Eat Clean For The New Year – The Traveling Pharmacist
Fresh is always SO much better for us, though it's not always easy when traveling (as you know). But it's…
It’s a brand new year. A clean slate. Time to start a few new habits to live a healthier and more active life! We’re certainly getting on the bandwagon this year by trying to eat healthier foods and make time for exercise every day. The picture above was taken while we were house-sitting in New Zealand last year – this was one day’s take from the garden!
One thing we’re trying to do more as we travel is to EAT CLEAN. It’s a term you hear often, but what does eating clean really mean? It’s not about how often you wash your veggies, but about staying as close to nature as possible. Try to avoid processed foods from boxes or cans and instead pick lean proteins, fresh fruits and vegetables (organic if possible), and drink lots of water to flush your system. Sometimes this isn’t the easiest thing to do when you’re traveling, but a little preparation goes a long way to helping you stick to your goals.
Here are some specific fruits and vegetables to look for in the produce market for better health –
Skin Health – Look for bright colors to guide you. Sweet potatoes, carrots, kale, and butternut squash are all high in the powerful antioxidant beta carotene. Beta carotene helps shield the body from damaging free radicals that age our skin.
Heart Health – Red onions and red wine! Well, probably not at the same time…but, red onions contain an anti-clotting compound that can lower your risk of heart attack and stroke. Red wine contains the flavonoid called reservatrol to help bring increased levels of HDL or “good” cholesterol in the body.
Brain Boost – To help with memory…now where did I put my keys? Add an extra serving of beets to your plate. Beets help produce nitric oxide in the body, which open blood vessels in the brain. More blood to the brain is a good thing!
Mood Enhancers – To start your day off on the right foot, grab a banana. High in magnesium to raise your spirits and potassium to provide sustained energy, this fruit is a natural antidepressant. Also bananas are packed with vitamin B6, which is a necessary for making the body’s level of neurotransmitters, like serotonin, higher. So much goodness in a portable package.
Food is our fuel and food can be what brings us together. However, making good choices about what we eat is a struggle for us when we travel. Hopefully together we can lend encouragement to others who may be going through the same dilemma – should I have the apple pie or would I be just as happy with an apple? We know what’s best for us, but sometimes making the right decision is hard.
How do you manage to eat healthy on the road?
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Happy, Healthy Travels!
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This helpful…and a small enough serving of information that I’ll actually be able to remember it. Are all dark leafy greens particularly good for skin?
Yes, Renee, all greens are good for the skin. And for antioxidant levels, look for the colors – dark greens, deep purples, and bright reds all contain higher levels of the good stuff for our bodies! Thanks for commenting!
I eat very much what you have in that lovely mix of freshly picked veggies. I also eat what is in season, I personally believe that is what is meant to occur. Eating fresh, as fresh as we can get these days, and foods in season in the environment you live in. I would never eat a cold salad in the winter, especially not tomatoes. I don’t really know why but I can’t do it. I have also found I eat less meat, more fish and lentils when I am travelling. I have accepted the fact I am gluten and lactose intolerant and cannot believe why I treated myself so badly for so long.
I apparently was intolerant to my mum’s milk so was on goat’s milk which she collected early in the morning from the railway station in my village in Nederland 61 years ago. I thrived after that, but didn’t hear this fact until I was much older. And now I don’t have asthma anymore??
Fresh is always SO much better for us, though it’s not always easy when traveling (as you know). But it’s fun exploring new grocery markets in places that are very different from what we find at home – that’s one of the first things I go do when arriving somewhere new 🙂