How to Achieve Excellent Health with Whole Foods When You’re Over 40

When you’re over 40, not only is it way harder to shift that stubborn blubber than when you were younger. There’s also a range of health issues, aches, and pains queuing up to get to you. Whole foods diet might just be your knight in the shining armor.

An odd ache in an unexpected place, a creaky knee, a cold that seems to drag on for weeks…And that’s only scratching the surface, right?

But don’t worry, there are things you can do to mitigate this.

One way to secure good health for the coming decades is through nutrition.

Watch what and how much you eat and ensure that you have a balanced diet that contains whole foods.

There are a variety of diets that have grown in popularity recently, although few are as simple or natural as the whole foods diet.

Whole foods might seem like a nebulous term. But it’s really simple. And pretty exciting too. Because just a few tweaks to your diet can affect your health.

So why whole foods?

At this point, you may be asking yourself:

” Why should I be so particular about my diet that I go out and only try to find whole foods to eat?”

It’s a relatively easy answer.  Whole foods are important to your diet. Health professionals agree that eating whole foods is just generally better for your health. What you eat can even help protect you against diseases.

This is not some sort of fad or a new marketing trend. Whole foods still contain high levels of fiber, nutrients, and phytochemicals which aren’t present in foods that are factory-made.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Modern food habits cause a serious decrease in the amount of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals taken in by the average citizen.

Some health officials have reported that as many as a third of the population don’t get enough vitamin C. Even a larger number of people don’t get enough vitamin A.

Common deficiencies also involve minerals like potassium and magnesium, which play a vital role in the construction of cells, and even your DNA.

Science hasn’t yet reached the point where it can pinpoint what kinds of things happen to the human body when it goes without certain vitamins for long periods of time.

But the general consensus in the scientific and medical community is that lack of these components is linked to major physical diseases and some mental disorders.

Diseases such as scurvy, are well-documented, but scurvy is a disease that takes place in a shorter period of time. What kind of effects would scientists see if they were to look at vitamin deficiency over a span of years and decades?

With these kinds of deficiencies being so common, it should be no surprise that there is a rise in various types of diseases and a weakening of the immune system. The human body has little defense when it can’t even rebuild its own cells.

Benefits of Whole Foods Diet For Health

Although nutrition experts know those whole foods are important for the diet, further research into their benefits still continues.

Thanks to the advancements in science and technology we now have new information available. Below you can learn new insights into why these types of foods are important for you.

Let’s have a look at all those good things that make whole foods special.

Phytochemicals

Scientists and doctors have been cataloging important biological components called phytochemicals. These phytochemicals play an active and essential role in preserving health and preventing different types of diseases.

What do phytochemicals do for you?

Phytochemicals are compounds produced by plants. Scientific research suggests that some of these phytochemicals act as antioxidants.

Essentially, they have the ability to protect cells from damage caused by free radicals. And that means protection from various diseases, including cancer.

These various chemicals play a multitude of roles in the human body for protection, repair, and communication between cells.

For example, the most notorious antioxidants, lycopene and pterostilbene, are found in tomatoes and blueberries, respectively. Without these types of nutrients, you’d be completely vulnerable to diseases like cancer.

Some scientists have hypothesized that a deficiency of phytonutrients has contributed to an increase in these types of diseases, so you can conclude that making them a part of your diet is essential.

The only issue is that making sure you have phytochemicals in your diet can be difficult if you normally consume foods that are outside of those classified as whole foods. And it’s important to note that you can’t get phytochemicals from supplements. So to get the benefits, you have to incorporate the relevant whole foods in your daily diet.

Whole Foods High In Phytochemicals

Here’s a list of whole foods high in phytochemicals:

• Apples
• Cabbage
• Brussels sprouts
• Bok choy
• Kale
• Red wine
• Broccoli
• Berries
• Soynuts
• Pears
• Tomatoes
• Lentils
• Cantaloupe
• Garlic
• Apricots
• Onions
• Seeds
• Soybeans
• Green tea
• Turnips
• Celery
• Carrots
• Spinach
• Olives

Fiber

You’ve probably seen commercials advertising different types of ways to get fiber. Some of these commercials show people stirring massive spoonfuls of powder or flakes into huge glasses of water, but is that really the right way to get your fiber?

The answer is no. All kinds of plants are extremely high in fiber, but most people simply aren’t used to eating plants in this way.

Modern times have taught people to remove certain parts of plants so that they can eat their food more easily. However, this has led to a deficiency in fiber for many.

But fiber is important because it’s essential for sweeping out your digestive tract, and a large portion of fiber even contains some of the rarest phytonutrients.

Science is still working to understand how fiber plays a role in fighting heart disease as well as diabetes but you can be content to know that it simply works.

Whole Foods High In Fiber

For your convenience, here’s the list of easily available high-fiber whole foods:

• whole grains
• wheat cereals
• vegetables (carrots, celery, tomatoes)
• barley
• oatmeal
• beans
• nuts
• apples
• pears
• berries
• citrus fruits

Healthy Fats

Because the word ‘fat’ has negative connotations, it’s easy to forget that there is such a thing as good fats. Plants produce fats that are very beneficial for humans. These are exactly the kind of fats that people should be eating.

But because of associations with negative food habits, people tend to shy away from fats, including those that are good for you. Fats like Omega-3s that come from fish and plant sources are great for you and can help you to fight off different types of diseases.

Healthy types of fats are completely separate from those found in processed food. Saturated fats found in processed foods can come together and cause serious health problems later in life. 

