Healthy Eating

A healthy diet may help to prevent certain long-term (chronic) diseases such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes. It may also help to reduce your risk of developing some cancers and help you to keep a healthy weight. This leaflet explains the principles of a healthy diet. It is general advice for most people. The advice may be different for certain groups of people, including pregnant women, people with certain health problems or those with special dietary requirements.

A note about the different food groups

Your body needs energy to work normally and keep you alive. You obtain this energy from nutrients in the food that you eat - mostly, carbohydrates, fats and proteins. Minerals and vitamins are other nutrients that are also important in your diet to help your body stay healthy.

It is important to find the right balance between these different nutrients to achieve maximum health benefits (see below). A balanced diet generally contains food from each of the following food groups:

Starchy foods such as bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, etc.

Fruit and vegetables.

Milk and dairy foods.

Protein foods. These include meat, fish, eggs and other non-dairy sources of protein (including nuts, tofu, beans, pulses, etc).

Fatty and sugary foods are the fifth food group that you eat. However, only a small amount of what you eat should be made up from fatty and sugary foods.

In addition to the above, having plenty of fibre and water in your diet is also important for your health.

What are the benefits of a healthy diet?

A healthy diet may help to prevent certain serious diseases such as heart disease, stroke and diabetes. It may also help to reduce your risk of developing some cancers. If you become sick, eating a healthy diet may help you to recover more quickly. Also, a main way of preventing obesity and overweight is to eat a healthy diet. If you are overweight or obese, eating a healthy diet can help you lose weight.

As well as healthy eating, regular physical exercise is also very important for health and to avoid or reduce obesity. See also separate leaflet called Physical Activity for Health.

What makes up a healthy diet?

As a general rule, vegetables, fruits and starchy foods should provide the bulk of most of your meals. The remaining part of your diet should be made up from milk and dairy foods and protein foods. As mentioned above, you should limit the amount of foods and drinks that are high in fat or sugar. The dietary guidance to reduce your risk of heart disease is as follows:

Intake of saturated fat to less than 10% of total fat intake (preferably in lean meat and low-fat dairy products):

Replace saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat where possible.

Eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables per day (new research has suggested that we should all aim for seven portions per day).

Eat at least two servings of fish (preferably oily fish) per week.

Consider regularly eating whole grains and nuts.

Keep the amount of salt in your diet to less than 6 g per day.

Limit alcohol intake to less than 21 units per week for men and less than 14 units per week for women. See also separate leaflet called Alcohol and Sensible Drinking.

Avoid or reduce the following in your diet:

Processed meats or commercially produced foods (including 'ready meals') which tend to be high in salt and trans fatty acids.

Refined carbohydrates, such as white bread and processed cereals.

Sugar-sweetened drinks.

High-calorie but nutritionally poor snacks, such as sweets, cakes and crisps.

Below, the principles of a healthy diet are explained. It is general advice for most people. If you have a specific health problem, or specific dietary requirements, this advice may not apply to you. If in doubt, you should check with your doctor. There are also some changes that pregnant women need to make to their diet. See separate leaflet called Planning to Become Pregnant for more details.

Carbohydrates

Much of the energy (calories) in what we eat comes from carbohydrate. These are divided into two carbohydrate types:

Complex carbohydrates - generally starchy foods such as bread, pasta, rice and potatoes.

Simple carbohydrates - the sweet sugary foods.

There is a lot being written about how much of our food should be made up of carbohydrates but most of the guidelines recommend about one third. This should be mostly starchy carbohydrates, preferably higher-fibre options such as wholemeal bread, wholegrain cereals and brown rice.

Glycaemic index

The glycaemic index of a food is the rate at which the food raises blood sugar levels after it has been eaten. If a food has a low glycaemic index, it is processed by the body in a way which means it is less likely to lead to problems such as diabetes and obesity.

Higher-fibre carbohydrates, such as wholegrain cereals and wholemeal bread, tend to have a lower glycaemic index than more refined starches such as white bread, snack foods and sugary drinks. This means they are a healthier option for this reason as well as for the fibre they contain.

Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables

New research suggests that eating at least seven portions of fruit and vegetables daily reduces the risks of many illnesses, such as stroke, heart disease and some cancers. Ideally there should be more vegetables than fruit in your diet. In addition to these benefits, fruit and vegetables:

Contain lots of fibre which helps to keep your bowels healthy. Problems such as constipation and diverticular disease are less likely to develop.

Contain plenty of vitamins and minerals, which are needed to keep you healthy.

Are naturally low in fat.

Help to make you feel full after a meal but are low in calories.

An average portion of vegetables may be about a handful, or about 80 g. Alternatively, one portion of fruit or vegetables is roughly equivalent to one of the following:

One large fruit such as an apple, pear, banana, orange, or a large slice of melon or pineapple.

Two smaller fruits such as plums, kiwis, satsumas, clementines, etc.

One cup (or a handful) of small fruits such as grapes, strawberries, raspberries, cherries, etc.

Two large tablespoons of fruit salad, stewed or canned fruit in natural juices.

One tablespoon of dried fruit.

One glass of fresh fruit juice (150 ml).

About three heaped tablespoons of any vegetable.

One dessert bowl of salad.

Some tips on how to increase fruit and vegetables in your diet include:

Try some different types that you have not tried before. The variety of tastes and textures may be surprising. Frozen, canned and dried varieties all count.

Try adding chopped bananas, apples, or other fruits to breakfast cereals.

Aim to include at least two different vegetables with most main meals. Do not over-boil vegetables. Steaming, stir-frying, or lightly boiling are best to retain the nutrients.

Try to have fruit with each meal or a small glass of fruit juice.

Try new recipes which include fruit. For example, some curries or stews include fruit such as dried apricots. Have fruit-based puddings. Fruit with yoghurt is a common favourite.

Consider cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks, dried apricots, or other fruits as part of packed lunches.

Fruit is great for snacks. Encourage children to snack with fruit rather than with sweets.