- Briefly, a healthy diet means: AT LEAST five portions, or ideally 7-9 portions, of a variety of fruit and vegetables per day.
- A THIRD OF MOST MEALS should be starch-based foods (such as cereals, wholegrain bread, potatoes, rice, pasta), plus fruit and vegetables.
- NOT MUCH fatty food, such as fatty meats, cheeses, full-cream milk, fried food, butter, etc. Use low-fat, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated spreads.
- INCLUDE 2-3 portions of fish per week, at least one of which should be ‘oily’ (such as herring, mackerel, sardines, kippers, pilchards, salmon, or fresh tuna).
- If you eat meat it is best to eat lean meat, or poultry such as chicken.
If you do fry, choose a vegetable oil such as sunflower, rapeseed or olive. - Try not to add salt to food, and limit foods which are salty.
Try to lose weight if you are overweight or obese
You don’t need to get to a perfect weight. If you are overweight you can gain great health benefits by losing 5-10% of your weight. This is often about 5-10 kg. (10 kg is about one and a half stone.)
Don’t drink too much alcohol
Keep an eye on the amount of alcohol you drink. Men should drink no more than 21 units of alcohol per week, no more than four units in any one day, and have at least two alcohol-free days a week. Women should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol per week, no more than three units in any one day, and have at least two alcohol-free days a week.Pregnant women should not drink at all. One unit is in about half a pint of normal strength beer, or two thirds of a small glass of wine, or one small pub measure of spirits.
Healthy lifestlyle 