Nutrition Archive

Losing 5% of one's total body weight can result in clinically significant physiologic changes. For example, losing a little weight can reduce heartburn, knee pain, blood pressure, and diabetes risk. Losing 5% of one's body weight may also lead to better sexual function, more restorative sleep, extra energy, and more self-esteem. To reach a 5% reduction in total body weight, it helps to exercise; eat a healthy diet rich in lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and seeds; and get enough sleep.

For people who have risk factors for heart disease, it's important to make lifestyle changes like losing weight, getting more exercise, and eating a healthier diet. Longstanding habits are hard to change, but managing the challenge of healthy eating is easier if people have a partner who is supportive and involved in making food choices.

For older adults who can't always go to the store, it's smart to keep the freezer stocked with healthy, fresh foods all year through. Staples include a variety of proteins (meat, poultry, and seafood), fruits, and vegetables.

There are several types of dietary fat. Some fats are unhealthy, such as trans fat and saturated fat. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat are healthy.

Ads for products that promise to supercharge the body's immune system make claims that sound too good to be true. But do these products actually work? 

Men prone to kidney stones should drink plenty of water, get adequate calcium, reduce sodium, limit animal protein, and avoid foods that could make kidney stones more likely to form. Dietary restrictions depend on the stones the person tends to form.