- more fruit and veg
- more starchy foods such as rice, bread, pasta (try to choose wholegrain varieties when you can) and potatoes
- less fat, salt and sugar
- some protein-rich foods such as meat, fish, eggs and pulses
Drinking enough?
Check out how much water we should all be drinking every day, to help us stay healthy...It's very important to make sure we are drinking enough. Our bodies need water or other fluids to work properly.
Why it's important
Water makes up about two-thirds of our body weight. And it's important for this to be maintained because most of the chemical reactions that happen in our cells need water. We also need water for our blood to be able to carry nutrients around the body.
Losing water
As your body works it produces waste products and some of these waste products are toxic. The body gets rid of these toxins through the kidneys in urine, and urine is mainly made up of water.
We also lose water through evaporation when we breathe and sweat. As the temperature rises and as we do more activity, this increases the amount of water the body loses.
To stay healthy, you need to replace the fluids you lose. And don't forget, if the weather is hot or you are exercising, you will be losing even more water.
How much water do we need?
In climates such as the UK, we should drink approximately 1.2 litres (6 to 8 glasses) of fluid every day to stop us getting dehydrated. In hotter climates the body needs more than this. We also get some fluid from the food we eat.
Caffeine in drinks
Drinks that contain caffeine, such as tea, coffee and cola, can act as mild diuretics, which means they make the body produce more urine.
This affects some people more than others, but it also depends on how much caffeine you drink and how often.
It's fine to drink these sorts of drinks, but we should also drink some fluids each day that don't contain caffeine.
Signs of dehydration
One of the first signs of dehydration is feeling thirsty.
If you think you might not be getting enough fluids, check if you are showing any of these other common signs of dehydration:
* dark coloured urine and not passing much when you go to the toilet
* headaches
* confusion and irritability
* lack of concentration
Starchy foods
Get some tips on increasing the fibre in your diet and find out if you're eating enough starchy foods...
Starchy foods such as bread, cereals, rice, pasta and potatoes are a really important part of a healthy diet. Try to choose wholegrain varieties whenever you can.
How much do I need?
Starchy foods should make up about a third of the food we eat. Most people should be eating more starchy foods. So if you want to eat healthily try to think about the proportions of the different foods you eat in a day.
Starchy foods are a good source of energy and the main source of a range of nutrients in our diet. As well as starch, these foods contain fibre, calcium, iron and B vitamins.
Some people think starchy foods are fattening, but they contain less than half the calories of fat. You just need to watch out for the added fats used for cooking and serving, because this is what increases the calorie content. If you're concerned about your weight, wholegrain varieties are an especially good choice.
Low-carbohydrate diets
'Low-carbohydrate' diets have had a lot of publicity recently. These diets usually involve cutting out most starchy foods.
Cutting out starchy foods, or any food group, can be bad for your health because you could be missing out on a range of nutrients. Low-carbohydrate diets tend to be high in fat, and eating a diet that is high in fat (especially saturated fat from foods such as meat, cheese, butter and cakes) could increase your chances of developing coronary heart disease.
These diets may also restrict the amount of fruit, veg and fibre you eat, all of which are vital for good health.
So, rather than avoiding starchy foods, it's better to try and base your meals on them, so they make up about a third of your diet.
If you're concerned about your weight see the Healthy weight section.
Fibre
Most people don't eat enough fibre. Foods rich in fibre are a very healthy choice, so try to include a variety of fibre-rich foods in your diet. These are all rich in fibre: wholegrain bread, brown rice, pasta, oats, beans, peas, lentils, grains, seeds, fruit and vegetables.
Fibre is only found in foods that come from plants. There are two types of fibre: insoluble and soluble.
Insoluble fibre
This is the fibre that the body can't digest and so it passes through the gut helping other food and waste products move through the gut more easily.
Wholegrain bread, brown rice, wholegrain breakfast cereals and fruit and vegetables all contain this type of fibre.
