Cooking Light

America is one of the fattest, if not the fattest, nation in the world. Americans have more health problems related to obesity like type-II diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure, than anywhere else in the world. Though a significant portion of our obesity problem is due to an overall lack of exercise in the country, the other half of the equation is that Americans do not eat healthily.

We eat out and eat fast food more than anywhere else in the world, which is evident when you take a drive down in any urban or suburban area. You’ll pass a scrolling assortment of fast food joints, Wendy’s, Mc Donald’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Mc Donald’s, KFC… all interspersed with regular sit-down restaurants. Some homes and condos are even being built without kitchens, once the epicenter of American family life. Other apartments make do with tiny kitchenettes which usually incorporate a bit of counter space, a small sink, a small refrigerator, and a microwave oven.

If you’re trying to lose weight one of the best things you can do for yourself is to cook at home instead of eating out at restaurants. Since you won’t be served such mammoth portions you won’t eat as much and what’s even better, you’ll be able to cut down on the amount of fats you eat by cooking light.

Cooking light doesn’t mean that you have to eat lettuce and broccoli for every meal. For the most part, cooking light means making a few small substitutions and paying attention to what exactly goes into your food. Switching from butter to low-cholesterol margarine is a good step, as is cooking meat and vegetables in non-stick pans in order to avoid cooking with oil. Fried foods, one of the staples of restaurant meals, should be completely eliminated from your menu if you’re cooking light. Roasting or baking chicken, potatoes, or vegetables can give you the same great flavor and texture of fried foods but without the huge amount of added fat that cooking in oil gives you.

Also, when you endeavor to start cooking light try cooking with as many vegetables as possible. Veggies give you great vitamins and minerals and are surprisingly filling, especially given their low levels of calories and fats. Cooking at home also helps you limit the amounts of salt in your diet since you’re in control of what goes into your food and what stays out.