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We hear the message loud, clear, and often: eat well, move more, live longer. For many people, this is frequently a case of ‘easier said than done’. Most of us know that one of the age-old secrets to looking and feeling our best is a healthy diet and lifestyle, but just exactly what this means for our day-to-day lives can be less obvious. With information bombarding us from all sides, is there a simpler, less confusing set of food rules to follow?
Forget faddy diets as a means to eating better and feeling healthier – the key is to develop good eating habits in line with a healthy, balanced diet that work for you in the long-term. It’s about understanding which foods and food groups impact your health in a positive way, and how to eat the right amount of food for your energy needs. Thinking more carefully about what’s on your plate, and your choices when snacking or out and about, can help you to manage your diabetes.
You may have heard of The Eatwell Plate, which was developed by the Foods Standard Agency to show, visually, the types and proportions of food needed for a healthy and well-balanced diet.
Put simply, The Eatwell Guide is an updated version of this. It aims to make it easier for you to identify foods you should try to eat more of, foods you should aim to eat less of, and how much of what you eat overall should come from which food group. Following the guidelines can help with effective diabetes management, encouraging you to make healthier choices for your body.
It applies to most people, but not for children under two as they have different nutritional needs. If you have diabetes, you might want to check with your registered dietitian on how to adapt The Eatwell Guide to meet your own individual needs.
There are also some foods and drinks that do not fall into these groups.
Foods high in fat, salt and sugar, such as cakes, chocolate, crisps and fizzy drinks, have been placed outside of the main image. Described as ‘foods to eat less often and in small amounts’, they are not considered essential to a healthy, balanced diet.
Hopefully, nothing too taxing – it means taking a look at what your current meals are and seeing whether they fit with the food group and food portion guidelines.
The good news is that The Eatwell Guide is relevant to most of us – whether you’re a healthy weight or overweight, follow a vegetarian diet or eat meat, and no matter your ethnic origin – it’s suitable for the whole family.
Simply being more aware of what you’re eating, and just how much, can make a real difference in tackling a less-than-healthy diet.
It’ll come as no surprise that the Guide encourages lots of eating habits that we’d expect – giving over more room on our plates to vegetables, including sensible amounts of carbohydrates and protein with our meals, reducing sugar, fat and salt in our food and drink, and drinking plenty of healthy fluids throughout the day.
Whilst lots of the advice is the same, it’s worth recapping on what we know about healthy eating…
Don’t panic! You shouldn’t feel that all your favourite foods, much-loved meals and days of treating yourself are over… that is not what The Eatwell Guide is asking of us. Instead, it’s suggesting that we pay closer attention to how we ‘build’ our meals and snacks throughout the day – Are there enough vegetables on your plate? Can you swap your usual white carbs to a tasty wholegrain equivalent? Have you hit that all-important 5-a-day? How many cups of tea and glasses of water have you had? Do you really need that mid-afternoon sugar fix?
So, why not give it a go? If you’re stuck for ideas, check out our recipe finder to discover healthy meals that the whole family will love.
Being a little mindful today might make a significant difference tomorrow…
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