Insoluble fibre helps to keep bowels healthy and stop constipation. And this means we are less likely to get some common disorders of the gut. Foods rich in this sort of fibre are more bulky and so help make us feel full, which means we are less likely to eat too much.
Soluble fibre
This fibre can be partially digested and may help to reduce the amount of cholesterol in the blood. Particularly good sources of soluble fibre include oats and pulses such as beans and lentils.
Tips for eating more starchy foods and fibre
Most people aren't eating enough starchy foods or fibre. Here are some good sources for you to choose from:
- all sorts of bread including wholemeal, granary, brown, seedy, chapattis, pitta bread, bagels, roti and tortillas
- potatoes, plantain, yam and sweet potato
- more exotic choices included dasheen, coco yam and kenkey
- squash, breadfruit and cassava
- wholegrain breakfast cereals
- beans, lentils, peas
- couscous, bulgar wheat
- maize, cornmeal
Here are some tips to help you increase the amount of starchy foods and fibre you are eating:
- Have more rice and pasta and less sauce.
- If you're having sausages and mash - have more of the mash, some vegetables and one less sausage.
- Add beans or lentils to your casseroles, stews and curries - this will also bump up the fibre content and because you will be able to use less meat, the meal will be cheaper and lower in saturated fat.
- Try different breads such as seeded, wholemeal and granary and go for thick slices.
- Try brown rice - it makes a very tasty rice salad.
- Opt for wholegrain cereals or mix some in with your favourite cereal.
- Porridge is a great warming winter breakfast and whole oats with fresh fruit and yoghurt makes a great start to a summer's day. Oats are a good source of soluble fibre.
All about rice and grains
Rice and grains are an excellent choice as a starchy food. They give us energy and are also good value and low in fat.
There are many types to choose from such as:
* all kinds of rice - quick cook, abborio, basmati, long grain, brown, short grain, wild
* couscous
* bulgar wheat
Rice and grains contain:
* some protein, which the body needs to grow and repair itself
* some fibre that can help the body get rid of waste products
* B vitamins, which release the energy from the food we eat and help the body to work properly
We should eat some starchy foods, such as rice, grains, bread and potatoes every day as part of a healthy balanced diet.
Rice is eaten in many countries throughout the world. There are many different types that have different tastes and textures.
Rice and grains such as couscous and bulgar wheat can be eaten hot or cold and in salads, such as tabbouleh.
Storing and reheating
There are a few things to remember when you are storing and reheating cooked rice and grains. This is because the spores of some food poisoning bugs can survive cooking.
If cooked rice or grains are left standing at room temperature, the spores can germinate. The bacteria multiply and produce toxins that can cause vomiting and diarrhoea. Reheating food won't get rid of the toxins.
Therefore, it's best to serve rice and grains when they've just been cooked. If this isn't possible, cool them within an hour after cooking and keep them refrigerated until reheating or using in a cold dish.
You should throw away any rice and grains that have been left at room temperature overnight.
Don't keep cooked rice and grains for longer than two days and don't reheat them more than once. Check the 'use by' date and storage instructions on the label for any cold rice or grain salads that you buy.
All about bread
Bread, especially wholemeal, granary, brown and seedy bread, is a healthy choice as part of a balanced diet.
Bread is a starchy food, like pasta, potatoes and rice, and these foods should make up about a third of our diet.
Wholegrain, wholemeal and brown bread give us energy and contain B vitamins, vitamin E, fibre and a wide range of minerals. White bread also contains a range of vitamins and minerals, but it has less fibre than wholegrain, wholemeal or brown bread.
Bread has been a staple food in the UK for centuries. These days, more than 200 varieties of bread are available in this country, with origins from all around the world. These range from ciabatta, pumpernickel, baguette and soda bread, to bagels, flour tortillas and pitta.
Some people avoid bread because they think they're allergic to wheat, or because they think bread is fattening. But it's very important to talk to your GP before cutting out any type of food.
