Healthy Eating
Choosing the right food for good health is very important. By eating a good balanced diet, taking regular exercise and not smoking, you give yourself the best chance of living a fit and healthy life.
Healthy eating can help prevent many illnesses, such as heart disease, obesity, constipation, bowel trouble, tooth decay, to name but a few.
To eat healthily you need to:
- Eat 5 portions of fruit and vegetables each day
- Eat less sugar
- Eat less fat
- Eat less salt
- Eat more fibre
- Drink less alcohol
Fibre:
- Use wholemeal bread instead of white
- Use high fibre cereal, e.g. bran, weetabix or porridge
- Eat more fruit and vegetables
- Try using baked beans and lentils in cooking
- Try wholemeal pasta and wholegrain rice instead of white varieties
- Try baked potatoes with their skins on (and eating their skins)
Fat:
- Grill instead of frying whenever possible
- Try using low fat spread. A margarine high in polyunsaturated fat may be better for your heart
- Use skimmed or semi-skimmed milk
- Experiment with low fat cheese, e.g. cottage cheese, quark, edam
- Use more poultry (remove skin), fish and pulses instead of meat
- When using meat try to buy lean meat and trim off any visible fat
- Keep pastries, pies, biscuits, cakes and chocolate as occasional treats
Sugar:
- Try to drink your tea or coffee without sugar. Cut down a little at a time
- Use low calorie soft drinks or unsweetened fruit juice rather than drinks containing sugar.
- Choose tinned fruit in natural juice.
- Go easy on sweets, chocolates, cakes and biscuits, they are high in sugar as well
- Use unsweetened breakfast cereals
- Try halving the sugar you use in recipes. It works for most items except in jam and meringues
Salt:
- Taste before you tip
- Try to use less salt in cooking - experiment with herbs and peppers
- Try to use more fresh foods. Tinned and packet foods usually have extra salt added.
Variety and moderation are the keynotes and remember - YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT
Alcohol
A small amount of alcohol does you no harm, but if you have more than a small amount on a regular basis you may be damaging your health. Recommended maximum amounts
MEN:
Up to 21 units per week spread through the week
WOMEN:
Up to 14 units per week spread through the week
How Much Alcohol Is In Your Drink?
ONE UNIT =
- Half pint of beer, lager or cider
- One standard glass of wine
- One single measure of spirits
- One small glass of sherry