Food diary

The importance of a daily food diary

Ever wondered if what you eat truly affects how you feel day-to-day? It's something many of us only start to deeply consider as we get older, but the truth is, our diet plays a starring role in our well-being at any age. Maybe you've noticed certain foods leave you feeling a bit off – perhaps it's a sensitivity to dairy or a reaction to nuts. While it's easy to get caught up in advice about prepackaged meals for control, the real power comes from understanding your body and what nourishes you best. Think of a food diary as your personal health detective; it can be an incredible tool to help you sidestep those nagging discomforts and even save you unnecessary trips to the doctor.

Revealing dietary weaknesses

Even if you don't have serious health conditions, keeping a food diary can reveal dietary weaknesses. For example, if you love peanut butter sandwiches but they upset your stomach every time, your body might be telling you it needs protein. However, the peanuts may not agree with you. Tracking your protein or carbohydrate intake daily is important, and having a good system for your food diary is crucial for success. Some people use a small notebook they carry around, but many end up neglecting it.

How to create your own daily food diary

If you want your own daily food diary, create it in a journal format on an online diary site. Include columns for date and time, food item and amount, and notes. Snacks count too. Often, we eat without thinking and wonder why the pounds pile on. Here's how to keep a useful daily food diary:

1. Be honest with yourself
   The most important thing when using a daily food diary is to be honest with yourself. It itemizes everything you eat, allowing you to see where you may be overeating or undereating.
2. Monitor calories and nutrition
   Keep an eye on calories and nutrition. Both good and poor eating habits will become clear.
3. Track your habits and goals
   Writing down what you consume shows your daily and weekly intake in a snapshot. Research shows that people who kept food records lost twice as much weight as people who didn't track what they ate. Food tracking can help you identify your healthy habits, such as choosing nutritious snacks, and habits that need improving, such as drinking too many sugary drinks.
4. Set and review your health goals
   Think about your health goals. Lose weight? Cut back on sodium? Reduce your cholesterol or blood pressure? Write down your goals. This will keep you stay focused on why you are tracking what you consume.
5. Choose your tracking method
   Write down what you eat and drink on paper, keep notes on your computer or digital device, or use a food tracking website or app.
6. Track details
   Track what you ate, the times you ate and portion sizes. Add notes about what you were doing while you were eating. Working? Watching TV? Also include how you were feeling at the time. Hungry? Stressed?
7. Include specific nutrients
   Include the amount of specific nutrients, such as calories, sodium, saturated fat and/or fiber, depending on your health goals.
8. Review and analyze
   At the end of each week, review and analyze your food diary. Are you meeting your goal? Do you see any patterns or triggers that are barriers? For example, maybe you notice you crave a snack in the afternoons and head for the vending machine. Now that you have identified this as an unhealthy pattern, you can think of ways to combat it. For instance, you can pack healthy snacks at home, such as unsweetened nuts or unsweetened dried fruit, and leave them in your desk. Or bring portable fruit, such as grapes, an apple or a banana, with your lunch. By doing this day after day, you'll create a new, healthy habit.
9. Overcome obstacles
   Once you identify the obstacles, you can focus on ways to overcome them. But start small. You can't tackle them all at once.

Benefits of tracking your food intake

Tracking in your daily food diary can help pinpoint allergies, fat weaknesses, or cravings that affect your health today and tomorrow. The diary may reveal where you're going wrong if you've been feeling unwell without knowing why.

Statistic on the effectiveness of food diaries

According to a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine¹, people who keep a daily food diary lose twice as much weight as those who do not. This highlights the significant impact that consistent tracking can have on your health and weight management goals.