by Beverly Bochenek

Created on: May 03, 2009   Last Updated: May 08, 2009

Healthy pizza? It's almost an oxymoron. All that cheese, the grease, the fatty meats. Pizza isn't designed to be healthy. It's designed to be gooey and filling - an almost guilty pleasure. But if the guilt is too much to bear, there are ways to redesign a pizza so it better fits into a healthier, more delicious lifestyle.

Eat a Salad First

Before you gorge yourself on pizza, eat a dinner salad with lots of veggies and easy on the salad dressing. This will provide flavor and and fiber that will help satisfy your palate and fill you up. If you add veggies other than iceberg lettuce, it will also provide some nutrients.

Go easy on the cheese

You can order your pizza with less cheese than what they normally put on. The truth is, most pizzerias can lessen the cheese by a good amount and you won't know the difference in the flavor at all. And speaking of cheese..

Make half the pizza cheese only

Have them add spices instead of meat. You will automatically cut the fat and calories because half the meat will be gone.

Go Whole Wheat

You can have a crust made of whole wheat instead of white flour. The whole wheat has more in vitamins and nutrients than the white flour crust. There will be a change in the taste, but it's still good.

Ask for a low sodium sauce

The sauce is probably one of the healthiest things on a pizza, but tomatoes can be high in sodium so ask if there is an lower sodium alternative. There will be enough sodium in the other ingredients that you shouldn't miss it at all from the sauce.

Add the Veggies

They will add crunch, color and flavor and that will help your mind and body believe it is doing something good while you snarfle down the cheese covering the vegetables.

Go Fresh

Frozen pizzas are relatively inexpensive and easy enough to prepare. They are also loaded with salt and other chemicals to keep them frozen and then to melt into a pretty pie when heated. If you can order from a pizza shop, you will be able to customize a pie to your own needs.

Get Real

Authentic..that is. True Italian pizza is not like the American version of pizza. The crust is thinner, the ingredients aren't piled on so high that they compete with each other for space and flavor and it's lighter.

Make it Yourself

You probably won't get the same flavor as the corner pizza place, but making it yourself means you can control everything about your pie from the number of toppings to the sodium. You can experiment until you find the recipe that works for you and members of your family. You can have a 'make your own pizza' night and make sure there are lots vegetables, low fat and low sodium choices on the pizza bar.

If you decide to make healthier food choices, it's still possible pizza can fit into your plan. Just follow some or all of the suggestions above and you will be able to enjoy one of the most popular foods on the planet without expanding your waistline!

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