Women have an inborn talent to multitask.  Starting from taking care of groceries, kids, chores at house and balancing their career at par with everything else without breaking a sweat makes her a superwoman!  While being busy taking care of everything else, they often forget the need to take care of themselves. This can lead to fatigue and overlooked health issues.

It is extremely important for a woman to eat a healthy diet, which provides her all the necessary nutrients for her to sustain and carry out all the activities, while being healthy.

Following a diet while balancing the demands from family and work can be stressful and difficult for women. But taking care of yourself doesn’t only keeps you healthy, but also boosts your mood, helps you maintain a healthy weight, which is an utmost important aspect in coming stages of womanhood.

Women usually need less calories when compared to men, but because variations in body composition and physiological tasks, they usually have an increased demand for vitamins and minerals. It is essential to load your diet with Vitamins like folate, vitamin D and minerals like, iron, calcium, magnesium to reduce the risk of anaemia, osteoporosis etc.
Reasons for shortcomings in nutrient intake

• Too busy to eat.
• Putting the family’s needs first.
• Trying to adhere to an extremely strict diet in order to control binging due to stress.
• Stress 
• Lack of time to prepare
• Effects of poor eating:
• Women most commonly face anaemia and protein deficiency due to stress and poor eating.

It also causes tiredness, deficiencies of vitamins have effects like back pain, hair loss, decreased bone density, fatigue, low energy levels. Few prolonged effects cause problems like amenorrhea, PCOS, insulin resistance, early menopause etc.

What is healthy eating? 
In simple terms, it is a habit of eating, that keeps you active and away from healthy issues and nutrient deficiencies. It needs you to include foods from all the different food groups available i.e., cereals, pulses, fats and oils, nuts and seeds, fruits and vegetables, dairy and in case of non-vegetarians, poultry, eggs, fish in appropriate amounts which are needed by your body. It also means, to avoid packaged or quick processed foods, with loaded salt, sugar and hydrogenated/saturated fat. It also indicates the uptake of nutrients from diet instead of supplements.

Tips for busy women to healthy eating:

• Avoid skipping meals. Have all the three meals i.e., breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• Breakfast: when in hurry, you can have a simple porridge like oats + milk + nuts or you can go for some simple recipes like poha etc.
• Lunch:  Its always easy, if you can pre plan your meals and make necessary prep for the meals. This ensures you to have a balanced meal.
• Dinner: Eating a no carb recipes are easy and quick to prepare and carry with you. You can always choose a quick one pot recipes. 
• You can plan snacks easy to carry snacks like nuts and seeds, roasted channa, so you don’t have to rely on the unhealthy snacks.
• Pack a compact box with you to your office for lunch and also dinner, in case you reach home late. Ideal time to finish dinner would be between 7-8:30 pm for better digestion and metabolism.
• Avoid processed foods like biscuits, cakes, bread etc, as they contain high amounts of refined flours, sugars and hydrogenated fats. These increases the risk for lifestyle disorders.
• Eat balanced meals, which includes a serving of salad, whole grain cereal, protein and a healthy fat. Always start your meals with a vegetable salad. 
• Include more fibre to keep your digestion smooth.
• Keep a check on salt and sugar intake. Salt increases your blood pressure and imparts strain on your kidneys while sugar effects your liver, skin and causes insulin resistance. Avoid carbonated and sugary beverages.
• Drink enough water – staying hydrated improves your concentration and keeps you active.
• Limit your caffeine intake, stick to a maximum of 2 small cups of coffee/tea (with less sugar).
• Include a minimum of 30 mins of activity every day, to improve your stamina and to alleviate stress.
• Stay away from alcohol and smoking. As they are detrimental to your health. 
• Sleep is another important factor, that you shouldn’t forego. Get 7-8 hours of continuous sleep and stay away from electronic gadgets an hour before you sleep.
• While planning is easy, staying consistent with a healthy lifestyle has its challenges. One needs to be consistent, patient and prioritize health and nutrition first. 

References:
https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/balanced-diet-women
https://www.riseupforyou.com/article/seven-health-nutrition-tips-working-women/
https://www.eatright.org/food/nutrition/dietary-guidelines-and-myplate/healthy-eating-for-women
https://www.womenshealth.gov/healthy-eating/healthy-eating-and-women
https://www.motherhoodindia.com/news/importance-nutrition-womens-health/
https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/india-news-modern-indian-working-women-scoring-low-on-nutrition-quotient/330536
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/diet/Diet-essentials-for-working-women/articleshow/32719591.cms
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/healthy-eating/diet-and-nutrition-tips-for-women.htm