This is because you could be missing out on a whole range of nutrients that we need to stay healthy.
Fruit and veg
Check out our portion guide and get some tips on how to get your 5-a-day.Most people know that we should be eating more fruit and veg. But most of us aren't eating enough. Did you know that we should be eating at least five portions of fruit and veg every day?
You can choose from fresh, frozen, tinned, dried or juiced. But remember that potatoes don't count because they're a starchy food.
How much fruit and veg should I be eating?
Lots! Fruit and veg should make up about a third of the food you eat each day. And it's also important to eat a variety. Five-a-day is a good, achievable target. If you count your portions each day it might help you to increase the amount you eat.
Getting your five portions a day
If you eat one or two portions with each meal and have the occasional fruit snack you might be surprised at how easy it is to eat five-a-day.
At breakfast you could:
* add a handful of dried fruit to your cereal
* eat half a grapefruit or an apple
* drink a glass of fruit juice
At lunch you could:
* eat a bowl of salad
* have a banana sandwich
* have some fruit salad
At your evening meal you could:
* add vegetables or pulses to your curry, casserole or stir fry
* serve at least two types of vegetables with your fish, chicken or meat
And don't forget, when you fancy a snack, reach for an apple, banana or perhaps even some dried fruit.
Getting the most out of fruit and veg
Some vitamins and minerals can be easily lost when fruit and veg are prepared or cooked, so try to remember:
* eat fresh fruit and veg as soon as possible rather than storing for a long time - or use frozen instead
* don't overcook. Start with boiling water and cover tightly to keep in the steam, because this speeds up the cooking. You could use a steamer or a microwave
* use as little water as possible when you cook fruit and veg. If you use the cooking water for sauce or soup, you'll recapture some of the lost vitamins and minerals
* avoid leaving any vegetables open to the air, light or heat if they have been cut. Always cover and chill them. But don't soak, because vitamins and minerals can dissolve away
* don't keep food hot for too long because vitamin levels start to drop within a few minutes
Why it's important
Fruit and veg are good sources of many vitamins and minerals, yet most of us don't eat enough of them.
There is mounting evidence that people who eat lots of fruit and veg are less likely to develop chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease and some cancers.
And don't forget, fruit and veg are also very low in fat.
Recommendations
Eat a wide variety of fruit and vegetables and aim for at least five portions a day. Try to avoid:
* adding fat or rich sauces to vegetables (such as carrots glazed with butter)
* adding sugar or syrupy dressings to fruit (such as stewed apple)
Salt
Find out why we should all be trying to eat less salt.Adults should have no more than 6 grams (g) of salt a day. On average people are actually having about 9g of salt a day. For information on the Agency's salt campaign visit our salt site.
Why we should cut down
Eating too much salt can raise your blood pressure. And people with high blood pressure are three times more likely to develop heart disease or have a stroke than people with normal blood pressure.
When most people think of salt, they think of shaking it on their food, or adding a pinch to cooking. But the salt we add ourselves makes up just a quarter of the salt we eat. Three-quarters (75%) of the salt we eat is already in the food we buy.
Lots of people think they don't eat a lot of salt, especially if they don't add it to their food. But don't be so sure!
In the UK, 85% men and 69% women eat too much salt. And remember that three-quarters of the salt we eat comes from foods that already contain it. So you could easily be eating too much salt without realising it.
Sodium
Salt is made up of sodium and chloride. And it's the sodium in salt that can be bad for your health.
You will usually see sodium included in the nutrition information on food labels. Many products also say how much salt they contain.
Salt = sodium x 2.5.
See below for advice on checking labels.
Checking labels
Here is a quick way to tell if a food is high in salt by looking at the nutritional information on the label.
Look at the figure for salt per 100g.
High is more than 1.5g salt per 100g (or 0.6g sodium)
Low is 0.3g salt or less per 100g (or 0.1g sodium)
If the amount of salt per 100g is in between these figures, then that is a medium level of salt.
