Healthy Food Trades, Continued!

Healthy Food Trades, continued!

In a previous post, I talked about healthy food trades you can make to gently alter your diet to a more healthy version of itself. Let's continue that discussion with another upgrade I encourage you to make!

4. Trade your soft drinks for a natural spritzer!

Soft drinks are amazingly bad for you. I have heard amazing success stories of clients and friends losing 20 or 30 pounds in a year JUST from eliminating soft drinks! And don't think diet pop is any better - the artificial sweeteners have been shown in studies to cause weight GAIN! Purdue University's Ingestive Behavior Research Center reported that zero-calorie saccharin caused rats to eat more, gain more weight and store more fat than rats fed sugar. Artificial sweeteners are also linked to side-effects like joint pain and depression, as well as potentially permanent brain cell damage. In addition, the fizziness you love leaches calcium from your bones and creates an acidic environment in the body, which creates an ideal environment for inflammation and disease.

So for the sake of your waistband and your overall health, without sacrificing taste, buy naturally carbonated mineral water and add a little raw honey and lemon juice. It is refreshing, and very healthy. The mineral water adds trace minerals to your diet that help maintain a healthy body, the lemon is detoxifying and alkalizing (the opposite of acidic), and the honey contains enzymes and minerals that promote a healthy immune and digestive system (just don't overdo the honey - it is still a sugar!)

Add this simple drink upgrade to the suggestions I already made, and you are well on your way to a healthy diet!