Researchers have been able to prove that healthy monounsaturated fats can actually help remove saturated fat from your blood and help prevent heart disease.

Whole Foods High In Good Fat

An here are the whole foods that are high in good fats:

• Avocado
• Chia seeds
• Flaxseed
• Dark chocolate
• Eggs
• Tofu
• Fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, herring, fresh tuna, sardines, trout)
• Nut and seed butter
• Yogurt
• Olives
• Olive oil

What Food Groups Are Considered Whole Food?

Fruits and Veggies

One easy rule is that if it comes from the ground, like any sort of fresh fruits or vegetables, then you’re pretty safe to eat it.

If the fruits or vegetables are frozen or dried, but they haven’t had any ingredients or additives injected into them, then they should be in the clear as well. Many types of fruit and vegetables, especially power greens, are now available in powder form. This is a safe alternative if you run out of fresh produce.

But you should always check the labels to make sure that you aren’t being tricked. Lots of companies like to use the colors associated with organic labels to trick consumers.

Dairy

Dairy products that haven’t been tampered with chemically can also be found in a variety of stores these days. Products like these will usually display a label that says they are certified as organic, but you should always be sure to read specifics on how it was handled. Not all definitions are completely laid out from start to finish.

Grains

Grains should always be in their complete form. When they’re ground up into a powder, they no longer have the completeness of their form to support your biological action. They should also be in their natural color and unbleached. That means that white rice or white bread for example is not considered a whole food.

Bread should have a hefty presence of their grains seen in them. When you consume these grains, they will help clean particles from your intestines and help keep you more regular. If they’ve been ground into a powder, they might form into a gummy substance that gets trapped in your digestive tract.

What About Beverages?

If you’re wondering about beverages you could fit into your whole food diet, then yes there are quite a few different types of drinks that you can have. It might be easiest though if you make your beverages yourself.

These can include coconut water, sparkling water that you flavored the different types of fruits, freshly ground coffee, different types of teas, smoothies with only natural, whole ingredients, almond or coconut milk, freshly squeezed and unsweetened juice.

Alcohol

There are even some types of alcohol that you can have. The main criteria though is that it doesn’t include any sort of preservatives, extra added sugars or salts, or any other chemicals.

Most people stick to straight spirits and certain types of wine, as usual, check the labels. It might take a little bit of extra research, but if you still want to enjoy a lovely glass of wine without violating your commitment to a healthy lifestyle, it’ll be worth it.

Things Which Are Not Whole Foods

Before you see exactly what whole foods are, it’s a good idea to take a look at what they aren’t. Some food manufacturers will put bits of bogus info on the packaging of their products to draw the eye of an unaware consumer.

So some of the things you need to look for will be things like long chemical names in the ingredients, many of which will be difficult to pronounce and repeat to others without writing it down.

Foods that come out of a box are usually highly processed, especially if they are dehydrated. This should also include types of snack foods.

Frozen ready-made meals are particularly guilty of this because they’ve had quite a few preservatives, and artificial amounts of salt added to them.

This way they can retain their flavor under whatever circumstances. Simply avoid things like those, and you should avoid nearly 90% of bad foods.

How to Add More Whole Foods to Your Diet

If you’re new to eating whole foods, then this information can be really beneficial to you. You might just be looking to expand the amount of whole foods that you include in your diet, so here are a few things you can try. Adding whole foods also helps you to include many of the wonderful bits of nutrition that you read about earlier in the article.

1. Begin to avoid foods that come from factories. When you make your own foods, it’s a lot less likely to contain things that will be contrary to your diet. You might even want to consider learning how to make home versions of the condiments that you like.

2. A great way to make sure that you’re getting a lot of those awesome phytochemicals, you can add lentils or beans to a lot of your meals. Beans are a great source of protein, and they can be prepared and flavored in a variety of ways that are delicious and full of the things you need.

3. When you make breakfast and lunch, be sure to have them with some kind of vegetable, and you might even want to close with a piece of fruit. That can have a tremendous effect on your digestion, as well as the absorption of nutrients.

4. When you go to buy breads, always opt for the ones with the most visible grains in them. Those can help you with your health in a variety of ways. If you eat breakfast cereal, also be sure that they contain whole grains with no preservatives, sugars, or sweeteners unless they are completely natural.

5. Instead of conventional sweeteners, you can use juices, honey, nectars of various types, and other similar items. You might find that you enjoy those even more.

When You’re Short on Time

People everywhere are busy because of work, family, friends, and all sorts of life events. When time runs that short, it can be hard to commit to a healthy lifestyle and diet. Having a good plan in place can help you to stick to your health goals and stay on track with increasing your vitality.

Try picking up some of the snack foods like hummus, trail mix, assorted nuts, yogurt, and fruit. If you want to eat something along with the hummus, just make sure that it’s a whole grain cracker or bread.

Some people find that they have a lot of success with their diet if they make a small tub of tuna salad to take with them to eat at work.

You can chop celery and add a few simple seasonings without compromising the healthy nature of your meal. If you have any whole food from meals that you’ve eaten during the week, then you can take some of those with you to eat.

That will save you money because you’re eating your leftover food instead of throwing it away. With a little extra effort, you can bring some frozen fruits with you to make a nice lunchtime smoothie.

@Feature Photo by Huzeyfe Turan on Unsplash

Disclaimer:

This article was written by Zuzana Halliwell. I am not a doctor or health professional and cannot be held liable for the information written here. This article is meant to provide information about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. The content is based on my own personal experience and on information provided by medical professionals that is available to the public. It is not intended to provide medical advice. Do not use it as an alternative to seeking help from a medical professional.