Maintain balanced diet with veggies, healthy drinks from FairPrice

When it comes to maintaining a balanced diet, the importance of vegetables cannot be overstated.

Whole vegetables are a crucial part of our meals as they provide numerous vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre.

Fibre is made of cellulose, a substance found in plant cells that the human body cannot completely digest.

This may not sound like a good thing, but it is actually one key reason why fibre is an important part of our diets.

Fibre that is insoluble in water adds bulk to our stool, which alleviates discomfort associated with constipation and diarrhoea.

Meanwhile, fibre that is soluble in water helps to slow down the rate of digestion, preventing spikes in our blood sugar levels and allowing our bodies to better absorb nutrients from digested food.

For weight watchers, the fact that fibre will not be completely broken down and absorbed by our digestive system also means that eating lots of vegetables can fill you up with fewer calories.

Different vegetables are also rich in different minerals, vitamins and antioxidants.

However, some of these nutrients may not be able to withstand high levels of heat.

It is thus advisable to eat vegetables raw or lightly cooked to reap maximum nutritional benefits from them.

Some people may think that the only way to incorporate raw vegetables into our diet is to have salads for meals.

But there are other ways to slip them into our diet.

For instance, lettuce and chopped tomatoes are often part of burgers and wraps.

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VITAMINS

Apart from adding texture and taste, lettuce provides vitamins A and K, while tomatoes contain a wide range of minerals and vitamins, on top of a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, which has been linked to reduced risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease.

As a healthy substitute for processed tidbits, you could also try slicing fresh carrots into sticks and snack on them throughout the day.

This will provide you with a healthy dose of beta carotene, vitamin K1, potassium and fibre.

If you are keen to try out any of these ideas, turn to Pasar Organic Cherry Tomato, Fresh Iceberg Lettuce or Taiwan Carrots from FairPrice.

While excessive heat could leech away their nutritional content, lightly cooked vegetables are still full of benefits.

In local cuisine, veggies are often stir-fried.

At FairPrice, you can get all the ingredients you need for a healthy and delicious stir-fry.

These include Pasar Soya Bean Sprouts, which are high in protein and folic acid, as well as Pasar Swiss Brown Mushrooms, which are an excellent source of vitamins B3 and B7 as well as selenium.

To add some spice to your dish, opt for ginger and garlic instead of salt or seasoning powder, which sometimes contains excessive sodium.

Drinks you can enjoy guilt-free

Keeping yourself hydrated is an important part of maintaining overall health.

However, many off-the-shelf drinks contain high levels of sugar, artificial flavouring and artificial colouring, which may end up causing more harm than good.

Life sets itself apart from the rest by offering a wide range of healthy and refreshing beverages that you can enjoy guilt-free.

Its Asian Drinks range offers five flavours that are brewed with traditional recipes that contain no preservatives or artificial colouring.

The Herbal Tea variant is a low-sugar option for those who enjoy their drinks less sweet.

It is made with 100 per cent natural ingredients, alongside the Chrysanthemum Tea With Wolfberries and Red Date Tea.

The Red Sugar Cane & Water Chestnut Drink is not made from concentrate and is an all-time favourite thirst-quencher, while the Rock Sugar Starfruit Juice Drink contains vitamin C and is perfect for the hot weather in Singapore.

The 480ml drinks, packed and produced in Taiwan and halal-certified, are best served chilled.

Life also boasts a range of ready-to-drink Japanese teas that are all authentically sourced, packed and produced in Japan.

Packed in 1 litre bottles, they are good for sharing. Choose from four flavours: Japanese Green Tea, Jasmine Green Tea, Lemon Tea and Oolong Tea.

The Oolong Tea and Japanese Green Tea are both sugarless options, and the latter is made with tea leaves from Kagoshima prefecture.

For more zest, opt for the Lemon Tea, which has reduced sugar and is made with tea leaves from Sri Lanka.

Finally, proudly made in Singapore is Life's Alkaline Water, sold in 510ml bottles.

Using nano-artesian technology, which mimics the artesian pressure of an underground aquifer through a multi-stage water refining process, this water is specially treated to attain a pH level of 8.5, helping to balance the level of acidity in our body.

Life beverages are available at all FairPrice stores, Cheers and Warehouse Club.