Whether you’ve decided to keep your weight steady or are aiming for weight loss, making healthy changes to your daily diet and being more active is the key to achieving success. But what constitutes a healthy, balanced diet?
This article will help answer that question and give you options to make the most of food. We offer a plethora of practical information about different types of food that will help you in your bid to manage your weight.
Using the Eatwell Guide for a Balanced Diet
Healthy eating, dieting and food fads – there are articles in nearly every newspaper and magazine about the latest diet crazes. Unfortunately though, often the messages are conflicting or misleading and it can be difficult to know which advice is nutritionally sound and accurate.
That’s where the UK’s national food guide comes in, known as ‘The Eatwell Guide’.
Eating well is all about balance and variety, and ‘The Eatwell Guide’ can help you achieve this. It’s made up of five food groups, each group representing a different segment in the plate. The segments vary in size, depending on the proportions needed to make up a healthy diet. Download the free Eatwell Plate PDF below to help you get the balance right.
If we take a look at the typical food groups which make up a balanced diet, you can apply the following rules to be sure of a healthy outcome.
- Bread, rice, potatoes, pasta and other starchy foods
Eat plenty, choose wholegrain varieties when you can - Fruit and vegetables
Eat plenty, at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day. - Milk and dairy foods
Eat some, choose lower fat alternatives whenever possible. - Meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein
Eat some, choose lower fat alternatives whenever possible. Aim for at least two portions of fish a week, including one portion of oily fish. - Foods and drinks high in fat and/or sugar
Keep to a minimum. - Try to choose food options which are lower in salt when you can. Adults should have no more than 6 grams of salt a day in a balanced diet.
Bear in mind that eating unhealthily over prolonged periods of time will not just cause you to put on weight – there is evidence that the bacteria in your digestive system can get ‘out of whack’ as well, leading to problems like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). If you feel that you are suffering from this then be sure to speak to your doctor and potentially investigate prebiotics and probiotics.
Healthy Drinks
Making sure you drink enough fluids is just as important for good health and a balanced diet as eating well. Replacing fluid on a daily basis is vital. Most adults need to drink around 1.5 – 2 litres of water each day: more if the weather is hot. Filling up on fluids also has the benefit of helping to reduce your appetite if you are looking to lose weight.
Be Drink Wise!
- Water is the best and cheapest drink, so drink it plain, with ice and lemon or flavour with a low calorie squash or fruit juice
- Tea and coffee (without sugar)
- Sugar-free soft drinks, flavoured waters or squashes
- Flavoured waters can make a pleasant change (usually contain only a small amount of sugar, but check the label)
- Herbal and fruit teas
- Low fat milk
Sweetened drinks, such as fruit squashes and fizzy drinks are high in sugar, so when you’re cutting calories, opt for low calorie, ‘diet’ or no sugar choices.
Alcohol
It’s OK to enjoy a drink or two as part of your healthy eating plan, but remember alcohol is high in calories (approx. 200 kcals for a pint of beer; 120 kcals for a glass of wine) and, if taken in excess is harmful to your health.
‘Sensible’ daily limits are:
- For women: 2-3 units
- For men: 3-4 units
A single ‘unit’ is:
- Half a pint of ordinary strength bitter, lager or cider
- ½ small glass of red or white wine (100-125ml)
- 1 small pub measure of spirits (25ml)
- 1 small glass of sherry (50ml)
Beware of:
‘Alcopops’; strong beers, lagers and cocktails, as these are often higher in alcohol and calories than standard drinks.
Most wines are between 11-14% alcohol by volume meaning the a very modest 125ml of wine provides 1.4 to 1.75 units of alcohol and a 250 ml glass can contains as much as 2.8 to 3.5 units.
For your waistline and general health, keep well below the sensible limits and save alcohol for special occasions rather than drinking it every day.
Are you Weight Wise?
Small changes to your daily diet can make big differences in the long run. Controlling the fat in your diet is one of the best ways to help you lose weight.
Each gram of fat contains 9 calories, twice as much as the starchy carbohydrates found in bread, rice, pasta and potatoes. So it makes sense to check out how much fat you eat and watch out for “hidden” fats.
How often do you eat fatty foods and snacks – could you eat smaller portions, eat them less frequently or opt for lower fat versions?
As a quick guide, use this rule of thumb to help you work out whether the amount of fat, sugar and saturated fat listed on food labels is a little or a lot. Cutting down on sugar is another way to cut calories, and eating too much saturated fat can increase your risk of heart disease.
For a complete meal or 100g of a snack item (such as biscuits or crisps)
- A LITTLE means: 5g sugars
- 0.3g salt
or LESS
- 0.3g salt
- A LOT means:
- 15g sugars
- 3g fat 20g fat
- 1.5g saturated fat
- 5g saturated fat
- 1.5g salt or MORE
Links:
For more about heart disease see www.bhf.org.uk. For more information on food labelling see The Eatwell Guide at the NHS website.
Wise up on fats
- Switch to lower fat cooking methods: grill, bake, microwave, steam or boil
- Use less fat in cooking: switch to an oil spray or measure out oil when cooking (1 teaspoon per person per meal). When you do use an oil, choose a pure vegetable oil e.g. olive; sunflower, corn or soya
- Switch to reduced or low fat spreading fats and spread thinly
- Cut the fat off meat before cooking
- Remove the skin from chicken before cooking
- Buy the leanest cuts of meat you can afford
- Check the fat content before buying ready meals. Watch out for ready made sauces – cheesy and creamy ones are likely to be high in fat, and even tomato based sauces can be oily and so check the label
- Switch to oil-free dressings, such as lemon juice and vinegar, or shop bought dressings providing less than 20kcals per serving (check the label)
- Choose low fat dairy products: skimmed/semi skimmed milk; reduced fat cheese (or use small amounts of highly flavoured hard cheeses); low fat yogurt and fromage frais
- Instead of cream, try half fat crème fraiche, or 0% fat Greek yogurt
Small Changes, Big Benefits
See just how many grams of fat and calories you can save by making some simple food swaps:
| Swap | Save |
|---|---|
|
2 chocolate digestives for 2 plain biscuits |
113 kcals & 5g of fat |
|
Cream cake for a currant bun |
85kcals & 38g fat |
|
Can of fizzy drink for sparkling mineral water |
138 kcals |
|
Milkshake for a diet drink |
516kcals & 13g fat |
|
Large burger, large fries for a regular burger, regular fries |
461kcals & 32g fat |
|
1 pint whole milk for 1 pint skimmed milk |
200kcals & 22g fat |
|
Chocolate biscuit for an apple |
89 kcals & 7g fat |
