12 Tips for Healthy Eating
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be complicated. With these simple tips from On Your Way to Preventing Type 2 Diabetes [PDF – 2 MB], you can start making changes that add up to healthy eating habits over time:
- Make time to cook. You’ll gain impressive skills that you’ll keep for a lifetime, save money, and take the guesswork out of the ingredients.
- Look online for recipes that meet your skill level, time, and budget. Many have user reviews to help you decide on a recipe.
- Plan a week’s worth of meals before you go grocery shopping. You’ll thank yourself later.
- Swap boring veggie recipes for exciting ones. Watch online cooking videos to learn the secrets of making vegetables tastier with different spices or methods of cooking.
- Make the same food for you and your family. Healthy eating is good for everyone!
- Try Meatless Monday. Beans and lentils are cheap, are tasty, and pack a protein punch.
- Make family favorites with a twist. Substitute veggies for grains or starchy carbohydrates (zucchini noodles, anyone?) or blend veggies and add to sauces.
- Try not to drink your calories. They won’t fill you up! Reduce fruit juice and sports drinks, and limit alcohol.
- Dress smart. Dress salads with oil (a healthy one like olive oil) and vinegar, choose low-fat or fat-free yogurt over sour cream, and use mustard instead of mayonnaise.
- Make spices your secret weapon. They add flavor without adding calories.
- Freeze! Freeze single servings of a big batch of healthy food for work lunches or when you’re too tired to cook.
- Think ahead. Think about the times you’re most likely to eat junk food, like after a stressful day at work. Make a plan in advance to swap out the unhealthy snack you might eat—such as a candy bar—with a healthy one, like an apple.