Texas Forest Country Living

Getting all the nutrients you need each day to function or even thrive can be a challenge. After all, there are only so many meals in a day.

Here are some creative ways to pack the necessary nutrients into your day, without going over your tight calorie budget.

Make Each Bite Count

It’s tempting to sneak in “empty calories,” with foods and beverages that have little in the way of nutritional value. Don’t give in to sugary treats or easy fixes. You will ultimately feel more satisfied by foods that work to fuel your body.

Plan meals ahead to ensure they each include a healthful balance of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, amino acids and minerals. Eating colorfully with each meal can help, because fresh fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds of different colors can provide a rich mix of these valuable nutrients and antioxidants.

Also, don’t let unhealthy snacking be your downfall. Snacking doesn’t have to carry the connotation of mindless consumption in front of a television. Carefully planned bites between meals can be just what the nutritionist ordered.

For instance, consider a cup of high fiber cereal mixed with a few nuts or pumpkin seeds to tide you over between meals, A piece of whole wheat toast with a little nut butter also can do the trick, as can a piece of fruit with a slice of cheese.

Get to know the healthful options on restaurant menus and take the time to chew and enjoy your food.

Easy Replacements

Some of the most essential nutritional components include protein, good carbohydrates, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals, fiber, enzymes and probiotics. While many foods contain some of these important nutrients, landing on the right formula can be an ongoing and time-consuming challenge. It doesn’t have to be.

Consider fast tracking your way to all eight of these core nutrients with a high-quality meal replacement. For example, Illumin8, a plant-based USDA Certified Organic powder from Sunwarrior goes well beyond a traditional protein supplement and can be used as a meal replacement, snack or pre/post workout shake. Available in three flavors, Vanilla Bean, Aztec Chocolate and Mocha, clean eating can also taste good.

Healthy Lifestyle

Match your nutrient-filled diet with a healthy lifestyle. Get plenty of sleep each night, at least eight hours, and move more during the day, with at least 20 minutes of activity.

Be sure to stay hydrated all day long with glasses of clean, clear liquids. Water aids digestion and helps you skip the sugary soft drinks, which are high in calories but offer no nutritional value. Opt for water and green tea instead.

(StatePoint)

Overweight and obese adults who are losing weight with a high-protein diet are more likely to sleep better, according to new research from Purdue University.

“Most research looks at the effects of sleep on diet and weight control, and our research flipped that question to ask what are the effects of weight loss and diet — specifically the amount of protein – on sleep,” said Wayne Campbell, a professor of nutrition science. “We found that while consuming a lower calorie diet with a higher amount of protein, sleep quality improves for middle-age adults. This sleep quality is better compared to those who lost the same amount of weight while consuming a normal amount of protein.”

These findings are published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, which is affiliated with the American Society for Nutrition. The research was funded by Beef Checkoff, National Pork Board, National Dairy Council, Purdue Ingestive Behavior Research Center and National Institutes of Health.

A pilot study found that in 14 participants, consuming more dietary protein resulted in better sleep after four weeks of weight loss. Then, in the main study, 44 overweight or obese participants were included to consume either a normal-protein or a higher-protein weight loss diet. After three weeks of adapting to the diet, the groups consumed either 0.8 or 1.5 kilograms of protein for each kg of body weight daily for 16 weeks. The participants completed a survey to rate the quality of their sleep every month throughout the study. Those who consumed more protein while losing weight reported an improvement in sleep quality after three and four months of dietary intervention.

A dietitian designed a diet that met each study participant’s daily energy need and 750 calories in fats and carbohydrates were trimmed per day while maintaining the protein amount based on whether they were in the higher- or normal-protein group. The sources of protein used in the two studies varied from beef, pork, soy, legumes and milk protein.

“Short sleep duration and compromised sleep quality frequently lead to metabolic and cardiovascular diseases and premature death,” said Jing Zhou, a doctoral student in nutrition science and the study’s first author. “Given the high prevalence of sleep problems it’s important to know how changes to diet and lifestyle can help improve sleep.”

Campbell’s lab also has studied how dietary protein quantity, sources and patterns affect appetite, body weight and body composition.

“This research adds sleep quality to the growing list of positive outcomes of higher-protein intake while losing weight, and those other outcomes include promoting body fat loss, retention of lean body mass and improvements in blood pressure,” Campbell said. “Sleep is recognized as a very important modifier of a person’s health, and our research is the first to address the question of how a sustained dietary pattern influences sleep. We’ve showed an improvement in subjective sleep quality after higher dietary protein intake during weight loss, which is intriguing and also emphasizes the need for more research with objective measurements of sleep to confirm our results.”