Healthy Foods VS Unhealthy Foods

by Madhushree Ghosh
healthy food
  • What are healthy and unhealthy foods
  • What are the advantages of eating healthy foods
  • What are the disadvantages of unhealthy foods
  • Are healthy foods more expensive than unhealthy foods
  • Why people attract more towards unhealthy foods than healthy foods
  • A complete list of  healthy and unhealthy foods

Also Read:-Weight Loss with Ayurveda

Foods are one crucial part of our lives that not only fulfils our nutrient value but also raises the quality of living with their amazing taste. However, habitually, we make mistakes in this way of focusing on the quality of foods and most of the time carried away by their deliciousness. This habit often leads us towards the path of unhealthy foods and we meet some inevitable consequences of illness at times.

So, identifying the differences between healthy and unhealthy foods is more important here than quenching your hunger, isn’t it? Thus, here we come up with some important sides of healthy and unhealthy foods which will aid you to decide why or how you need to stay away from unhealthy foods and focus on healthy foods only to live a vigorous life. Let’s find it out from our below discussion-

What are Healthy and Unhealthy Foods?

food

Healthy foods are something that has more nutrient value than taste value. These types of foods are impeccably beneficial for our overall health and fitness with all types of the human body. Apart from providing essential nutrients, healthy foods keep the calorie intake in check and prevent you from gaining additional weight attentively. Generally, organic foods, natural foods, and whole foods are considered healthy foods.

On the other hand, unhealthy foods are something that tasted value is higher than the nutrition value. The calorie amount of these types of foods also high and often comes with either fatty or sugary contents. Sometimes they offer an excessive amount of protein that acts unhealthily in the human body. Usually, junk foods, processed foods, fried foods, foods with chemicals and etc. are considered as unhealthy foods.

What are the Advantages of Eating Healthy Foods?

Healthy foods provide us a number of health benefits and fortify our overall health expertly. Some possible advantages we can grab of healthy foods are as follows-

  • Reduce the risk of heart disease
  • Strengthen immune power
  • Maintain a healthy blood pressure level
  • Keep cholesterol level at bay
  • Keep you energetic
  • Fulfill your nutrient requirements
  • Help you to stay strong and fighting chronic diseases
  • Prevent you from being weak during dieting days
  • Diminish the possibilities of the type of diabetes
  • Strengthen bone health and teeth
  • Help to manage a healthy weight
  • Improve memory and fortify brain tissues
  • Help in weight loss
  • Reduce the possibilities of cancer
  • Diminish the probabilities of stroke
  • And delight your mood naturally as well.
Fiber rich foods

What are the Disadvantages of Unhealthy Foods?

Like healthy foods there are some clear and obvious disadvantages as well we can get from unhealthy food habits. Such as-

  • Cause serious memory problems
  • Minimize your appetite
  • Initiate obesity in our body
  • Cause sudden and excessive weight gain
  • Increase cancer risk
  • Hamper digestive tract and prevent indigestion
  • Provide problems in bowel movement
  • Cause several stomach issues like acidity, constipation, gas, etc.
  • Provide uncontrollable depression in your mind
  • Accelerate the risk of cardiac issues
  • Rise blood sugar level
  • Impair in the production of insulin level
  • Cause kidney damage
  • Increase the risk of liver damage
  • Provide negative effect on fertilization ability
  • Cause bone erosion
  • Initiate skin issues
  • And lead you towards an unhappy as well as unhealthy lifestyle eventually.

Are Healthy Foods more Expensive than Unhealthy Foods?

Also Read:-8 Best Weight Loss Home Remedies!

One of the common reasons for this attraction or tend of people towards unhealthy foods is the higher price of healthy foods. People often complain that affording healthy foods sometimes seems difficult, which often drives them towards unhealthy foods more willingly. Most of the healthy foods come from organic sources and in the whole form, which makes them a bit pricey than readymade or instant foods.

According to the research studies on the food habits of Harvard School, a proper healthy diet may cost more than $1.50 more per day than a plate of unhealthy foods. On the other hand, unhealthy foods come in package form with lots of cheap preservatives or flavors, which help them to stay at an affordable price easily.

Hence, people seem attracted to these unhealthy foods more noticeably than unhealthy foods due to the issue of expensiveness rather than other benefits.

Why Do People feel More Attract towards Unhealthy Foods than Healthy Foods?

Apart from being cheap and affordable, these unhealthy foods come with much more alluring qualities which make them more popular than any healthy foods. Some of these common reasons for their popularities are as follows-

  • Unhealthy foods are much tastier than healthy foods
  • They come with an instant-making quality, while healthy foods claim lots of labor to be made
  • Unhealthy foods offer us more verity with less price
  • Also, these unhealthy foods come with some chemicals which have addictive qualities
  • Unhealthy foods often make our experience of foods pleasurable than nutrient-dense healthy foods
  • And the harmful chemicals use in such unhealthy foods triggers the craving for such foods more deeply in our brain, which becomes stubborn overtimes.

So, according to the health experts, try to limit the intake of unhealthy foods in time, before you become addicted to them.

A Complete List of Healthy and Unhealthy Foods:

The best way to make yourself habituate for healthy foods is that planning and following a healthy meal plan consisting of lots of healthy foods on your list. To do so, you must recognize what are healthy foods and what are unhealthy foods. Let’s check these apparent lists in this regard-

Healthy Foods:

health
  • Complex carbohydrates like whole grain products, brown rice, quinoa, whole-wheat products, etc.
  • Healthy fats like olive oil, avocado, oily fish, chia seeds, nuts, etc.
  • Fresh fruits like any seasonal fruits which come with low-sugar content
  • Any fresh and frozen vegetables
  • Raw nuts and seeds like almond, pistachio, walnut, hazelnuts, flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, etc.
  • Lean protein like chicken, turkey, beans, lentils, ground beef, lean pork, tofu, etc.
  • Low-fat dairy products like milk, yogurt cheese, paneer, etc.
  • Healthy homemade drinks like homemade fruit juice, milkshakes, vegetable juice, black tea, sugar-free coffee, herbal tea, green tea, etc.

Unhealthy Foods:

  • Simple carbohydrates like white rice, white bread, white pasta, and any products made from refined white flour
  • Foods with Trans fats like hydrogenated oil, processed snacks, margarine, cake pastries, butter, soft cheese, vegetable oil, biscuits, etc.
  • Refined white sugar like corn syrup, aspartame, a product with artificial sweeteners, candy, chocolate, soda, and any baked goods with added sugar, etc.
  • Deep-fried vegetables, even at home
  • Processed snacks like package fried, tortillas, potato chips, crackers, pretzel, etc.
  • Processed meat like salami, hot dogs, bologna, bacon, fatty cuts of pork, fatty cuts of beef, venison, etc.
  • Flavored foods like yogurt, fructose, sweets, candies, muffins, cakes, confectionary items, etc. along with carbonated drinks.