What are your best healthy eating habits?

“ You are what you eat.”

Growing up with a mother who was a food vendor, I believe I developed a good taste for food, cooking and eating. My childhood did not necessarily teach me formal nutrition or a particular diet, especially considering my parents’ economic circumstances, but it certainly gave me a foundation.

My mother’s food business was mostly built around starchy foods and proteins. Like many Nigerian families, we grew up eating rice, beans, plantain, yam, soups and pounded yam.

As children, we ate freshly prepared food, and hunger was rarely a major concern because there was usually something available before or after school. I also remember my father preparing medicinal herbs for us to drink. I honestly don’t know everything that went into those mixtures, but they were part of our childhood.

Perhaps that background explains my long-standing relationship with rice.

I still enjoy rice, although certainly not as much as I did when I was younger.

A habit is simply a pattern of behaviour repeated frequently, sometimes until it becomes almost subconscious. As I have grown older, I have developed a few personal rituals around food, exercise, reading and thinking—although, honestly, keeping up with the last one can be challenging.

There is an old saying: “You are what you eat.”

I don’t know if it is literally true, but I do believe what we regularly eat matters.

I am quite particular about my food. Some people may mistake that for pride, but I don’t really see it that way. I simply know what I like.

I love grains and nuts. Muesli, sunflower seeds, almonds, groundnuts, cashews, carrots and milk are some of my favourites. Anyone who knows me well can probably confirm this.

I normally have some combination of these foods several times a week.

Then there is my salad.

I have my own way of preparing it, and I call it my “special salad.” My children love it too.

I combine finely sliced white and red cabbage with cucumber, carrots, sweet corn, olives and sardine or mackerel fillets in olive oil. Sometimes I add avocado and almond seeds.

Honestly, you don’t want to miss it.

Over time, I have developed these eating habits and paid attention to how different foods make me feel. For me, the attraction isn’t only the taste. I also enjoy knowing that I’m eating a variety of foods that provide nutrients, protein, fibre, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals.

And there is something else I love about these meals:

They are simple.

They don’t require hours in the kitchen. Depending on the meal, I can have them in the morning, afternoon or evening, including around my exercise routine.

I’ve been away from my family for a while, and one of the things my daughter keeps reminding me about is how much she misses my salad and some of the other food I prepare.

Sometimes, food is more than food.

It becomes a memory.

It becomes home.

It becomes something your children remember about you.

When it comes to drinks, I also have a few homemade combinations I enjoy. I sometimes prepare a mixture using ingredients such as ginger, garlic, lime, cloves and cinnamon, usually by boiling them together and storing the mixture.

I don’t consider it a miracle drink, and I wouldn’t tell anyone that it can cure illness. For me, it’s simply something I enjoy as part of my personal routine.

I also avoid sugary soft drinks most of the time and rarely drink alcohol.

I do, however, smoke socially—a habit I have been trying so hard to quit of which my last puff was nine months ago. I know isn’t exactly something I should put on my list of healthy choices.

So, these are some of my eating and drinking habits.

They aren’t a perfect diet, and they aren’t rules everyone should follow. They are simply habits I’ve developed from my upbringing, my experiences and what I have personally come to enjoy.

And yes, I am writing all of this after just finishing a plate of rice.

You got these habits for free.

You’re welcome.