10 Things You Can Do to Improve Your Nutrition

Habits, we all know, are hard to alter. Here are ten oh-so-simple changes you can make to better your nutrition. Your body will thank you if you try even half of them. (Note: This is for adults only. The nutritional needs of babies and children differ.)

Eat a healthy, low-fat breakfast each morning. Focus on whole grains, fruit and low-fat dairy products.
Aim for at least six servings of grains each day, at least three of which should be whole grains. Whole wheat bread, oatmeal, brown rice, whole rolled oats, popcorn, whole grain cereals and whole grain corn are good examples of grains to include in a healthy diet.
Go to your grocery store and purchase one fruit that you’ve never tasted before. If you don’t know what it is, ask the manager of the department. If you don’t know how to prepare it, ask that too.
While at the grocery store, select one vegetable that you haven’t had in one year. When you arrive home, consult your favorite cookbook for a new recipe using this ingredient. Better yet, wash it and eat it fresh and raw, or parboil it for just a minute and then plunge into ice water.
Consume one more vegetarian meal than you did last week.
Purchase a vegetarian cookbook.
Try something with soybeans, soybean curd (tofu) or soymilk. For the weak of heart, simply experiment with substituting soymilk or meatless crumbles, which resemble ground beef, in a favorite recipe.
Replace one high-fat, high-calorie dessert with fruit or low-fat frozen yogurt.
Replace your whole milk with 2% milk. Next week, replace your 2% with 1%. The week following, replace your 1% with skim milk.
Drink plenty of water every day.