a healthier dessert

On my journey to being healthy, I've learned the do's and don't's of eating. The hardest thing I learned was giving up desserts, such as ice cream and cake. However, this doesn't mean there aren't other sweets out there waiting for me. I just have to choose more nutritious ones to eat most of the time, and have ice cream sometimes (just kidding, maybe not).

Dessert was something hard for me as well. What I started doing was substituting fruit and healthier alternatives in place of ice cream.

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Something important I learned was that whole fruits have vitamins and benefits but cut up fruit do not so fruit juices or smoothies, actually do the opposite. Fruit is important for no cholesterol, low in fat, sodium, calories, and also contains nutrients (like bananas have potassium), dietary fiber, and vitamins (oranges for vitamin C).

Strawberries are high in vitamin C, manganese, folate (vitamin B9), potassium, antioxidants and help your heart and blood sugar control. Pineapples have nutrients that help you fight specific cancers, have nutrients, and antioxidants. Grapefruits help reduce risk of kidney stones, low in calories, high in nutrients, and helps your immune system.

Another substitute I went to were acai bowls. Acai berries are superfoods and are high in antioxidants that fuel your brain and heart. They're rich in healthy fats and fiber. While this berry is hard to find in the raw form in US, there are alternatives such as the acai berry powder used in acai bowls. Now many acai bowls in stores are high in antioxidants, but can actually be unhealthy with their 20-60 grams of sugar. This is due to all of the fruit and even honey or agave blended in. For a healthier alternative, I usually blend my acai bowls at home with banana, milk, and acai powder (maybe a bit of honey to add flavor since acai doesn't have much). Banana's are a better fruit to juice since it still maintains the nutrients and fibers, unlike other fruits where those are lost. I also use milk or water instead of juice because juice is high in sugars. Lastly, I top my bowl off with chopped fruits so it still contains those good nutrients, and granola or chia seeds for fiber.

Overall, fruit is a great source for fiber, antioxidants, nutrients, and minerals needed to help your body, health, and fight off diseases. My favorite fruit is the pineapple, so I have made it a habit to have some everyday. Fruit is an enjoyable alternative to ice cream!