Lunch should be eaten at least 5 hours after finishing breakfast in order to allow the stomach time to complete digestion of the previous meal and have some time to rest. Whereas breakfast is to be the largest meal of the day, lunch should be “medium” in size, so plan accordingly. The following are ideas of what to include in a healthy lunch.

1. Choose at least 1 raw vegetable (lettuce, cabbage, carrots, cucumber, tomato, etc.).
2. Chose 1-2 cooked vegetables (green beans, beets, broccoli, etc.), and make sure you get at least 3 vegetables daily.
3. Chose 1-2 starch/protein foods (beans, peas, potato, whole grain pasta, brown rice or other whole grain, hummus, whole wheat bread, etc.).
4. Eat sparingly of natural fats (nuts, seeds, avocado, olives, coconut, etc.).
5. Avoid vinegar and spices (black pepper, hot pepper, white pepper, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, mustard, nutmeg, etc.).
6. Avoid flesh foods (pork, beef, poultry, fish, seafood, etc.).