Getting Healthy: Diabetes Edition: Good Foods VS Bad Foods

Good Foods VS Bad Foods

What is considered good food? What is bad?  Know one will ever really know but some facts hold true.  Unprocessed foods, natural foods, are the best choice.  Your body knows how to break these foods down and use the minerals and nutrients more effectively than those processed foods.  However, the sad thing is, is that we live in a processed world!  We can’t go a day without running into some kind of process food whether it be fast food, or a processed food found in the grocery store! 

So how do you find the good stuff you ask?  Well it’s easier than what some think but then again it’s hard at the same time because your body craves the nasty bad stuff because most likely you’ve been shoving it down your mouth for probably the majority of your life. We want things convenient, fast and something that taste good regardless of what it may do to our health.  We are human!  But there are ways to get around all the bad stuff.

I can’t say I am completely eating 100% good foods, because I am not!  I still eat processed foods because of its convenience most of the time.  Other times, I just don’t feel like cooking.  But I remind myself that it is okay!  Why, because I am taking gradual, baby steps in preparing my body to get adjusted to the good foods. 

What are Good Foods and Bad Foods? 

Here are a few items that I consider good/ bad foods:

Good Foods (Whole Foods)

• whole grains
• legumes- beans, lentils, peas, soybeans, peanuts
• fruit (in moderation and to be eaten with a meal)
• uncooked veggies (these have more nutrients and vitamins) particularly green veggies
• cooked veggies (good still but have less nutrients and vitamins)
• whole wheat bread
• multi-grain bread
• brown rice
• bran cereal
• oatmeal
• lean meat
• high fiber foods
• dietary starches

Bad Foods (Processed Foods)

• bread
• rice
• potatoes
• pasta
• any form of sugar (table sugar, honey, brown sugar, maple syrup, etc.)
• soft drinks
• candy
• jams and jellies
• white colored foods like pasta, bread, etc

 Interesting Revelation

The other night, I was craving brownies and of course I had a pre-packaged brownie mix in my pantry.  I read the nutrition label and said oh no, I’m not even going to eat one because honestly, I really didn’t want to work those carbs and calories off!  But I made them and told my husband he could have them.  (I know, not a good decision, but I wanted them gone!)  Well, to put a long story short, I took one little nibble off the brownie and just spit it out!  It was so freaking nasty that I couldn’t believe that I used to eat them as dessert!!  Then I was like wow, my taste buds have changed!!  In reality, I haven’t had any added sugar in about 2 weeks so when I ate the pre-packaged brownies, my body was like uh no! 

So my assumption is that I limited my intake of sugar, and sugary foods so my body adjusted.  Therefore when I ate a sugar packed brownie, my body had to remember what that kind of sugar tasted like.  The reaction, eww!  So that’s a good thing! 

What can you do then?

You can do a lot of things to get the ball rolling!  But if you are like me and just starting off with your life long change, you can adapt the following ideas into your lifestyle:

By limiting your access to the bad foods, you begin to train yourself, your body and most importantly your mind!  If you don’t have access to the bad stuff then you will more likely eat whatever else is in front of you!  So make sure it good food like raw veggies, low sugar protein bars, etc.

Another great way to help you get a hold of the good foods is when you do your grocery shopping, shop for the foods that are lining the wall.  The majority of the foods lined around the wall will have the better nutrients and options.  Where we live, the majority of the stores have their veggies, dairy, meat, and grains on the outer part, lining the wall while all the bad stuff is in the middle, just tempting you to pick it up.  However, every now and then venture in the middle isles and see what’s there, because with some marketing strategies, they will put the good stuff in the center with the bad stuff!  Just make sure to check your labels and if you want that cookie, just remember that cookie counts and you should work it off if you want to stay on target!

Read, read, and read!  Read your labels on everything, especially your processed foods items! I really love granola bars.  They are quick, easy, fast and convenient and taste good and fix my craving for chocolate or sugars!  However, not all granolas are created equal.  So it’s imperative to read all nutritional labels!  You can have high sugar content but a low calorie count.  You have to decide what is best for you and what you are willing to sacrifice and if you will be working off that 30 carb cookie!

Eat what you want!  Yes I just said that!  Do not, I repeat, do not deprive yourself of foods you enjoy or really like or what you can’t live without!  You can treat yourself without going overboard!  If you haven’t reached your calorie limit or carb limit for the day, enjoy!  If you have gone over your limit, go ahead and eat it too.  Just remember not to eat the whole pie!  You can eat just a nibble if you want or slice.  The choice is up to you!  But make sure you keep a mental note of how you felt after eating that “treat.”  You will train your body and your body will train your mind!  You have to keep working at your goal to make a difference! 

It’s really not rocket science when choosing good foods; it’s basically taking control and making a choice!  Yeah the manufactures and companies put those bad foods out there, but it’s up to you as an individual to say no, to eat whole foods and adapt to eating foods that is good for you and your body.  Moderate what you eat and you will begin to see a difference.