goodlifethe

eatwelleatwell.gov.uk

Getting the balance right Taking a close look at what you eat

Strong bonesGet plenty of Vitamin D

Great tips on feeling healthy

and enjoying life to the max

!

inside:

Heart of the matter

Find out more ways to a healthy heart

Contents 03 Getting the balance right04 Heart of the matter 06 Eat plenty of fruit and veg

06 Eat plenty of fibre

07 Cut down on salt

08 Cut down on fat and go for unsaturated fat instead of saturated

09 Eat oily fish

10 Avoid drinking too much alcohol

10 Try to be a healthy weight

12 Be more active

13 Strong bones 13 Eat calcium-rich foods

13 Get plenty of vitamin D

14 Eat dark green veg

14 Try to be a healthy weight

14 Take a walk

14 Don’t have too much vitamin A

15 Safety first

Eating well is a great investment in your well-being. A balanced diet is essential to give your body what it needs to be healthy.

So to help you get the best out of life, eat well!

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Getting the balance right

n plentyoffruitandvegetables

n plentyofbread,rice,potatoes,pastaandotherstarchyfoods

n somemilkanddairyfoods

n somemeat,fish,eggs,beansandothernon-dairysourcesofprotein

n justasmallamountoffoodsanddrinkshighinfatand/orsugar

a balanced diet includes:

don’tforgettodrinkenoughwater.Waterisessentialtohelpourbodiesworkproperly.Wealsoneedtodrinkenoughfluidstopreventconstipation.

Aimtodrinkabout�to�glasses(�.2litres)ofwater,orotherfluids,everydaytostopyougettingdehydrated.

Whentheweatheriswarmorwhenwegetactive,ourbodiesneedmorethanthis.

DrinKloTS of WaTER

Eating well is all about the different types of foods that make up our diet. So take a look at what you eat during the day and try to get the balance right.

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Ahealthyheartisvitalforahealthybody.youcanhelptoprotectyourheartbydoingthesethings:

n Eatplentyoffruitandvegn Eatplentyoffibren Cutdownonsaltn Cutdownonfatandgofor unsaturatedfatinsteadofsaturatedn Eatoilyfishn Avoiddrinkingtoomuchalcoholn Trytobeahealthyweightn Bemoreactive

Heart of the matter

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Top TipS

for A HEAlTHy HEArT

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That means:

n �apple,bananaororange

n 2smallfruitsuchasplums,satsumas,apricots

n 3heapedtablespoonsofvegetables(fresh,frozenortinned)

n �heapedtablespoonofdriedfruit

n �glassoffruitjuice(��0ml)–juiceonlycountsasamaximumofoneportionaday

Eat plenty of fruit and veg

Eat plenty of fibre

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Givingyourfibreaboostcouldbegoodforyourheart,aswellasyourdigestion.ButmostpeopleintheUKdon’teatenoughfibre.Toeatmorefibre,trythesethings:

n Choosewholegrainorbrowntypesofstarchyfoods,suchaswholegrainbread,wholegrainbreakfastcereals,brownriceandwholemealpasta.

n Eatmorevegetables,driedfruitandpulses(suchasbeansandlentils).

Fruitandvegaregoodsourcesofmanyofthevitaminsandmineralsthatweneedtohelpusfeelourbest.Andpeoplewhoeatlotsoffruitandvegarelesslikelytodevelopdiseasessuchascoronaryheartdiseaseandsometypesofcancer.

That’swhyweshouldallbeeatingatleastfiveportionsoffruitandvegeachday.

Therearelotsofdifferenttypestochoosefrom.It’sagoodideatoeataswideavarietyaspossible,togiveyouaselectionofdifferentvitaminsandminerals.

onE porTion iS 80g

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Cuttingdownonsaltcanhelptoreducebloodpressure,especiallyaspartofahealthydietincludingplentyoffruitandveg.

Havinghighbloodpressureincreasestheriskofheartdiseaseandstroke.Soadultsshouldeatnomorethan�gofsaltaday.

See salt.gov.ukformoreinformationonsalt.

Herearesometipsforcuttingdownonsalt:

n Checkfoodlabelsbeforeyoubuyandchoosethosecontaininglesssalt.

n Choosetinnedvegetables,pulsesandfishthatsay‘noaddedsalt’.

n Getoutofthehabitofaddingsalttoyourfood.Trytoremembertotasteitfirst.

n Cutdownonsaltysnackssuchascrispsandnuts,andheavilysaltedfoodssuchasbacon,cheese,picklesandsmokedfish.

n Useherbs,spices,chilliandlemontoaddflavourtocookinginsteadofsalt.

