Ask any reputable dietitian or nutrition scientist about how to eat healthfully, and they will probably tell you to avoid dieting.

Many diets emphasise restriction, whether it’s of calories, carbohydrates, fats or something else. And that’s not a healthy strategy, said Alison Brown, a nutrition researcher at the National Institutes of Health in the US. Diets like these can cause you to miss out on the range of nutrients your body requires, she said.

A better way to maintain healthy eating habits, she added, is to focus on foods that not only nourish but also bring joy.

That can be challenging when nutrition fads are coming and going with seemingly increasing speed and often conflicting advice. Is saturated fat the enemy or not? Are we all deficient in protein?

Turns out, the best ways to foster healthy eating are also the simplest. Here’s how.

Prioritise whole foods

Not all processed foods are unhealthy, but they are often stripped of beneficial nutrients. And they may contain high levels of ingredients that can be harmful to health, such as added sugars and sodium. Because of this, it’s best to consume foods “as close as possible to how they exist in nature”, Brown said.

Whole foods such as fruits, vegetables and nuts are packed with many important nutrients. Fibre, for instance, is linked with reduced risks for heart disease, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers. Fruits and vegetables are full of fibre. And fruits and vegetables — especially leafy greens and berries — contain beneficial compounds that can reduce inflammation. In a recent study of nearly 50,000 women, scientists found that those who ate more whole grains, fruits, vegetables and legumes were more likely to age in a healthy way than those who ate fewer of those foods.

“The best foods don’t have a nutrition label,” said Christopher Gardner, a nutrition scientist and professor of medicine at Stanford University in the US.

Eat more healthy fats

During the 1980s, the dominant nutrition advice was to eat less fat. Yet researchers have since found that not all fats are bad. In fact, eating more unsaturated fats — found in foods such as nuts, avocados, fish and olive oil — can lower levels of low-density lipoprotein (or “bad”) cholesterol in the blood, helping prevent heart attacks and strokes.

Saturated fats, on the other hand, found in meat and dairy, can raise LDL cholesterol, increasing the risk of heart disease.

You don’t need to cut saturated fats from your diet entirely, said Alice H. Lichtenstein, a professor of nutrition science and policy at Tufts University in the US. But when choosing between healthy and unhealthy fat sources, always try to opt for the healthier one.

Try to cook more

There’s no harm in eating out occasionally. But research suggests that people who prepare more meals at home are more likely to adhere to a healthier diet and consume fewer calories, and they are less likely to become obese or develop type 2 diabetes.

Avoid added sugars

Added sugars should make up less than 10 per cent of your daily calories, or no more than 50 grams if you consume 2,000 calories per day. The American Heart Association sets a stricter limit of no more than 25 grams of added sugars per day for women and no more than 36 grams per day for men.

Diets high in added sugars can increase risks of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and obesity, among other chronic conditions.

Added sugars are found in many foods, including those you may not expect, such as store-bought tomato sauces and salad dressings. So they can be hard to avoid.

But if you follow the other healthy diet strategies — namely eating more whole foods — you’re likely to consume fewer of these sugars overall. The fibre in whole fruits and vegetables, for instance, can help you stay fuller longer, and make you less likely to reach for sugary snacks. And whole foods, by definition, don’t include added sugars.

Experiment with flavours

Learning to love healthy food often takes patience and experimentation.

“One of my biggest pet peeves as a dietitian is when people think healthy food can’t taste good,” Candice Schreiber, a clinical dietitian at Ohio State University, US. “It absolutely can.”

To find joy in a healthy diet, Gardner said, try adding flavourful herbs and spices to
your food. Jazz up nuts or vegetables with a homemade “flavour dust” made from garlic, onion and Worcestershire powders, for instance.

And search for healthier alternatives to foods that you love. If you have a bowl of ice cream every night, see if apple slices with honey or peanut butter can hit the same spot. Or if potato chips are your regular midafternoon snack, try popcorn
with a little olive oil and nutritional yeast.

It can take some time to find these healthier alternatives, Gardner said. But don’t give up. It “really is feasible” to find something that you love just as much, if not more, he said.

NYTNS