One of the challenges that picky eaters are most likely to encounter when it comes to switching to a healthy lifestyle is finding the right kinds of organic ingredients for their meals. You might think that clean eating is already difficult enough especially when you’re used to eating processed foods or foods that are high in fat content but for picky eaters, the difficulty will increase two fold. Fortunately, health experts and dieticians have come up with some smart food swaps that even the pickiest eater will find useful. Here are some suggestions to get you started.
- Kale. Kale is considered as a superfood because it is packed with vitamins and minerals such as calcium, potassium, iron, fiber, phosphorus, and vitamin C just to name a few. But if your tastebuds are cringing from its taste, you can always swap kale with any other leafy greens out there like spinach, bok choy, collard greens, and mustard greens just to name a few.
- Chips. If your afternoons or midnight snacks are often composed of chips that are laden with salt, you will do much better to swap them with tortilla chips or baked potatoes because they are healthier compared to the former. Also, you can make your own chips or fries using sweet potatoes or regular potatoes so you will have more control on what ingredients to use.
- Mushrooms. Not everyone find mushrooms palatable and because of this, they are missing out on some serious nutrients that are often found in this ingredient. Fortunately, there are other options for you to take into consideration such as cauliflower, tofu, and egg plant. Aside from these food swaps, you can also consider eggs, which contain choline just like mushrooms, and avocados as well as bananas for potassium and other nutrients. Choline is important as it reduces inflammation, muscle movement, and improves sleep.
- Sugar. Our sweet tooth always get the upper hand when it comes to desserts and any sweet treat that we crave but did you know that artificial sweeteners can wreak havoc to our health? Not only will they increase your blood sugar levels to the roof, but they can also make acne breakout too. Instead of using processed sugar, choose natural options like agave, honey, or even raw cane sugar. For those who are cutting back on calories, you can use Sweet N Low or Splenda to sweeten your drink minus the calories.
- Asparagus. Asparagus packs a mean punch in terms of nutritional benefits but not everyone loves its taste. The good news is that you can swap it with some green beans which have the same nutritional contents as asparagus. Green beans contain iron, manganese, potassium, fiber, and riboflavin just to name a few.
These food swaps are just a few suggestions that you should look into if you want to start your healthy diet. There is always another option for your foods if you are a bit particular with your meals.
Sources: eatthegains.com
