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Supplements, Calories, Paleo or Keto – What is best for me?
Good nutrition plays a vital role in determining your health and well -being. However, opinions on what constitutes proper nutrition, proper supplements and a healthy lifestyle vary widely, and our patients continue to seek guidance on common nutrition questions.
Do I Need to Count Calories?
At a basic level, weight management is a simple equation. If you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. Eat fewer calories than you burn, and you lose weight.
However, counting calories isn’t that simple. It’s imprecise and difficult to measure. Did you know that calorie counts on food labels are often as much as 25% off from true counts? Not all calories are equal. Some calories are what we call “empty” calories, having very little or no nutritional value. Fats are not equally healthy, nor are all carbohydrates equal.
Counting calories is an external system (outside of your body). In effect, you are outsourcing your hunger and appetite awareness to calorie counting instead of training your mind and body to listen to your own internal nutrition signals and focusing on healthy, whole food options.
Is the Paleo or Keto Diet Effective and Healthy?
The Paleo diet is one of the more popular approaches in the world. Paleo works for many people because it emphasizes mostly whole food sources of lean protein, vegetables, fruits, and healthy fats and little grains.
However, it can be too restrictive for some people. That’s why the Paleo diet seems to be evolving to allow foods like red wine, “good” carbohydrates like sweet potatoes, and grass-fed dairy -- options that used to be off limits.
A Keto diet can be a very healthy choice for some. It heavily restricts carbohydrates and emphasizes fats, proteins and non-starchy vegetables. Again, good healthy choices are absolutely necessary -- selecting plant based fats over animal fats and eating low starch vegetables. Carbs turn into sugar in our bodies so minimizing starchy and processed carbs allows many people to lose weight, drop insulin levels and have other beneficial effects.
For others, it may be unnecessary to follow such a strict dietary ideology. You can take the good foods from the Paleo approach – as well as incorporate other good diets such as the Mediterranean -- reduce carbohydrates as in the Keto diet and create a nutrition plan and diet that is enjoyable and works for you and is healthy for your particular body. Schedule a nutritional consultation to discuss what diet and supplements are necessary for you to optimize your health
Remember, it’s the ability to follow a healthy lifestyle consistently over time that provides the best results. It can be tough to decide what is the best eating style and what supplements for your particular body and health are required. For more information and to schedule a free consultation, call 480-325-6977. The doctors at Foresight Chiropractic, the Valley’s premier Wellness and Sports Therapy Center, are Board Certified Atlas Orthogonal upper cervical specialists and Advanced Muscle Integration Technique practitioners serving families and professional athletes for over 20 years. You don’t have to be sick to get healthy and perform your best. Call today and take control of your health!
