Most of us are under the impression that consuming “forbidden food” once in a while is not harmful. However, this habit could cause you to consume that particular food in excessive amounts. We should not allow these food cravings to defeat our healthy eating practice. How to avoid this craving? Smart eating technique is the answer!
Consuming food according to our body’s needs, eating in moderation, eating smaller portions of food, and never classifying certain foods as “off-limits.”
This smart eating technique is very necessary to ensure we make the right choices for our health. We have some tips here which you would find very useful.
When Dining Out…
| Instead of … | Why not try … |
|---|---|
| Donuts | Small bagel |
| Double cheeseburgers | Grilled chicken sandwiches, sliced meat sandwiches or even a regular burger on a bun with lettuce, tomato and onion |
| Fried chicken | Grilled chicken and a side salad with healthy dressing eg. olive oil. |
| Fried chicken nuggets | Grilled chicken sandwich |
| French fries | Baked potato with side salad. |
When Cooking / Baking…
| When recipe calls for … | Use this instead … |
|---|---|
| Whole milk (1 cup) | 1 cup skim milk or low-fat milk, plus one tablespoon of liquid vegetable oil. |
| Heavy cream (1 cup) | 1 cup evaporated skim milk or 1/2 cup low-fat yogurt plus 1/2 cup plain low-fat unsalted cottage cheese. |
| Sour cream | Low-fat unsalted cottage cheese plus low-fat or fat-free yogurt; or just use fat-free sour cream. |
| Cream cheese | 4 tablespoons soft margarine blended with 1 cup dry, unsalted low-fat cottage cheese; add a small amount of skim milk if needed. |
| Butter (1 tablespoon) | 1 tablespoon soft margarine or 3/4 tablespoon liquid vegetable oil |
| Egg (1) | 2 egg whites; or choose a commercially made, cholesterol-free egg substitute (1/4 cup) |
| Unsweetened baking chocolate (1 ounce) | 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or soft margarine. |