Remember that the amount you eat of a particular food affects how much salt you will get from it.
Tips for cutting down
Here are a few practical tips to help you cut down:
- Check the labels on foods such as soups, sandwiches, pasta sauces and ready meals, so you can choose those with less added salt.
- Add less salt to your cooking.
- Get out of the habit of adding salt to your food. Try to remember to taste it first.
- Cut down on salty snacks such as crisps and nuts, and heavily salted foods such as bacon, cheese, pickles and smoked fish.
- Choose tinned vegetables, pulses and fish that say 'no added salt'.
- Choose lower-salt stock cubes, make your own stock, or add herbs and spices for flavour instead.
- Watch out for soy sauce, brown sauce, mayonnaise and ketchup because these can be high in salt.
Babies and children
Babies only need a very small amount of salt - less than 1g a day until they are 6 months old and no more than 1g a day from 7 to 12 months.
Babies who are breastfed get the right amount of salt through breast milk and infant formula contains a similar amount.
Remember not to add salt to food you make for your baby or give to him or her because their kidneys can't cope with any extra salt. And be careful not to give your baby foods that aren't made specifically for babies, such as breakfast cereals and pasta sauces, because these can be high in salt.
There is also no need to add salt to your child's food. If you're buying foods, even those aimed at children, remember to check the information given on the labels so you can choose those with less salt.
These are the maximum amounts of salt children should have in a day:
* 1 to 3 years - 2g a day (0.8g sodium)
* 4 to 6 years - 3g salt a day (1.2g sodium)
* 7 to 10 years - 5g a day (2g sodium)
* 11 and over - 6g a day (2.5g sodium)
Although we don't have reliable information to tell us how many children are eating too much salt, the information we do have suggests that many children are eating more than these maximum amounts.
All about fats
Find out the difference between saturates, unsaturates and trans fats and get tips for cutting down...Most people know that we should be cutting down on fat. But did you know it's even more important to try to replace the saturated fat we eat with unsaturated fat? Read on to find out how.
We need some fat
It's important to have some fat in our diet because fat helps the body absorb some vitamins, it's a good source of energy and a source of the essential fatty acids that the body can't make itself.
But having a lot of fat makes it easy to have more energy than we need, which means we might be more likely to put on weight. So if you want to eat healthily and keep a healthy weight, look out for lower fat alternatives wherever possible and try to eat fatty foods only occasionally.
Different sorts of fats
Although it's important to try to eat less fat, we also need to think about the types of fat we are eating.
We should be cutting down on food that is high in saturated fat or trans fats or replacing these foods with ones that are high in unsaturated fat instead. We should also be having more omega 3 fatty acids, which are found in oily fish.
Saturated fats
Having too much saturated fat can increase the amount of cholesterol in the blood, which increases the chance of developing heart disease.
These are all high in saturated fat:
* meat products, meat pies, sausages
* hard cheese
* butter and lard
* pastry
* cakes and biscuits
* cream, soured cream and crème fraîche
* coconut oil, coconut cream or palm oil
Trans fats
Trans fats have a similar effect on blood cholesterol as saturated fats - they raise the type of cholesterol in the blood that increases the risk of heart disease.
Most people in the UK don't eat large amounts of trans fats. On average we have about half the recommended maximum. Most people eat a lot more saturated fats than trans fats.
Trans fats can be formed when liquid vegetable oils are turned into solid fats through the process of hydrogenation. In the UK, the use of hydrogenated vegetable oils has been reduced over the past few years and this has helped reduce the amount of trans fats in many foods.
Foods containing hydrogenated vegetable oil, which must be listed in the ingredients list on the label, might also contain trans fats. But trans fats don't need to be labelled separately under European law. The Agency is working to improve this situation because consumers have said that this is what they want.
