Do you want to adopt a healthy diet but aren't sure where to start? As you consider the parade of healthy diets in magazines and cookbooks, make sure to look for one that:

  • Includes a variety of foods from the major food groups: fruits; vegetables; whole grains; low-fat dairy products and lean protein, including beans and other legumes, nuts and seeds; and healthy fats
  • Provides guidelines for how much food to choose from each group
  • Includes foods you can find in your local grocery store — rather than specialty or gourmet store items
  • Fits your tastes, lifestyle and budget

Also talk with your doctor about your health risks. For example, your doctor may recommend that you reduce the salt in your diet if you have high blood pressure.

From Mayo Clinic to your inbox

Sign up for free, and stay up to date on research advancements, health tips and current health topics, like COVID-19, plus expertise on managing health. Click here for an email preview.

To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, and understand which information is beneficial, we may combine your email and website usage information with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, this could include protected health information. If we combine this information with your protected health information, we will treat all of that information as protected health information and will only use or disclose that information as set forth in our notice of privacy practices. You may opt-out of email communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the e-mail.

Nov. 19, 2021

See also

  1. Alcohol use
  2. Alkaline water
  3. Artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes
  4. Autism spectrum disorder and digestive symptoms
  5. Bad food habits at work? Get back on track in 5 steps
  6. Breastfeeding nutrition: Tips for moms
  7. Butter vs. margarine
  8. Caffeine content
  9. Caffeine: How much is too much?
  10. Is caffeine dehydrating?
  11. Calcium
  12. Timing calcium supplements
  13. Calorie calculator
  14. COVID-19 and vitamin D
  15. Can vitamins help prevent a heart attack?
  16. Can whole-grain foods lower blood pressure?
  17. Can zinc supplements help treat hidradenitis suppurativa?
  18. Carbohydrates
  19. Chart of high-fiber foods
  20. Cholesterol: Top foods to improve your numbers
  21. Clear liquid diet
  22. Coconut water: Is it super hydrating?
  23. Coffee and health
  24. Cuts of beef
  25. DASH diet
  26. DASH diet
  27. DASH diet: Recommended servings
  28. Sample DASH menus
  29. DASH diet: Shopping and cooking tips
  30. Diet soda: How much is too much?
  31. Dietary fats
  32. Dietary fiber
  33. Diverticulitis attack triggers
  34. Diverticulitis diet
  35. Vitamin C and mood
  36. Prickly pear cactus
  37. Does soy really affect breast cancer risk?
  38. Don't get tricked by these 3 heart-health myths
  39. Eggs and cholesterol
  40. Enlarged prostate: Does diet play a role?
  41. Fast food: Tips for choosing healthier options
  42. Fasting diet: Can it improve my heart health?
  43. Fiber supplements
  44. Ground flaxseed
  45. Food safety
  46. Foodborne illness
  47. Gluten sensitivity and psoriasis: What's the connection?
  48. Gluten-free diet
  49. Gout diet: What's allowed, what's not
  50. Grass-fed beef
  51. Slide show: Heart-healthy eating after acute coronary syndrome
  52. Heartburn medicines and B-12 deficiency
  53. High-protein diets
  54. How to track saturated fat
  55. Intermittent fasting
  56. Juicing
  57. Kratom and pregnancy: Not a safe mix
  58. Low-fiber diet
  59. Low-glycemic index diet
  60. Meatless meals
  61. Mediterranean diet
  62. Menus for heart-healthy eating
  63. Moldy cheese
  64. Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
  65. Multivitamins for kids
  66. Nutrition rules that will fuel your workout
  67. Nuts and your heart: Eating nuts for heart health
  68. Omega-3 in fish
  69. Omega-6 fatty acids
  70. Organic foods
  71. Paleo diet
  72. Phenylalanine
  73. Picnic Problems: High Sodium
  74. Prenatal vitamins
  75. Probiotics and prebiotics
  76. Magnesium supplements
  77. Safely reheat leftovers
  78. Sea salt vs. table salt
  79. Health foods
  80. Mediterranean diet
  81. Vegetable recipes
  82. Antioxidants
  83. Fruit 5 ways
  84. Guide to gourmet salt
  85. Guide to herbs and spices
  86. Portion control
  87. Cooking fish
  88. Guide to beans and legumes
  89. Planning healthy meals
  90. High-fiber diet
  91. Sodium
  92. Taurine in energy drinks
  93. Nutrition and pain
  94. Vitamin C megadoses
  95. Trans fat
  96. Underweight: Add pounds healthfully
  97. Vegetarian diet
  98. Vitamin D and MS: Any connection?
  99. Vitamin D deficiency
  100. Can a lack of vitamin D cause high blood pressure?
  101. Vitamin D for babies
  102. Vitamin D toxicity
  103. Vitamins for MS: Do supplements make a difference?
  104. Water after meals
  105. Daily water requirement
  106. What do the dates on food packages mean?
  107. What is BPA?
  108. What is meant by the term "heart age"?
  109. Whole grains
  110. Yerba mate