There is so much confusion about exactly what a healthy diet really is these days. Eat carbs or avoid them? What about meat? There are so many fad diets available that it could even confuse a nutritionist. Today let's look at a healthy diet in general without considering the thought of weight loss. A healthy diet will lead to weight loss and optimum health.

In the earliest years of school we all learned about the food pyramids - the most basic steps of healthy eating. Somewhere along the way, we forgot about that pyramid because we embarked upon soda, potato chips, greasy burgers, pizza, and French fries. Now in order to maintain a healthy diet we must go back to the pyramid again.

When the food pyramid is followed and if eaten in the right amounts, it will form the basics of a healthy diet. When you observe the pyramid, at the base where it is wider are the foods that should be eaten most often. The foods at the top of the pyramid where it is much narrower will be eaten less. See, that wasn't so hard now, was it?

The basic concept of the food pyramid is to eat plenty of fruits, whole grains, and vegetables. Limit the amount of saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol that you eat. Limit salt and sweets, try to avoid alcohol, limit the amount of calories that you consume by watching your portion sizes, and exercise daily. The food pyramid categorizes food so that you have an easier time making wise food choices. Since there is no one food item that can give you all of the nutrition that you need, you do have to eat a variety in order to make sure that you get all of the necessary nutrients.

Continuing to follow the food pyramid you should eat at least three servings of fruit per day, four servings of vegetables or more, four to eight servings of carbohydrates per day, protein and dairy should consist of three to seven servings. Limit fats to three to five servings per day, and no more than 75 calories per day of sweets.

You should eat a variety of fruits and vegetables each day and consume one thing from each food group so that you get your carbs, fruits, vegetables, protein, dairy, and fats. The key though is to consume the most vegetables and fruits and stay away from the fats as much as possible. This will be the beginning of a healthy and nutritious diet that will provide you with long term optimal health.