For many people, exercising is just one part of staying healthy and fit. However, while exercising is very important, diet and nutrition can be just as important for keeping your body healthy. Not following a balanced diet can lead to many health issues, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and more. Here are some foods that are very essential for the body. So, how can our students at ISB stay healthy?

Fruits and Vegetables

Fruits and vegetables are key foods for the body that many people look over. It is important to keep your intake high because they are filled with antioxidants and vitamins, and they can prevent heart diseases, strokes, and some types of cancer. According to (cdc.gov), only about 1 in 10 adults get enough fruits and vegetables daily. The WHO recommends that everyone eats about 400mg per day, which balances out to about 5 portions. Many people claim that they don’t eat them because they taste gross and that they would rather eat french fries and nachos. While some of those fatty foods may taste better, eating fruits and vegetables will help you greatly in the long run.

Protein

Eating protein is very essential for the body as it has many benefits for your body. Some of these include building and repairing tissues, making digestive enzymes, hormones, and many other body chemicals. Whether you get your main protein source from lean meats such as chicken, turkey, red meat, and pork chops, or alternative sources such as beans, lentils, seeds, nuts, cheese, and eggs. Protein is a “macronutrient,” which essentially means that the body needs a lot of it, as it does not have a reservoir in the body. Deficiency in protein is very common because the body demands a lot of it.  However, this can be easily worked around as many common foods have protein in it. 

Limiting sugar and salt

Some of the most delicious foods and snacks are often filled with preservatives, sugar, and salt. Companies specialize in finding the perfect balance of sugar and salt so that no one just wants one. Lays chips are famous for being the chip that no one can put down. This is because their ratio of salt/sugar releases dopamine in the brain. This means that every time you eat a chip, you want more and more. This is a marketing strategy that takes advantage of its consumers because 17 chips are 160 calories. To burn this off you would have to jog for almost 25 minutes according to (calorieking.com). Eating processed foods on a daily basis can cause great harm to your body, and can cause heart diseases, blood clots, strokes, and more. 

How to stay healthy at ISB

Staying healthy at ISB is not very difficult if you do it right. Everyday, in our morning email, we get a list of what is for lunch that day. There are many different variations of dishes ranging from western food to oriental, to vegetarian options. ISB offers a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, protein, whole grains, and dairy. What are the best options at ISB? One answer to this would be their salads, as they vary every day with different nutrients and healthy ingredients. There can be quinoa salads, grilled salmon, rocket salad, and more. This is a really healthy option, but also delicious. The school almost always has enough options for protein, featuring many different chicken, pork, and tofu dishes. At ISB, the kitchen staff is always trying to find a balance of healthy food for the students to eat daily. However, there are some very tempting things at ISB as well. This is smoothies, brownies, cookies, and more sugary and processed foods. While having these as an occasional treat is okay, having them on a daily basis will do you more harm than good. 

Eating healthy mixed with exercise can cause good effects on your body for your entire life. Having a good routine of exercise and eating healthy can increase determination, cause you to set more goals, and overall want to be more healthy.