With so many grocery store offerings, it can be difficult to identify foods that are high in nutrients. Nutritious options will help you meet your recommended dietary allowance without extra calories from fat or added sugars.
Nutritious foods contain essential vitamins, minerals, lean protein and healthy fats to support good health. When making your grocery list, prioritize nutrient-rich items.
Fruits
Nutrient-dense foods contain abundant vitamins and minerals while being low in calories, fat and sodium content. Examples of such powerhouse foods are fruits, vegetables, lean meats, legumes, nuts and seeds.
Foods containing few nutritious elements, known as empty calories, may increase your risk for chronic conditions like heart disease and diabetes. Avoid empty-calorie options like sweetened drinks and potato chips by switching up your diet with more nutrient-rich choices like whole grains, nuts and leafy greens.
Try creating a meal with these nutritious foods and see how well it goes over.
Vegetables
Vegetable-rich diets are essential to good health as they contain few calories while providing vital nutrients. Aim to consume at least five servings daily.
Vegetables include leaf and stalk vegetables such as kale, spinach, celery and bok choy; root vegetables (carrots, turnips and beets); tubers (sweet potatoes); bulb vegetables such as onions; many fruits such as tomatoes peppers and eggplants can also be considered vegetables when used in savory dishes.
Lean Meat
Once, health experts would warn people away from red meat; now, experts advocate that selecting lean cuts of beef as part of an ideal diet. Doing so can help limit saturated fat intake and decrease chronic disease risks.
Lean beef protein provides your body with all the essential amino acids it requires, plus minerals such as zinc and iron and B vitamins which support cell growth and immunity.
Dairy
Dairy products are an abundant source of essential nutrients, providing essential vitamins, minerals, proteins and fats for overall good health. Furthermore, dairy foods may play a significant role in controlling food intake by alleviating short-term hunger while simultaneously increasing overall satiation levels.
Consume nutrient-dense foods to meet your recommended dietary allowances and avoid extra calories. Fruits, vegetables, lean meats, whole grains, nuts and seeds as well as fatty fish all fall under this category of nutrition-rich food items.
Nuts
Nuts are delicious little packages of healthy fats, protein and fiber that contain important nutrients like alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and magnesium.
Nuts have long been part of the diet in most cultures for thousands of years. Recently, however, their consumption has seen a notable surge in Western countries due to their inclusion in healthy eating guidelines and media coverage of evidence linking their consumption with various health outcomes. Nuts include peanuts, walnuts, pistachios, almonds and chestnuts (Castanea sativa) among many others [1] while also featuring as ingredients in dairy alternative beverages like nut milks [2.
Seeds
Seeds add an irresistibly crunchy texture to many meals while providing essential nutrition like protein, fiber, heart-healthy fats and antioxidants. Plus, seeds provide important amounts of iron and manganese which may help prevent conditions like high cholesterol levels, high blood pressure and diabetes.
Seeds include nuts, legumes and grains such as chia and flax seeds – two good sources of Omega-3 fat ALA (alpha linolenic acid). Try pairing them with fruit as a tasty snack, or sprinkle a sprinkle them onto breakfast cereal or salad dishes for an ALA boost!
Whole Grains
Whole grains provide carbohydrates, multiple vitamins and minerals, dietary fiber and health-promoting phytochemicals such as lignans and plant sterols that may lower risk for heart disease. Multiple studies have confirmed this finding.
Health Professionals Follow-up Study data shows an association between high whole grain intake and total and coronary heart disease mortality and its reduction. Furthermore, Swedish women had lower colon cancer risks when eating more whole grains.
Seafood
Seafood offers high-quality protein to support weight management. Packed with vitamins and minerals like vitamin D, omega 3 fatty acids, selenium, and iron – seafood also offers a tasty leaner alternative to meat proteins.
Salmonids (wild and farmed), tuna species and small pelagics possessing high nutrient density scores rank the highest; these species provide excellent sources of n-3 fatty acids and vitamin D while crustaceans and whitefish tend to provide lower scores.
