Building blocks: Men’s health

Let’s talk about the essentials for a healthy lifestyle for men.

It’s not always easy to maintain a healthy diet. Read our blog here on “In the bin: Foods all men should avoid”.

There are specific foods that assist men’s health in general, but also help reduce the risk of cancer and heart disease, whilst boosting overall energy.

Here are the basic rules to ensure general on-going health and wellness:

1. Eat a variety of fruit and vegetables, aim to consume five or more servings a day. It’s best to avoid food and vegetables cooked in fat, including friend products.

2. Fiber is needed in your diet to lower your blood cholesterol and it will also make you feel fuller for longer. Select whole grain over refined whole flour. If you are trying to watch your weight, you will need to limit your overall intake of starches.

3. Always pick lean meats, with little to no visible fat. Remove the skin from chicken and other poultry. Fish is also a great source of protein to add to your diet, but avoid the breaded and fried kind.
Keeping track of calories is a great way to stay healthy and monitor the amount of energy you need to burn daily. Here is a breakdown of daily calorie intake for varying age brackets:

Men between 19 to 30
Somewhat inactive: 2,400
Somewhat active: 2,600
Very active: 3,000

Men between 31 to 50
Somewhat inactive: 2,200
Somewhat active: 2,400
Very active: 2,800

Men between 41 and over
Somewhat inactive: 2,000
Somewhat active: 2,200
Very active: 2,400