Eat well

The Government’s eight top tips for eating well are:

  • Base your meals on starchy foods
  • Eat lots of fruit and vegetables
  • Eat more fish
  • Cut down on saturated fat and sugar
  • Try to eat less salt – no more than 6g a day
  • Get active and try to be a healthy weight
  • Drink plenty of water
  • Don’t skip breakfast 

Eat foods that are high in fibre

Eating a diet that contains large amounts of fibre (found in wholewheat and wholegrain cereals, beans, pulses, pasta, and rice, fruit and vegetables) helps keep you regular and prevent constipation. A high fibre diet can also help to fill you up and give you plenty of energy which is handy if you are trying to lose weight or you find your energy levels drop during the day.

Eat five portions of fruit and veg a day

Fruit and vegetables contain lots of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and fibre. Eating at least five portions per day helps protect your body against illness and cancer.

Eat foods that are low in saturated fat

Cutting down on fat and particularly saturated fat will help to reduce or protect against high levels of cholesterol in the blood. High cholesterol levels can lead to narrowing and hardening of the arteries which forces the heart to work harder. This can cause high blood pressure, coronary heart disease and stroke.

Reduce your salt intake

Cutting down on the amount of salt you add to food during cooking and at the table can help to reduce your risk of high blood pressure. Most of the salt we eat is already in food, especially in highly processed foods and found naturally in other foods. Most people eat twice as much salt as they need which can lead to an increase in blood pressure.

Make sure you eat protein

Meat and meat alternatives (pulses, lentils, eggs, nuts) are important sources of protein, iron, B vitamins, zinc and magnesium. Try to have 1-2 small portions of meat or meat alternatives daily. Always try to buy lean meats and remove all visible fat and skin before cooking. Mix pulses like kidney beans and chickpeas in meat dishes to make them cheaper, lower in fat and higher in fibre. Eat fish 1-2 times a week and make at least one of these an oily fish, as they are good for maintaining a healthy heart.

Discard your food myths

There are a lot of messages about food out there and it can make it very confusing to know what you should and shouldn't eat. The Food Standards Agency is an independent food safety watchdog set up by an Act of Parliament in the year 2000. It's there to protect the public's health and consumer interests in relation to food. Read about some of the common food myths here.