to do. The majority of restaurants, even high-end restaurants, cook their foods in these oils.
I do know people that ask for their foods to be cooked in butter or alternative oils when out. If you want to do this, I say go for it. However, I am not one to do it, and my advice is this.... Try and do the majority of your cooking at home and limit these oils best you can.
Obviously, you still want to enjoy life - so when you do eat out - try to choose healthier options AND just enjoy yourself -- GUILT FREE, WITHOUT WORRY :)
You’re probably thinking at this stage “What the hell am I allowed to eat? These oils seem like they are everywhere”. It does seem like these oils are in everything, and there is truth in that.
However, there are healthy oils/fats that you should opt for instead.
HEALTHY ALTERNATIVES
The right fats are essential for health. Cutting fats out of your diet is unhealthy.
There are plenty of healthy fats that you can consume, and alternatives to vegetable oils that you can use for cooking that are not harmful AND that will also provide you with nutrients your body needs for good health.
Consume these healthy vegetable oil alternatives instead:
Butter
Ghee
Coconut oil
Olive oil
Macadamia oil
Palm oil (sustainable)
Avocado oil
Many people are catching on to the fact that refined vegetable oils are unhealthy, and some food companies realise people are wanting healthy alternatives.
There are also new, smaller companies popping up and providing healthier options. So my advice is to get good at reading food labels.
Reading food labels and knowing the ingredients contained in what you eat can help you determine the difference between good and bad foods with harmful ingredients.
So vegetable oils are the first of the unhealthy foods to cut out of your diet.
For now, take this first step to cut out these harmful vegetable oils best you can and you've taken the first step in improving your health through healthy eating. Won't be long until you're feeling the difference!