Best Foods to Eat for Great Health

Choosing these best foods to eat for great health will help you look younger, feel better, have more energy and stay well. But that's not all.

The great health benefits get even better.

When you eat for health, you strengthen your immunity, stamina and endurance, lose weight, reduce stress and prevent painful diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and Alzheimer's disease.

And, what's more, choosing the best foods to eat for great health can even lower your bad (LDL) cholesterol better than taking stains drugs.

The Best Foods to Eat for Great Health Benefits

You don’t need a degree in nutrition to learn the best foods to eat for health. You can get the nutrients you need every day and achieve great health by just choosing from this list of the best foods to eat and seeing that you eat for health from these nutritious foods on a daily basis.

• Vegetables: When picking from the vegetable, go for the bright colors with the most vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. Choose dark green, orange and red vegetables, like broccoli, kale, carrots, squash, red peppers and tomatoes. And garlic and onions are powerful natural antibiotics that strengthen immunity and help prevent disease.

•  Fruit: From the fruits, choose whole fresh, frozen or, in limited amounts, naturally dried fruits. Pick berries, oranges, red grapefruit, cantaloupe, apples, apricots, plums and other brightly colored fruit that's low on the  index, rather than canned fruit or fruit juices.
  

• Whole Grains: Choose 100% whole wheat or rye breads, crackers and pastas, sprouted grains, brown rice, oatmeal and other whole grain high fiber foods instead of refined grains, like white bread and white rice.

• Beans, Nuts and Seeds: Beans (legumes), such as lentils, soy beans, garbanzo, and kidney beans are good sources of both protein and fiber. They can be added to salads, home made burritos and soups. Good choices of nuts and seeds are raw, unsalted almonds, walnuts and sunflower seeds. If you’re watching caloried keep portions small.

• Fats and Oils: Good quality food fat from olive oil, fish oil, beans, whole grains, raw nuts and seeds provide important, healthy fatty acids. Use extra virgin olive oil for salads, stir-frying and baking. Remember, fats are high in calories, so eat sparingly for good weight management.

• Dairy and Eggs: Choose only healthy fat-free or low-fat dairy products, such as low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese and sour cream. If you drink milk, make sure it's fat-free. And limit your use of butter, cheese and eggs.

• Fish, Poultry and Meats: Healthy high protin foods are important. Have omega 3 fish, such as salmon, trout or sardines at least twice a week. Also include poultry (without the skin), beans, low-fat dairy, nuts and seeds. If you eat meat, pick lean cuts and limit portion sizes.

• Water and Other Liquids: Since your body's mostly water and you use and lose about 9 cups of it a day, fluids are essential. And here's the bottom line. Pure water is the healthiest thing to drink. So stick with water, mild herbal teas without caffeine and plain lemon water.

Knowing all the best foods to eat for health is really important.

But to look and feel great and have great health, it's also important to know which unhealthy foods to avoid. To best use this "eat for health" guide, replace the foods Not to eat with the above foods to eat for great health.