Welcome to Afghan Dastarkhwan: Eating Healthy on a Budget in the United States
Today, we will learn about nutrition and creating a healthy plate of food. If we want to stay healthy and strong, we should eat a balanced diet and drink plenty of water. A balanced diet means we should eat the right amounts of nutrients. When we eat, our body takes the nutrients from the food and distributes it to where it needs to go through our blood. Different foods have different nutrients. Some help us have strong bones, some help us grow muscles, improve eyesight, and help us heal faster.
Making a Healthy Plate of Food
There are 5 basic different types of nutrients: Carbohydrates, Proteins, Vitamins and Minerals, Oils and Fats and water. A healthy plate includes foods from all 5 nutrient groups. About half of a plate should be vegetables which have many vitamins and minerals. Eating more vegetables and beans, peas and lentils than meat is a good way to save money since vegetables tend to be less expensive than meat. About a fourth of the plate should be protein, like meats or beans. About a fourth should be carbohydrates like rice, pasta or bread - and they should be added last. Healthy oils and fats can come from things like vegetable oil or seeds or can be in certain foods like nuts and fish.
Water is the most important essential nutrient. While you can obtain water through the foods you eat, plain water with no added sugar or other ingredients is the best way to access this nutrient. Meals that are mixed like stews and soup, may have all five ingredients in one pot!
Eating Colorful Fruits and Vegetables
When you are creating your plate, think about how you include fruits and vegetables that are the colors of a rainbow. Each color does something good for the body. Red helps reduce cholesterol and hypertension and promotes heart health. Orange and Yellow help maintain a healthy nervous system like your brain as well as support your eyes, and skin. Green is good for strong bones. Blue, Purple and violet help fight injury and infection. White lowers blood pressure and helps fight infections. Comparing colorful fruits and vegetables to the rainbow is also a fun way to teach children about eating healthy.
Growing Your Own Food
Growing your own food is another way you can save some money on groceries and eat healthy. You don’t need to be a farmer to grow your own food. Many communities offer garden space where people can sign-up to grow food. If you don’t have access to a community garden space - you can grow small things on your windowsill or balcony, like lemons, herbs, chives, tomatoes, and chili peppers. Growing food is a great way for children to learn about where food comes from. When children see food on their plate they have grown, they get more excited about eating fruits and vegetables.
Be sure and watch all the videos in our video series on eating healthy on a budget in the US.
3 апр 2024
