How to Use Fruit & Veges to Manage Your Weight
Fruits
and vegetables are part of a well-balanced and healthy
eating plan. There are many different ways to lose or
maintain a healthy weight. Using more fruits and vegetables
along with whole grains and lean meats, nuts, and beans is a
safe and healthy one.
Helping control your weight is not the
only benefit of eating more fruits and vegetables. Diets
rich in fruits and vegetables may reduce the risk of some
types of cancer and other chronic diseases. Fruits and
vegetables also provide essential vitamins and minerals,
fibre, and other substances that are important for good
health.
To lose weight, you must eat fewer calories than your
body uses.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that
you have to eat less food. You can create lower-calorie
versions of some of your favourite dishes by substituting
low-calorie fruits and vegetables in place of higher-calorie
ingredients. The water and fibre in fruits and vegetables
will add volume to your dishes, so you can eat the same
amount of food with fewer calories. Most fruits and
vegetables are naturally low in fat and calories and are
filling.
Here are some simple ways to cut calories and eat fruits and vegetables
throughout your day:
Breakfast: Start the Day Right
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Substitute some spinach, onions, or mushrooms for
one of the eggs or half of the cheese in your morning
omelette. The vegetables will add volume and flavour to
the dish with fewer calories than the egg or cheese. |
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Cut back on the amount of cereal in your bowl to
make room for some cut-up bananas, peaches, or
strawberries. You can still eat a full bowl, but with
fewer calories. |
Lighten Up Your Lunch
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Substitute vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes,
cucumbers, or onions for 2 ounces of the cheese and 2
ounces of the meat in your sandwich, wrap, or burrito.
The new version will fill you up with fewer calories
than the original. |
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Add a cup of chopped vegetables, such as broccoli,
carrots, beans, or red peppers, in place of 2 ounces of
the meat or 1 cup of noodles in your favourite
broth-based soup. The vegetables will help fill you up,
so you won’t miss those extra calories. |
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Dinner
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Add
in 1 cup of chopped vegetables such as broccoli,
tomatoes, squash, onions, or peppers, while removing 1
cup of the rice or pasta in your favourite dish. The
dish with the vegetables will be just as satisfying but
have fewer calories than the same amount of the original
version. |
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Take a good look at your dinner plate. Vegetables,
fruit, and whole grains should take up the largest
portion of your plate. If they do not, replace some of
the meat, cheese, white pasta, or rice with legumes,
steamed broccoli, asparagus, greens, or another
favourite vegetable. This will reduce the total calories
in your meal without reducing the amount of food you
eat. BUT remember to use a normal- or small-size plate —
not a platter. The total number of calories that you eat
counts, even if a good proportion of them come from
fruits and vegetables. |
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Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
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