How does starchy food contribute to a healthy diet?
A healthy diet is one which includes the right proportion of starchy foods. Starchy foods form an important part of a person’s diet. If your diet has to be healthy, it must include starchy foods such as bread, cereals, rice, pasta and potatoes. According to dieticians, about one third of the food we eat must consist of starchy foods. Starchy foods are a good source of energy and provide a range of nutrients for the body. The contain fiber, calcium, iron and B vitamins all of which are required to maintain a healthy body. Most often people think that eating starchy food is fattening, but the reality is that they contain less than half the calories of fat. What’s important to note is that when we cook starchy foods we must use minimum oil as this is the cause for increase in calorie content, during starchy food intake. There are many source of starchy food which can be included in your daily food intake. All sorts of bread including whole meal, brown, chapattis, bagels, roti and tortillas are a good source of starch. You will find that potatoes, plantain, yam and sweet potato to be a source of starch. Including wholegrain breakfast cereals, lentils, peas in your diet will give you the essential nutrients you require from starchy foods. Foods like maize, cornmeal once again include starch. If you cut out starchy food then you will be missing out on a whole range of nutrients which are essential or your body. Starchy foods such as wholegrain, and brown bread provides energy to the body. It contains B vitamins, vitamin E, fiber and a wide range of minerals. White bread contains a range of vitamins and minerals, but it has less fiber than wholegrain or brown bread. There are people who avoid bread because they think it is fattening or because they feel they are allergic to wheat. In such cases it is best to consult a dietician to find how to include them in your diet because excluding from your diet is not health. Going in for low-carbohydrate diet is not good as it tends to contain more fat and including more of fat in your diet poses a risk of developing coronary heart disease. Understanding the importance of starchy foods and including them in the right proportion during food intake is vital for a healthy diet.
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