Healthy eating

Eating a balanced diet is important as we get the energy to keep going as well as the nutrients needed to stay healthy from our food. Eating well can feel intimidating at first, but getting to know the foundations of healthy eating is a good place to start.

The Eatwell Plate, endorsed by the NHS, is a good starting point to find out all you can about healthy eating. You should try to eat as wide a variety of foods as possible. If you can, try choosing from sustainable sources, so you help the health of the planet too!

One-third of your diet should be fruit and vegetables for minerals, vitamins and fibre

The first and most consistent piece of advice is to try and eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day. They can be fresh, frozen, canned, dried or juiced.

If this sounds like a lot, there are simple ways to sneak them onto your usual routine. Examples include adding nuts or dried fruit to your morning cereal, making sure you eat a side salad with your main course and choosing the soup over dessert (unless it’s fresh fruit salad). Why not drink your fruit and veg? 150ml counts as a serving, which is about the same as half a can of a soft drink.

One-third of your diet should be starchy food, mainly for energy

This includes things like potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates. The foundation for most meals, their main role is to give us the energy for life. They can also provide calcium, iron and B vitamins. You can ‘upgrade’ them by choosing the higher fibre versions: brown rice, wholemeal pasta, wholemeal bread or by eating potatoes with the skin on.

Fibre is a vital part of gut health and contributes to normal bowel function. In addition, it helps you feel full so you may be less inclined to overeat.

Starchy carbohydrates have a reputation for being high in calories, however they contain about half the calories of fats. Some fibre, e.g. oatmeal, can possibly even reduce blood cholesterol.

Add some dairy to support healthy bones

Milk, cheese and yoghurts as well as their soya alternatives (unsweetened) supply the calcium needed to maintain healthy bones. These foods are also a good source of protein which contributes to a growth in muscle mass.

You may benefit from choosing the lower fat varieties, which still provide the same amount of calcium. Similarly, keep an eye on the fat and salt levels in cheese. Fat can be as high as 40% in some cheeses!

Complete the plate with beans, fish, eggs and meat for protein

As well as protein, these foods can add vitamins, minerals and fibre to your diet.

Beans, peas and lentils (pulses), which are important in particular for vegetarian and vegan diets, are seeds that have grown in pods. These high performers can give you protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals all on a tight budget. They also count towards your five-a-day, which is good news for UK residents who eat more baked beans than the rest of the world combined!

For pescatarians, try to fit in at least two portions of fish a week with one of them being oily fish such as sardines, mackerel or salmon. They contain omega-3 fatty acids which can provide benefits for brain and heart health. If you are pregnant, it may be worth checking the specific advice for eating fish during pregnancy.

With no upper limit to their consumption, eggs can supply plenty of vitamins A, D, B2, B12, as well as folate, iodine and of course, protein. Unless you have been specifically advised to cut down on eggs, there is no need to worry about the cholesterol they contain.

If you’re a meat-eater, red meat provides us with iron, zinc and B vitamins (particularly B12) as well as protein, and can form a part of a healthy, balanced diet. To keep red and processed meats in balance, try not to eat more than 90g a day (less than a quarter pound). Red meats include beef, lamb and pork. Processed meats include sausages, ham, bacon and salami. Eating more than this over the long term can raise your cholesterol which can lead to heart disease. It can also put you at risk of bowel cancer. To illustrate, 90g is about the area of a slice and a half of typical sliced bread. A full English breakfast with two typical sausages and two rashers of bacon is equivalent to 130g. So enjoy it in moderation!

Be mean with the oil, stingy with the salt, sparing on the sugar

How you cook or prepare your food can have a significant impact on its nutrition – for example frying an egg can increase its fat content by about 50%. Try to boil or grill where possible. If frying, use the minimum amount of oil and use healthier choices such as coconut or olive oils.

Sugar, and salt, are not necessary for a healthy, balanced diet and are best kept to the minimum (it’s unlikely that you will want to ditch them entirely).

Good food is one of the great pleasures of life, and following the advice here will help you get the most from it.

You should be able to get everything you need from your diet, but if you still feel like you need a little extra support, why not try adding Berocca to your routine? Berocca tablets are packed full of vitamins and minerals, including B1 and B2 to help support energy release, B12 to help reduce tiredness and fatigue and Vitamin C and Zinc help support the immune system. You can take Berocca every day, so why not add it to your breakfast or lunch routine?