In order to optimize your health, a good diet is essential but with all the fad diets around it can be difficult to know just what constitutes a “good” diet. Here, nutrition science comes to the rescue. Although some things remain controversial, numerous studies reinforce the following basic information.

A healthy diet requires items from the four basic food groups. In order to be effective, these items must occur in the proper proportion. The average person needs approximately 2000 to 2500 calories per day in order to maintain energy levels and weight.

Sometimes larger men need to consume more calories to maintain optimal energy levels, and petite women sometimes require less.

About 50% of these calories should be from carbohydrates, and 30% of them should come from healthy fats. The remaining 20% of caloric intake should come from protein.

Carbohydrates are the main source of compounds needed for energy. Simple sugars, such as glucose and fructose, are rapidly broken down in the intestine and absorbed. In fact, the progression of breaking down these sugars is so rapid that some of the processing starts the minute they hit your tongue. Complex carbohydrates occur in the form of starches, such as those found in potatoes, take longer but are also healthy in moderation.

Fats are chemically similar to carbohydrates and contain fatty acids that are essential to good health.

Proteins are lysed (split) to make amino acids, which are then recombined to form proteins. These proteins are used in muscle and in other structures and are essential to the body.

Meat is a valid and healthy source of protein for many people. Approximately 3 ounces per meal is generally the correct amount for an average sized person. A cup of pasta is a good source of carbohydrates. Two cups of leafy green vegetables supply fiber, minerals, and vitamins.

A balanced meal can be made up of a serving of meat or another protein source, a starchy carbohydrate such as pasta, rice, corn, or potatoes and fruit. Butter or margarine should be restricted, and cheese, sauces, and items that are high in sugar or fat should be limited. Although you could get the basics from a variety of sources, when considering weight control and a healthy balanced meal, it is important to know which sources are high in what.

Fat contains nine calories per gram. This is double that of other energy sources. In order to optimize health, you therefore need to keep high fat foods restricted to modest levels. This also helps control cholesterol levels.

All sources of carbohydrates have four calories per gram. Healthy sources also contain minerals, vitamins, and fiber required by your body. Examples of healthy carbohydrates include fruits (apples, pears, peaches), nuts (walnuts are lower in fat than peanuts or cashews), and grains for fiber and minerals.

Candy is bad for us when consumed in anything other than very modest proportions because it is designed to be high in fat and sugar, and doesn't contain effective levels of helpful nutrients.

Neither fat nor sugar are harmful in moderation. In fact, they are essential to good health. The problem arises when they are consumed in a form that contains an excessive proportion of either or both- enormous caloric consumption ensues and few other nutrients are ingested.

A single bar from a popular brand contains 63g, with 53g of sugar but only 2g of fiber. A cup of broccoli by contrast, has only 6g total, of which 2.5g are fiber, 1.5g are sugars. A cup of sweet corn has 31g total. Starch comprises 21g (complex carbohydrates), fiber comprises 3g.

Making a list of the items that you consume daily will show you the relative amounts of helpful nutrients that each item contains, as well as how many calories take in when you consume these items. Putting a little arithmetic into your eating plan will help you reduce the number that you may obsess over- your weight.

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