SnaCk SuGGESTionSSardines + toast

Forasuper-quicklunch,servetinnedsardinesonwholemealtoast.Usealow-fatspreadonthetoast.Thissnackcontainsomega3fattyacids.

Yoghurt delight

Mixupsomelow-fatyoghurtwithpuréedstrawberries,raspberriesorblueberriestomakeadeliciousandhealthydessert.Thissnackcontainscalciumandcountstowardsyourdailyfruitandvegportions.

Cut down on salt3

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n saturatedfatn unsaturatedfat

Eatingfoodsthatarehighinsaturatedfatcanraisecholesterollevelsinthebloodandhavinghighcholesterolincreasesthechancesofdevelopingheartdisease.Soeatinglesssaturatedfatcanhelpprotectyourheart.

Havingunsaturatedfatinsteadofsaturatedfatcanhelplowercholesterollevelsinyourblood.Sotrytochoosefoodsthatarehighinunsaturatedfats,including:

n oilyfishn avocadosn vegetableoilandsunflower,olive,

corn,walnutandrapeseedoils(andspreadscontainingthese)

Herearesometipsforcuttingdownonsaturatedfat:

n Chooseleancutsofmeatinsteadoffattycuts,sausagesorpies.

n Chooselower-fatmilkanddairyproducts,oreatjustasmallamountofhigh-fatfoodssuchascheese(orhavethemlessoften).

n Usealow-fatspreadinsteadofbutter.n Cookwithvegetableoroliveoilinsteadof

butterorghee.n Watchoutforcreamysauces.n Trynottoeattoomanycakesandbiscuits.

Cut down on fat andgo for unsaturated fatinstead of saturated

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Hydrogenatedvegetableoil,sometimescalledhydrogenatedfat,isatypeoffatusedinsometypesofprocessedfoods.

Hydrogenatedvegetableoilcancontainanothertypeoffatcalledtransfats.Eatingfoodscontainingtransfatscouldraisecholesterollevels.

Hydrogenatedandtransfatsareoftenfoundinthesetypesoffoods:

n biscuitsandcakesn fastfood

WHATISHydroGEnATEdFAT?

There are two main types of fat:

n pastryn somemargarines

Thesetypesoffoodsareoftenhighinsaturatedfat,sugarandsalttoo,soifyou’retryingtoeatahealthydietit’sagoodideanottoeattoomuchofthem.

MostpeopleintheUKeatalotmoresaturatedfatthantransfats,sodon’tforgetthatit’simportanttokeepaneyeonyourintakeofsaturatedfat.

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oilyfish(suchassalmon,mackerel,troutandsardines)arerichinomega3fattyacids,whichcanhelpkeepourheartshealthy.Aimtoeatatleasttwoportionsoffishaweek,includingaportionofoilyfish.

Buttrytoavoidhavingmorethanfourportionsofoilyfishaweek.

Therearedifferentlimitsforgirls,womenwhomighthaveababyandwomenwhoarepregnantorbreastfeeding.Seeeatwell.gov.uk/fishformoreinformation.

CuTTinG Down on fAT CAn HElp you To EAT A HEAlTHy BAlAnCED DiET AnD ConTrol your wEiGHT

Eat oily fish5

SnaCk SuGGESTion

Houmous and veg sticks Chopcarrots,celeryandcucumberintostickstodipintohoumous.Trytochoosereduced-fathoumouswhenyoucan.Thissnackcountstowardsyourdailyfruitandvegportions.

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Avoid drinking too much alcohol6

Beingahealthyweightisanimportantpartofprotectingourhealth.Soit’snotgoodforyoutobeoverweightorunderweight.It’seasyforweighttocreepon,ordropoff,withoutyoureallynoticing.Soit’sagoodideatocheckifyourweightiswithinthehealthyrange,usingthechartopposite.

remember,whetheryouwanttoloseweight,gainweight,orjuststaythesame,it’sveryimportanttoeatregularlyandeatavarietyoftypesoffood.

Ifyou’reworriedaboutyourweight,askyourGPoradietitianforadvice.

Womencandrinkupto2to3unitsofalcoholadayandmenupto3to4unitsaday,withoutsignificantrisktotheirhealth.

Aunitishalfapintofstandardstrength(3to�%ABV)beer,lagerorcider,orapubmeasureofspirit.Aglassofwineisabout2units.

Thereisevidencetosuggestthathavingbetween�and2unitsofalcoholadaycanhelpprotectagainstcoronaryheartdiseaseformenover40andwomenafterthemenopause.Butheavydrinkingcanleadtoawiderangeofhealthproblems,includingcancer,liverdisease,strokeandhighbloodpressure.Itcanalsoaffectmentalhealth.

