Looking for the ultimate diet in 2023? Keep it real, advises Kelly Hyland.

A New Year often brings about that ‘new me’ attitude. The most popular New Year resolutions? You guessed it—diet and exercise. And why wouldn’t you want to follow the latest fad diet? The industry gets a 10/10 for their marketing. They have the slogans, the before and after photos, celebrity promotions, and often fast results. However, many dieters soon fall back to their old habits—and some may even see a gain in weight.

Well, there is some good news for those not wanting to get sucked into another diet this year. A review paper aimed at answering the million-dollar question of what diet is best for health compared several popular diets, including: low carbohydrate, low fat, low glycemic, Mediterranean, mixed-balance, paleo and vegan diets. The verdict please…

There is no winner when it comes to following a strict eating regime. However, there are obvious dietary patterns that clearly benefit our health—patterns you are all likely to agree on, no matter what ‘diet camp’ you may sit in.

These patterns include eating real food. For example, nuts instead of a nut bar, potatoes instead of potato chips. And choosing food that is mostly plant based. The emphasis here is mostly plant based. For example, aiming for a plate that is half full with colourful vegetables, quarter protein, and quarter carbohydrate shifts the focus to be more plant-based, without completely giving up the animal foods you may love.

At the end of the day, no one wants to follow a strict set of eating rules. If health is your focus for 2023, ditch the fad diets and opt for some realistic, daily habits that you can see yourself sticking to. Very simply, from the words of US author and journalist Michael Pollan: “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Kelly Hyland (NZRD) is the General Manager for Alex Hyland Plumbing Ltd. She has a Masters in Dietetics, a Graduate Diploma in Teaching, and is passionate about ensuring a healthy working environment in the trade industry. Kelly worked as a registered dietitian and as a science teacher before buying the plumbing business with her husband Alex.