The term health food is generally used to describe foods that are considered to be beneficial to health.
The World Health Organization (WHO) makes the following 5 recommendations with respect to both populations and individuals:
- Achieve an energy balance and a healthy weight
- Limit energy intake from total fats and shift fat consumption away from saturated fats to unsaturated fats and towards the elimination of trans-fatty acids
- Increase consumption of fruits and vegetables, legumes, whole grains and nuts
- Limit the intake of simple sugar. A 2003 report recommends less than 10% simple sugars.
- Limit salt / sodium consumption from all sources and ensure that salt is iodized
The Healthy Eating Pyramid sits on a foundation of daily exercise and weight control. They affect what you eat and how your food affects you.Exercise and weight control are also linked through the simple rule of energy balance: Weight change = calories in – calories out. If you burn as many calories as you take in each day, there's nothing left over for storage in fat cells, and weight remains the same. Eat more than you burn, though, and you end up adding fat and pounds. Regular exercise can help you control your weight, and it is key part of any weight-loss effort.
