If you intend to live a healthy life, then you should also be prepared to adjust your life style to conform to the healthy life rules. One of the most important things you should focus on is a healthy diet. Grains constitute a vital portion of a healthy diet. It should be understood that all grains are good for a health living. They provide the body with important minerals and vitamins as well as composite carbohydrates and they are low in fats. As much as these essential ingredients are what make grains a healthy diet option, they have also been associated with reduced risk factors for certain diseases such as diabetes, heart conditions, certain types of cancers and other health complications.
However, the best types of grains are basically the whole grains. Various dietary guidelines have recommended that half the amount of grains you consume daily should actually be whole grains. It is likely that you have consumed quite a considerable amount of grains already but the question is: Were they whole grains? Stay healthy by ensuring that your diet is inclusive of all important nutrients and minerals and to ensure this, make whole grains part of your diet. As mentioned earlier, there are different types of grains, otherwise referred to as cereals, which are basically grass seeds cultivated mainly for food. Whole grains and grains are available in various different sizes and shapes ranging from the large popcorn kernels to the minute seeds of the quinoa plant.
In essence, whole grains which are normally unrefined, have been found to be good sources of fibre and other essential diet elements like potassium, selenium and magnesium. They can be consumed as single meals – popcorn and brown rise, or used as product ingredients – whole wheat in bread and buckwheat in pancakes.
Besides eating whole grains, it is also necessary to do some exercises in order to lead a healthy living. It would be unwise for you to dwell too much on diet and forego workouts. These two are compatible aspects of a healthy life. Being healthy and fit is mandatory in the sense that you will be able to perform other important activities in life. Engaging in weight loss programs as you ingest your whole grain diet can help you to achieve great results. Smoking, drinking excessively and exposing yourself to unsafe sexual behaviours are some of the unhealthy practices that could compromise your health. You should therefore shun away from them if you really care about your life.
The reason as to why whole grains such as oatmeal, cereals and multigrain crackers, whole-wheat pasta and bread, bran, barley, quinoa, corn and millet are important to our health is that they maintain the outer part of the grain (kernel) which is very nutritious. Other grains which are refined have this outer layer extracted making the remaining part only starchy. Whole grains are rich in fibre and vitamin B as compared to refined grains. Fibre, in this case, is vital to the digestive system and may also assist in reducing blood sugar levels. In addition, it can assist in filling you up and since it takes time to digest as compared to the refined grains, it controls acute spikes in the blood glucose which can lead to cravings and eventually overeating.
Vitamin B that is contained in whole grains assists the body to attain energy from the consumed food and also promotes the functioning of the nervous system. Another important characteristic of whole grains is that it provides the body with magnesium, an essential mineral in bone-building. Besides, it boosts the immune system by providing the body with selenium, an important mineral for a healthy body.
