Healthy Food Guide

 Did you know there are at least four great reasons to eat less fat?

1.  It can assist in weight loss or weight maintenance because you'll be eating fewer calories.
2. It can help reduce your risk of heart disease by reducing saturated fat, which will help lower blood cholesterol levels. 
3. It may help reduce your risk of cancer.
4. Eating fewer high-fat foods means more room for fruits, vegetables, grains, and beans

Here are some actions steps to get you started. Pick one or two steps and then keep adding to them, they will soon become a new healthy habit for you. 

• Use reduced-fat or nonfat salad dressings White wine vinegar is great with a little dill.
   
• Use nonfat or lower fat spreads, such as jelly or jam, fruit spread, apple butter, hummus nonfat or reduced-calorie mayonnaise, nonfat margarine, or mustard.
   
• Use high-fat foods only sometimes as a treat; choose more low-fat and nonfat foods.
   
• To top baked potatoes, use plain nonfat or low-fat yogurt, nonfat or reduced-fat sour cream, nonfat or low-fat cottage cheese, nonfat margarine, and nonfat hard cheese in small amounts, salsa or vinegar.

• Use a little lemon juice, dried herbs, thinly sliced green onions, or a little salsa as a nonfat topping for vegetables or salads.

• Use small amounts of high-fat toppings. For example, use only 1 tsp butter or mayonnaise; 1 tbsp sour cream; 1 tbsp regular salad dressing.

• Switch to 1 percent or skim milk (not for children) and other nonfat or lower fat dairy products (low-fat or nonfat yogurt, nonfat or reduced-fat sour cream low fat ice cream).

• Cut back on cheese by using small (1 oz) amounts on sandwiches and in cooking or use lower fat and fat-free cheeses (part-skim mozzarella, 1 percent cottage cheese, or nonfat hard cheese). 

•  Save french fries and other fried foods for special occasions; have a small serving; share with a friend.

• Save high-fat desserts (ice cream, pastries cream cakes) for special occasions don’t say no have some, but small amounts; share a serving with a friend.

• Choose small portions of lean meat, fish, and poultry; use low-fat cooking methods (baking, poaching, and broiling); trim off all fat from meat and remove skin from poultry. Very important do not eat the skin!

•   Choose lower fat luncheon meats, such as sliced turkey or chicken breast, lean ham, lean sliced beef.
   

What's a recommended serving size for meat and fish? Experts suggest for meat go by the palm of your hand and for fish 1 whole hand.

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