Try to be a healthy weight7

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ofcourse,peoplecomeindifferentshapesandsizes.Thetwomainshapesare‘apples’and‘pears’.Someonewithanappleshapetendstoputonweightaroundtheirmiddle.Someonewithapearshapetendstoputonweightaroundtheirthighsandbottom.

Beingoverweightisnotgoodforyourhealth,whateveryourshape.Butifyouareappleshaped,thenit’sparticularlyimportanttokeepaneyeonyourweight.Thisisbecausehavingtoomuchfataroundyourmiddleincreasestheriskofdevelopingheartdiseaseanddiabetes.

pEArS

ApplES &

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Be more active

Aswellasprotectingourhearts,beingactiveisagreatwayofusingupextracalories,andhelpscontrolourweight.

Butthisdoesn’tmeanyouhavetojoinagym–justtrytogetactiveeverydayandbuilduptheamountyoudo.Evensmallchangescanhelp,suchastakingthestairsinsteadofthelift,walkingtotheshopsinsteadofdriving,orgettingoffthebusonestopearlier.

Walkingisagreatwaytobemoreactive–fitinasmuchasyoucanintoyourdailyroutineandtrytowalkatagoodpace.ormaketimeforanothertypeofactivityyoureallyenjoy,forexampleswimming,dancingorgardening.

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It’simportanttoeatplentyofiron-richfoodstohelpkeepupyourbody’sstoreofiron.Thebestsourceofironisredmeat.Itcanalsobefoundinpulses(suchaspeas,beansandlentils),oilyfishsuchassardines,bread,greenvegetablesandfortifiedbreakfastcereals.

Iron

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Eat calcium-rich foodsMake sure you eat foods that are rich in calcium, such as:

milk, cheese, yoghurt green leafy vegetables (such as broccoli, cabbage and okra, but not spinach)

bread and fortified breakfast cereals fish where you eat the bones, such as sardines and pilchards

nuts soya beans, tofu, soya drinks with added calcium

Get plenty of vitamin DVitamin D is essential for healthy bones. We get most of our vitamin D from the effect of summer sunlight on our skin, but vitamin D is also found in oily fish, eggs and foods with added vitamins such as some breakfast cereals, bread and spreads.

Older people should consider taking a daily 10 microgram (mcg) vitamin D supplement.

If you think you may be at risk of developing osteoporosis, ask your GP for advice.

Strong bones

What you eat can make a difference to the health of your bones. So to help keep your bones strong and help protect against osteoporosis, you can do the following things.

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Eat dark green vegdarkgreenveg(suchasbroccoli,spinachandBrusselssprouts)containvitaminK,whichisimportantforbuildingcalciumintoourbones.Trytoeatatleastfiveportionsofavarietyoffruitandvegeveryday.Try to be a healthy weightIt’snotgoodforourhealthtobeoverweightorunderweight.Beingunderweightincreasestheriskofosteoporosis.Take a walk‘Weight-bearing’exercise(suchaswalking,dancingandplayingtennis)helpskeepyourbonesstrong.Sotrytofitinsomeofthistypeofexerciseregularly.

Don’t have too much vitamin aHavingtoomuchvitaminA(morethan�.�mgofvitaminAaday,fromfoodand/orsupplements)mightincreasetheriskofbonefracture.

LiverisarichsourceofvitaminA,soyoushouldavoideatingliverorliverproductssuchaspâtémorethanonceaweek,oryoucouldeatsmallerportions.Ifyoudoeatliveronceaweek,youshouldavoidtakinganysupplementscontainingvitaminAorfishliveroils(whichcontainhighlevelsofvitaminA).

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Top tips for good food hygienen Alwayswashyourhandsbeforepreparingfood.

n Keeprawmeat,poultryandeggsawayfromotherfoods.

n Alwayscleanworksurfaces,choppingboardsandknivesthoroughlyaftertheyhavebeentouchedbyrawmeatorpoultry–andbeforeusingthemwithotherfoods.

n Followthestorageinstructionsonfoodlabels,forexample‘keeprefrigerated’or‘eatwithin3daysofopening’.

n don’teatfoodafterits‘useby’date.

n Coolleftoversasquicklyaspossibleandputtheminthefridge.

n Keeppetsoffworksurfaces.

Safety first

Don’t forGEt to takE carE witH fooD, to makE SurE it’S SafE to Eat.

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Formoreinformationandadviceaboutfood,visittheFoodStandardsAgency’swebsites:

eatwell.gov.uk food.gov.uk salt.gov.uk

Food Standards agency Publications ToorderfurthercopiesofthisorotherpublicationsproducedbytheAgency,contactFoodStandardsAgencyPublications:

tel 0�4��0�0���minicom 0�4��0�0���fax 020����322�email foodstandards@ecgroup.co.uk

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