Mindful eating: Crafting a healthy meal plan

Planning a healthy meal is crucial for maintaining a balanced diet and promoting overall well-being. Planning allows a parent to ensure that the child’s meals contain a variety of essential nutrients, including carbohydrates, proteins, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. A well-balanced meal provides the necessary fuel and building blocks for the body to function optimally.

Properly planned meals can provide a steady supply of energy throughout the day for the child especially school-goers. By including complex carbohydrates, lean proteins, and healthy fats, you can prevent energy crashes and maintain stable blood sugar levels. This leads to increased productivity, focus, and overall vitality.

A well-designed meal plan also emphasises that whole, unprocessed foods can lower the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes. Including plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins provides important antioxidants, fiber, and other beneficial compounds that support overall health.

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“Avoid eating dishes which use more fat, sugar, salt, and above all processed cheese. A good option is to go in for shared orders in order to reduce the portion size”

–Dr Monika Anand, Head, Department of Home Science at Apeejay College of Fine Arts in Jalandhar

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Dr Monika Anand, Head, Department of Home Science at Apeejay College of Fine Arts in Jalandhar said that today, social media platforms are flooded with many nutritionists and health experts sharing tips on wise selection of foods for optimum nutrition and a balanced diet. “Wholesome nutrition has been much talked about among all age groups. A balanced meal needs to be planned within the sociocultural, economic and personal framework of an individual. Here, meal planning comes in handy which can be understood as a practical and useful exercise of planning acceptable and adequate meals for all members of the family,” Dr Anand said.

Remember, meal planning is not just an exercise of selecting the right kind of food to meet the nutrient needs but it also emphasises on planning and preparation of attractive and enjoyable meals for everyone.

“One needs to understand that meal planning is both an art and science; an art in the skillful blending of colour, texture and flavour for improved palatability and a science in the wise choice of food for optimum nutrition and digestion,” Dr Anand opined.

One also needs to understand that meal planning is based on few principles which can be enumerated as — Nutritional adequacy, Acceptability, Balance, Variety, Economy, Individual likes and dislikes, Suitability to age, gender, occupation, season and health condition, Satiety value, Easy availability, Regional and Cultural constraints, Aesthetics and meal appeal, Meal patterns of the family and practical considerations.

“Meal planning requires one’s creativity and knowledge for it to be fruitful. Economic consideration is an important principle of meal planning as well,” Dr Anand said and shared a few tips that can help a parent in planning budget-friendly meals without compromising on nutrition.

How to plan healthy meals?

1. Include more foods which are locally grown and seasonally available.

2. Knowledge of methods to enhance the nutritive value of common foods which include supplementation, sprouting, fermentation, malting, and roasting.

3. Replace a single cereal with mixed cereals and easily available millets.

4. Knowledge of healthy and cheap alternatives of commonly used ingredients. For example, hung curd can be a good alternative to mayonnaise.

5. Avoid food wastage by appropriate and wise use of leftover food items in a planned manner.

 Student life is very active as it involves a lot of physical activities. This necessitates a greater requirement of nutrients, Dr Anand said. The body demands more calories and proteins during adolescence. Boys require an average of 2,800 calories while girls need an average of 2,200 calories per day.

The Indian Council of Medical Research has recommended portion sizes for all age groups. “But to be concise and simple, the diets of young girls and boys must include sufficient amounts of foods from all the five food groups. Missing on anyone food group or over consumption of the other will do no good. The amount of food consumed must provide satiety value for at least three hours and keep the young ones active and energetic throughout the day. Also, food cravings and love for eating out is common among youngsters. However, they must learn to make healthier food choices to deal with their food cravings,” Dr Anand advised.

Make the right choice

·  Check out the menu to order for dishes which incorporate more fruits and vegetables and less packaged and processed foods. Salads, falafel, and hummus can be a good choice.

· Too many sauces and seasonings add to the salt and sugar content of your favourite food. It’s not mandatory to always pamper your taste buds. Be thoughtful.

· Choose smoothies, lemonade and mojitos over caffeinated drinks, thick shakes and sweetened beverages.

· Avoid eating dishes which use more fat, sugar, salt, and above all processed cheese.

· A good option is to go in for shared orders in order to reduce the portion size.

·  Try to include more complex carbohydrates. Food items made up of whole grains would be a better choice.

· Though limiting the consumption of junk food is advisable, still moderation is the key. Healthier alternatives like wheat flour breads are a better choice but not the best.

· Keep in mind home cooked hygienic food cannot be compromised. So we need to limit our eating out cravings to the minimum.

· Choose optimally and sustainably.

Healthy meal planning is of utmost importance

Weight Management: Meal planning plays a significant role in weight management. By pre-planning meals and portion sizes, individuals can control their calorie intake and make healthier food choices.

Energy and Productivity: Proper nutrition is essential for maintaining energy levels and enhancing productivity. By planning nutritious meals, individuals can provide their bodies with the necessary fuel to sustain energy throughout the day.

Cost Savings: By cooking meals at home and purchasing ingredients in bulk, individuals can save money compared to eating out or relying on convenience foods.

Reduced Stress: Meal planning helps alleviate stress associated with deciding what to eat and scrambling for meal options at the last minute. This promotes a sense of control, reduces stress levels, and allows individuals to focus on other priorities.