Baked Goods are the epitome of temptation. People believe that you can’t have baked goods and a healthy lifestyle, this is a misconception. Research from a variety of journals such as Public Health Nutrition and Health Education Research clears up this misunderstanding.
What are Baked Goods?
Baked goods can range from bread, cakes, cookies, brioche, crackers and more. The recipes used in baking tend to be higher in carbohydrates and sugars, which can worry anyone trying to accomplish a healthy diet.
What is a Healthy Diet?
Here is where the misconception lives, as the definition changes from person to person. It brings in different terms like ‘balanced diet’ or ‘clean eating’ into the mix, which can be misleading. So what actually is a healthy diet? A healthy diet is when the nutritional levels of an individual are maintained at the right amounts. There are many different nutrients including fat, carbohydrates and sodium. We all have our own personal levels of nutrition due to different ages, sizes, health and more. The tricky part is knowing what to consume to fulfil these goals.
Good vs Bad
Baked goods are considered ‘bad’ due to usually being high in certain nutrition levels. Well this is in fact not entirely true! Yes, that triple chocolate gâteau is going to be unhealthy and shouldn’t be eaten every day; but there are both ‘good’ and ‘bad’ baked goods out there that an individual can enjoy. For example, there are baked goods that are free from preservatives, artificial colours and flavours. To identify goods such as these, the person can either apply an observation, addition or substitution technique.
To begin with, a person just has to observe the food, if it is too high in specific nutrients perhaps it is more of a treat rather than an everyday essential. While if it is at a decent level of nutrition for the person’s desired goals, then there is no harm in trying a food for a longer time.
Also, depending on the product, perhaps it can be paired with a healthier ingredient, such as fruit or vegetables for a savoury taste. It is good to be creative with food. For example, there are different brioche products that can be partnered with savoury items, such as chicken, lettuce and tomato, thus potentially creating lunch instead of dessert.
Next, looking at homemade baking, there are healthier ingredients that substitute some of the heavier ingredients. For example, an avocado can replace large sums of chocolate used in a chocolate cake; or instead of having cream and jam on your croissant, salmon and hummus can replace it. There’s an infinite amount of options to try when making your own baked goods, discovering how to have those delicious products in your healthy lifestyle can really boost you up. But how?
How can having Baked Goods help?
Have you ever had a craving? Or grazed the fridge? Studies show that healthy eating can affect a person’s behaviour, physical and spiritual well-being. So basically, eating doesn’t just feed your body but your mind as well. Here are the three main ways how.
Firstly, there are times when emotions are high, and sometimes they create a craving. By satisfying this craving, you may have changed a bad emotion to a good, and tamed the craving before it got worse. Sometimes, we just need a treat to brighten us mentally and emotionally.
Secondly, did you know that if you are eating the same foods to maintain that balanced diet, adding that baked good can increase your metabolism? By introducing a new type of food, your body gets pulled out of its norms; and stopped from plateauing which would have slowed down your metabolism.
Lastly, having baked goods from time to time can better the relationship an individual has with food. Saying that a food is forbidden actually makes you want it more, this can cause problems such as binge eating and eating disorders. So have that baked good, feed your mind and body.
The idea that healthy living means you must not have baked goods at all seems excessive and unreasonable. It is, in fact, unhealthy to entirely cut out products that generally give people joy and satisfaction. This does not mean that people can eat lots of baked goods everyday; this just means that whilst still maintaining those nutrients that people need, if every once in a while you can alternate and substitute those treats for something, like for your lunch time meal, then it gives better results for your physical, mental and emotional well-being.
Brioche Pasquier is a French family bakery since 1936, specialising in traditional French bakery products.
Find out more about healthy eating with Celebrity Angels
