Eating healthier can be daunting when it feels like it'll require a major diet overhaul. We probably should be cutting things like sugars and refined grains completely, but they tend to make up so much of our diet that we don't know what to replace them with. I for one certainly still make pasta a staple, and not even the whole grain variety. But there are small substitutions we can make to improve our diet incrementally. Swapping out these minor diet components can help build a healthier lifestyle gradually--and permanently.

Black to cayenne pepper

Not that black pepper is unhealthy, per se, but the more potent spice is regarded as a super-condiment these days. Spicy foods generally are great for you, and adding generous dashes of cayenne instead of black pepper is a good way to reduce your resting heart rate and lessen digestive irritation. 

Iceberg to romaine lettuce

You know iceberg lettuce--it's that bland, watery green stuff that's shredded all over subs and tacos. It really is mostly water, with little nutrition to boot. Swapping it out for dark, leafy greens like romaine will help you get full servings of vitamins A and K in addition to packing in dietary fiber. Baby spinach is also a good bet if you're not fond of the slightly bitter taste of darker lettuces. 

Potatoes to sweet potatoes

The orange variety of potato is one of the best sources of beta-carotene, and can help raise blood levels of vitamin A. If you eat yams with fat, you'll especially help your vitamin A absorption. Steaming or boiling sweet potatoes is your best bet for optimum health benefits, but I won't tell anyone if you turn them into fries or hash browns too. 

Dried to frozen or fresh fruit

Raisins, craisins, and other dried fruit make for convenient snacks, but the drying process leaves the fruit a little less healthy than it started. All the condensed sugar isn't the best to eat en masse. It's better to eat your berries and fruits fresh if possible. If you don't eat them often enough to finish off a batch before they go bad, consider buying bags of frozen fruit. It's cheaper and allows you to keep them around as long as the dried sort. I like keeping a couple bags of blueberries in my freezer to toss in my oatmeal and smoothies. 

Ketchup to salsa

A certain ex-president may swear it's a vegetable, but these days ketchup is usually tomato-flavored corn syrup. Not the best way to season your dishes. Salsa, on the other hand, is packed full of antioxidants and a veritable super-snack. With its tomatoes, onions, and garlic, salsa is absurdly healthy for how much I eat it without health concerns in mind. Slather it on hot dogs or burgers. I actually like to mix it in with eggs. If you're not into the spice of it, straight unflavored tomato sauce and a little salt make for a good ketchup replacement. Cans cost less than a dollar and the consistency is nearly the same as the processed tomato goo. 

These have all been easy substitutions for me to work in as I try to take better care of this body of mine. What small swaps have you made to improve your diet smoothly? 

(Photo credit: smittenkitchen)