The Role Of Nutrition In Disease Prevention

The foods you eat contain all of the nutrients that your body uses to fuel itself and your diet greatly contributes to your overall health. While there is a large cultural understanding that unsaturated fat, processed sugar, and salt contribute to weight gain, they also contribute to the development of serious illnesses that can reduce your quality of life or even shorten it. Eating foods that are high in fibre, vitamins, healthy fats, and other nutrients helps to prevent common diseases. The best way to protect yourself against diseases is to prevent them early; once the diseases are already diagnosed there is typically only disease management and not necessarily a cure or way to reverse the negative effects already afflicting your body. To prevent the most common diseases, actively try to improve your nutrition.

Prevent These Diseases Through Proper Nutrition

Heart Disease
Your cardiovascular health is greatly related to the foods you eat. Food that is high in saturated fat and salt raises your cholesterol, which leads to a buildup of plaque in the arteries. This plaque essentially lines the walls of your arteries and makes it more difficult for blood to pass through, which is called coronary artery disease (CAD). This leads to high blood pressure and the risk of heart attacks. One of the main ways to mitigate heart disease is to avoid foods that are high in saturated fat and salt as well as doing cardiovascular workouts (workouts that increase your heart rate). Doing these workouts helps strengthen your heart so that it is able to effectively pump blood.

Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes develops when cells become resistant to insulin so that they cannot properly process and use enough sugar while the pancreas cannot produce enough insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. Type 2 diabetes is commonly caused by excess consumption of processed sugar, and obesity and an inactive lifestyle are contributors as well. Eating low-calorie foods and foods that are low in fat and sugar is a key part of diabetes prevention.

Cancer
Although there are many different lifestyle choices that can increase cancer risk, eating well has been shown to lower the risk for cancer and promote healthy living. Foods that are high in antioxidants have been shown to protect against cell damage. These foods include a variety of berries, kale, pecans, and red cabbage.

Eating For Better Health
One way to help prevent these diseases is to eat a healthy, balanced diet that is low in saturated fat, processed sugar, and other additives. To assist in disease prevention, a person needs a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats (such as the fats that naturally occur in avocados, nuts, and fish). Eating a rainbow of fruits and vegetables is the best way to ensure you are getting enough of all nutrients, as different fruits and vegetables offer different vitamins and health benefits.

What’s most important for the development of a healthy diet is to learn healthy eating habits and to have an understanding of food nutrition. While many people know that fruits and vegetables are a good option and that fast food is not, they may not realize the high amounts of salt, fat, and sugar in foods they regularly consume; deli meats, frozen meals, granola bars, juice, condiments, and more. Learning what foods are healthy for you and what your body needs can be difficult, but a nutrition counsellor can help you figure out an eating plan that works for you while teaching you about healthy dietary habits.

Nutrition Counselling In Calgary

To learn more about food nutrition and gain an understanding of the way your diet affects your health, speak to a nutrition counsellor. As modern food becomes more and more processed, it can feel difficult to make healthy choices or to know where to begin your health journey. Learning to take control of your diet is the first step in disease prevention and nutrition counselling with a professional health expert is an easy and effective way to begin your journey to a healthier life. At Shephard Health, we provide our clients with tailored nutrition plans and we work to educate our patients so they can start making healthier choices and understand how their nutrition is linked to disease prevention and overall health. If you’re ready to become healthier and lower your risk for disease, call the Shephard Health clinic in Kensington in NW Calgary at 1-403-543-7499

FAQ

Q: What does nutritional counselling include?
A: The first step in nutritional counselling is to book your complimentary consultation. Counselling also includes follow-up visits where we will analyze your food journals, guide you in your meal planning, food shopping, and food preparation. We also assist you with long-term goal setting, and we encourage and support you along your journey towards better health.

Q: What other concerns can nutritional counselling help?
A: Nutritional counselling provides tailored, realistic solutions for any person at any age who is experiencing challenges in their health or eating habits.

Q: Is nutrition counselling a form of dieting?
A: While nutrition counselling does affect your diet (the foods you eat), it is not a diet. Nutrition counselling is about creating a healthy lifestyle and setting goals for your health, which may include weight loss, but not always. Nutrition counselling is not a fad diet that encourages sudden weight loss using different trends, but rather developing healthier habits overall.