Trans fats may be found in these types of foods:
* biscuits and cakes
* fast food
* pastry
* some margarines
These sorts of food are usually high in saturated fat, sugar and salt so if you are trying to eat a healthy diet, you should try to keep these to a minimum.
Trans fats are also found naturally at very low levels in foods such as dairy products, beef and lamb.
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Unsaturated fats
Unsaturated fats can be a healthy choice. These types of fats can actually reduce cholesterol levels and provide us with the essential fatty acids that the body needs. They include the unsaturated fats found in oily fish, which may help prevent heart disease.
These are all high in unsaturated fat:
* oily fish
* avocados
* nuts and seeds
* sunflower, rapeseed and olive oil and spreads
* vegetable oils
If you want to make a healthy choice, try to have more unsaturated fats and less saturated fats, this means you could choose:
* oily fish instead of sausages or a meat pie
* use unsaturated oils such as olive, sunflower or rapeseed oils instead of butter, lard and ghee in cooking
* snack on some unsalted nuts instead of a biscuit
* make your mashed potato with olive oil and garlic instead of butter and milk for a change
* choose a fat spread that is high in unsaturates instead of butter
What's high in fat and what's low?
If you want to cut down on fat, you can compare the labels of different food products and choose those with less fat and less saturated fat.
You will see figures for the fat content on many food labels and some foods will also give figures for saturated fat, or 'saturates'. Use the following as a guide to work out if a food is high or low in fat.
Total fat - what's high and what's low?
High is more than 20g fat per 100g
Low is 3g fat or less per 100g
If the amount of fat per 100g is in between these figures, then that is a medium level of fat.
Saturated fat - what's high and what's low?
High is more than 5g saturates per 100g
Low is 1.5g saturates or less per 100g
If the amount of saturates per 100g is in between these figures, then that is a medium level of saturated fat.
Remember that the amount you eat of a particular food affects how much fat you will get from it.
Tips for cutting down
Here are some practical suggestions to help you cut down on fat, especially saturated fat:
* Choose lean cuts of meat and trim off any visible fat.
* Grill, bake, poach or steam rather than frying and roasting so you don't need to add any extra fat.
* If you do choose something high in fat such as a meat pie, pick something low fat to go with it to make the meal lower in fat – for example you could have a baked potato instead of chips.
* When you're choosing a ready meal or buying another food product, compare the labels so you can pick those with less total fat or less saturated fat.
* Put some extra vegetables, beans or lentils in your casseroles and stews and a bit less meat.
* Measure oil for cooking with tablespoons rather than pouring it straight from a container.
* Have pies with only one crust rather than two – either a lid or a base – because pastry is very high in fat.
* When you're making sandwiches, try not using any butter or spread if the filling is moist enough. When you do use fat spread, go for a reduced-fat variety and choose one that is soft straight from the fridge so it's easier to spread thinly.
* Choose lower fat versions of dairy foods whenever you can, such as semi-skimmed or skimmed milk, reduced fat yoghurt, lower fat cheeses or very strong tasting cheese so you don't need to use as much.
* Instead of cream or soured cream try using yoghurt or fromage frais in recipes.
Omega 3 fatty acids
Oily fish is the best source of omega 3 fatty acids. These fatty acids have been shown to help protect against coronary heart disease.
There has also been some research suggesting other health benefits for omega 3 fatty acids, including their effects on learning. The Agency has therefore carried out a review of the available research on nutrition and the behaviour of schoolchildren. The review concluded that there isn't enough evidence to show that omega 3 effects the education or learning of children in general. However, there is some evidence that there may be benefits for some children with learning difficulties.
Some omega 3 fatty acids are found in certain vegetable oils, such as linseed, flaxseed, walnut and rapeseed, but these aren't the same type of fatty acids as those found in fish.
Recent evidence suggests that the type of fatty acids found in vegetable sources may not have the same benefits as those in fish.
Taken From : /www.healthyeating.gov.uk
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