Many have heard about the healthy eating system. Social networks are full of advice on how to better organize your daily diet, lose weight, and kickstart your metabolism. But are these recommendations suitable for everyone, given the many nuances related to health and bodily functions? Experts have shared insights with TASS on understanding these issues and choosing a truly healthy diet tailored to individual needs.
Healthy Diet
What Is Proper Nutrition?
Many people think that healthy eating consists of tasteless, dietary, unsalted, boiled food. However, Olga Grigoryan, a leading researcher and nutritionist at the Nutrition Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, explained that in the 1960s, Academician Alexei Pokrovsky (then director of the same institute) clearly formulated that healthy eating is nutrition that concerns a specific person and provides all the necessary substances for life and health in line with their enzyme systems. For example, a person with lactase deficiency cannot break down milk sugar. Does this mean milk is a bad product? No, milk is beneficial with its healthy proteins and amino acid composition, but it is not suitable for everyone.
Dietitians vs. Nutritionists: What’s the Difference?
“There are products that support health, and there are nutritional changes—diets—that imply therapeutic directions,” explained Olga Grigoryan.
A diet is created by a nutritionist, who first assesses a person’s health problems, such as chronic diseases or early indicators like high sugar levels, high blood pressure, or gastrointestinal issues. The nutritionist corrects the body’s malfunctions through diet.
Nutritionists, on the other hand, study the effects of nutrients on the body and develop nutritional recommendations. They work with healthy individuals who do not require medical intervention and do not prescribe treatment, including restrictive diets. Nutritionists often rely on the amount of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates (FPCC) and calorie counting.
Olga Grigoryan shared a formula for a balanced diet for those without serious health problems: “For a daily diet, take 1 g of protein per 1 kg of normal weight. Then calculate 0.8 g of fat and 3.2 g of carbohydrates per 1 g of protein. The daily protein intake should consist of 2/3 animal protein and 1/3 plant protein. Carbohydrates can be combined in a 50/50 ratio, or ideally, 2/3 complex carbohydrates and 1/3 simple carbohydrates.” Calculate the individual’s needs based on their normal weight: height in centimeters minus 100.
Individual Approach to Weight Loss
Before losing weight, ask yourself why you have extra pounds. Different reasons require different approaches. Consult a competent specialist to diagnose your body, determine your basal metabolic rate—how many calories you consume and spend daily—and identify the main triggers. “The doctor can compare everything and say: ‘You have a lot of insulin and cortisol—you eat to manage stress.’ Counting FPCC and calories is very individual,” Olga Grigoryan noted.
She shared an example: “We had joint research with the GDR. In the hospital, we reduced the daily diet to 600 kcal. Those people lost weight less effectively than those who received 1,200 kcal per day. I often advise my patients, when they haven’t lost weight after a month at the Nutrition Research Institute, to have a fasting day and eat boiled chicken without skin, salt, and bread—just chicken. The person loses weight because they loaded themselves with protein, gave themselves many calories, and their mitochondria in the cell woke up.”
The second factor to consider is physical activity. Residents of large cities rarely walk or exercise and do not burn as many calories as they consume. This leads to weight gain and several diseases, including early atherosclerosis, hypertension, fatty hepatosis, kidney dysfunction, and more.
Daily Tips for Maintaining Health
Olga Grigoryan offers some important daily tips for those monitoring their health and wanting to maintain it:
- It has been proven that sugar is more harmful than fats; it’s better to limit its consumption. However, you can eat lard, with a daily norm of 30 g (the size of a matchbox).
- Bread should be frozen and then dried in a toaster to lower its glycemic index, helping the body use glucose for mental and muscular work.
- Use soy sauce in moderation, as it contains a lot of salt and sodium gluconate—a powerful appetite stimulant. Salt retains water and increases “complex” weight.
- Basic foods are low in Omega-3 fatty acids, essential for mental activity, so it’s worth consuming them additionally. Fish oil is suitable for children.
- Include vegetable and green salads in your diet. They are filling and can be enhanced with hard-to-absorb grains like quinoa.
Proper Nutrition for Daily Life
If you are in good health but lack time to count calories and FPCC, follow these proven tips. Endocrinologist and nutritionist Alina Misharova from the Fomina Clinic network shared how to create a beneficial daily diet. “When we hear about healthy eating, we often imagine chicken breast with broccoli and buckwheat, but it’s not always the case,” Misharova explained.
She provided a list of criteria for healthy eating:
- Flexible and convenient system
- Inclusion of favorite products
- Protection from diseases
- Strength, energy, pleasure, and well-being
By following these methods, the body will receive all necessary macro- and micronutrients, leading to health and weight loss as a pleasant bonus.
Top 3 Methods of Healthy Eating
- Plate Method
This method helps maintain crucial habits for well-being, such as eating enough vegetables, fruits, and berries, whole grains, and protein. Use a plate with a diameter of 20-22 cm for women and 22-25 cm for men. Half the plate should be filled with vegetables, fruits, and berries. Divide the other half into ¼ slow carbohydrates (cereals, pasta, bakery products, potatoes, legumes) and ¼ protein products (meat, fish, chicken, cottage cheese, eggs, hard cheeses). About 10% of a serving comes from fatty foods (butter, sauce, confectionery, ultra-processed products).
For multi-component dishes like pilaf or dumplings, place them on one half of the plate and fill the other half with vegetables and fruits.
- Portion Method (Palm Method)
This method allows you to determine portion sizes using your palm, making it easy to follow healthy eating principles anywhere. The British Heart Association’s clinical guidelines on the palm method determine the daily requirement of food groups:
- Five servings (one serving = one fist) of fruits/berries and vegetables
- Three to four servings (one serving = one handful) of complex carbohydrates
- Two to three servings (one serving = a palm without fingers) of protein-rich foods
- Two to three servings (one serving = 150 ml) of dairy products
- One serving of cheese is two fingers
- Oils and sauces: one tablespoon per serving
This portion method complements the plate method and can be combined effectively.
- Mediterranean Style of Eating
Randomized controlled trials have noted the universality of the Mediterranean diet for most people, and its health benefits have been proven outside the Mediterranean region. Recognized as one of the best diets, it is based on plant foods (fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, whole grains), extra virgin olive oil, moderate dairy products, fish and seafood (high-value protein), and limited red meat, animal fats, and processed foods.
Each method provides enough fiber, energy, and satiety for three to five hours. Importantly, these eating styles help with weight control, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers.
It’s essential to stick to the method that suits you best. If you’re looking to improve your diet quality but don’t know how, try introducing one new habit each week. For example, eat one fruit every day or cook a new cereal. These small changes will bring results. You can also consult a nutritionist or endocrinologist for additional support.