In recent days, the general populations are very much aware of their health and try to avert unnecessary synthetic medications intake. One of the best ways to keep ourselves healthy is to maintain healthy eating habits. Food labeling of any food items provides the nutritional content of that food.
Is healthy eating sufficient to keep ourselves healthy? It is a very common thought that nutritious foods are healthy. Sometimes, we ignore or forget about cleanliness. Food hygiene or clean eating habit is also a concern to keep ourselves healthy. Both healthy eating and clean eating habits are equally important for utmost health. NitaNaturale gives a brief discussion about healthy eating and clean eating and then continues the discussion on the difference between them.
What is healthy eating? How do we obtain a healthy eating process?
Understanding the serving size, calorie intake, and calories obtained from the fat content are necessary to understand healthy eating. The calorie requirement varies from individual to individual. In general, the required percent of Daily Value (DV) for particular nutrients is calculated based on a 2000 calorie value. The DV of certain nutrients is less in healthy eating requirements, such as saturated fat, trans-fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrate, etc. But dietary fibers, vitamins, and protein content have a higher percentage of DV. Less than 5% DV is termed a low nutritional composition and more than 20% DV is considered a high nutritional composition for a particular nutrient. [1]
Some of the following ingredients provide different health benefits and require adding in healthy eating practices:
- Different natural food sources like whole-grain foods such as oatmeal, brown rice, wheat bran, cereals, fruits & vegetables, nuts & seeds, beans, and peas are the primary sources of dietary fibers. The inclusions of dietary fibers regulate blood glucose level and prevent constipation. Dietary fibers also decrease cardiovascular risk,
- Calcium is an essential mineral for bone health. Almonds, rice, coconut, sea-fish (like salmon and sardines), dairy products, soymilk, fortified cereals, tofu, fruits, and green vegetables (like kale, turnip greens, spinach, and broccoli) are different natural sources of calcium. The deficiency of calcium causes osteoporosis.
- Vitamin D is essential for calcium absorption in our physiological system. The deficiency of vitamin D is indirectly responsible for calcium deficiency. Different natural food items like eggs, fish, fish liver oil, fortified foods, and soy beverages are good sources of vitamin D.
- Iron is another essential mineral for blood health. Iron is present in the hemoglobin structure. Hemoglobin is the primary structural moiety of red blood cells that assists in oxygen transportation. The deficiency of iron causes anemia. Dark green leafy vegetables, whole grain cereals, resins, meat, and poultry are rich sources of iron.
- Vitamin C is essential for the proper absorption of iron. Citrus fruits, tomato, broccoli, kiwi fruit, sprouts are different varieties of healthy foods that contain an abundant amount of vitamin C naturally. [2]
Experts recommend planning your healthy diet in such a way that 100% DV can be obtained from the above-mentioned nutrients on most days of the year.
Healthy eating practice always prefers limited use of salt, sugar, saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol. These food ingredients enhance the risk of cardiac disorders, diabetes, and cancer by increasing the risk of hypertension, metabolic disorders, incorrect hormonal secretion, free radical formation, etc.
Certain action plan for healthy eating is as follows:
- Consume colorful fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat or fat-free dairy products, and intake a variety of protein-containing food (preferably more amount of plant-based proteins, such as beans, peas, soy products, etc.).
- Avoid consuming processed food items
- Try more backed, grilled, and boiled foods instead of fried them to reduce fat intake.
- Liquid oils like olive oil and canola oil are healthier than solid fats like butter.
- Limited use of packed food items
- Rinse canned fish products before eating. [1]
What is clean eating? Why is it important? How can we obtain a clean eating process?
Clean eating is based on food hygiene that ensures the safety of food from production to consumption. Clean eating is not only restricted to food preparation and eating habits, but it includes harvesting, processing, storage, distribution, and transportation also. [3] Different bacterial growths such as Salmonella, Escherichia coli, and Cyclospora in food items cause food poisoning. Besides these, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium botulinum, Cryptosporidium, Hepatitis A,
Listeria monocytogenes, Shigella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Vibrio vulnificus are common micro-organism that causes different food-borne diseases with multiple symptomatic features. [4] Untreated conditions or ignorance of these infections can provide a fatal outcome.
Children, the elderly population, and pregnant women are vulnerable to foodborne infections. A clean eating habit is essential to avoid such infections induced by contaminated food.
Following are some general tips to obtain a clean eating process at home:
- Hand cleaning and surface cleaning are the most important parameters in clean eating habits. Experts always suggest using soapy water for handwashing. Chopping boards and food counter shelves are the surfaces that need washing and mopping for maintaining cleanliness. Wash hand towel and mopping cloth need to wash regularly with hot water. Properly scrub all the kitchen area and sink with detergent and a brush.
- Raw meat, fish, seafood, and poultry items are susceptible to microbial growth. Store them separately from other food items. Refrigerate them at in properly maintained temperature. Wash properly the plate or bowl in which raw meat, fish, or poultry items are stored before reusing them.
- Cover the food items properly.
- Safe internal temperature is essential during cooking and can be measured through a food thermometer. Leftover food items, egg dishes, poultry items, and ground meat require the highest temperature than other food ingredients.
- Perishable food items, including fruits, and cooked food require freezing within 2 hours of preparation and purchase. The temperature needs to be properly maintained. The freezer temperature requires to be set at 00 F or less. Whereas 400F or less need to maintain in the refrigerator compartment.
- Safe deforestation process is also required to follow can be possible by keeping the frozen food items in the refrigerator, adding cold water, or microwaving them. Never defrost at room temperature. [5]
The above-mentioned tips are only for household purposes. The food industry also has some responsibility in clean eating practices before it comes to our kitchen. Food industries need to take care of food handling by following all the food safety-related laws.
What is the difference between healthy eating and clean eating?
- Healthy eating promotes health and prevents different chronic diseases by providing essential nutrients. Essential nutrients regulate normal physiological functioning, such as hormonal secretion, metabolic process, cellular protein synthesis, cellular energy distribution, free radicals formations, bowel movement and strengthen our immune system to fight against diseases. But clean eating is a process through which we can prevent the entrance of harmful foreign bodies and/or particles into our body compartments.
- Healthy eating mainly prevents non-infectious diseases, whereas clean eating prevents food born infectious diseases.
- Ignorance of healthy eating practices mainly provides long-term health hazards and the progression of chronic diseases with slow onset of symptoms. But ignorance of clean eating practices provides a quick reaction that provides a sudden outbreak that leads to a fast health hazard. In most cases, infections linked with unhygienic food practices are usually short-term. The outcome of ignorance of both eating habits can lead to serious morbidity and premature mortality.
- Healthy eating habit depends on the biological process, whereas clean eating habit depends on the mechanical process.
References
- https://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/ResourcesForYou/HealthCareProfessionals/UCM497015.pdf
- https://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/ResourcesForYou/HealthCareProfessionals/UCM507495.pdf
- http://www.who.int/foodsafety/areas_work/food-hygiene/en/
- https://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodborneIllnessContaminants/FoodborneIllnessesNeedToKnow/default.htm
- https://www.fda.gov/downloads/Food/ResourcesForYou/HealthCareProfessionals/UCM577498.pdf