h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

You should always remember, there is no such thing as a 'bad' food. You can eat *anything* as part of a healthy diet - it's just a question of getting the balance right. The various groups are often presented graphically as a pyramid - each layer is narrower than the one below, meaning we should eat less of the upper layers, and more of the bottom layers. So from the bottom up:

Most of your calorie intake should come from carbohydrates - bread, rice, pasta, potatoes and the like. Any wholemeal or wholegrain products will have more nutritional benefit than 'white' equivalents.

The current recommendation is to eat at least 5 servings of fruit & vegetables per day, although recent research suggests that just 3 servings may have the same benefits. (see http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3200545.stm for the story) Whatever you do eat, you should try and eat as wide a range of fruit/veg as possible - that way you stand to benefit from all the different nutrients that fresh produce can give.

Meat, poultry and fish are next. For many people (in the UK, at least) it may be fairly common to eat fish on a Friday. However, we should really eat more fish than this! Especially 'oily' fish (such as mackerel, herring, sardines, tuna and salmon) which are packed with omega-3 fatty acids, which are especially good for the heart.

Also in with the meat and fish are dairy products - good for calcium.

Right at the top of the pyramid we find the sugars and fats. You should try and minimise these - these are the things that are most likely to help you put on weight. If you can, switch from butter to a low-fat spread. Try halving the amount of sugar you put in your tea, or on your cereals. If you bake, try halving the amount of sugar in your recipes - you probably won't notice the difference.


So what about 'junk food'? No problem, just try and limit yourself to once or twice a week. Like I said, it's just a balancing act. Even if you really dislike a few things, there's more than enough to choose from to find something you *do* like. And that's the key - if you enjoy what you're eating, it's so much easier.

Urm... ditto!

to you too!

Speaking as a restauranteur a balanced diet is one where you have had a good meal with a decent wine in good company and your wallet is not to light at the end of the evening.
The balance is achieved by my wallet being heavier at the end of the evening.
Rgds Doug

As you say, it helps to focus on eating good food you like, rather than thinking about all the foods you shouldn't eat because they're bad for you. If you eat at work, keep healthy snacks like fresh fruit or dried fruit and nuts there. (Not keeping any food in my office does not work so well for me, because I end up going to the vending machine for chocolate.)

Try not to miss meals - I've even heard that it's a good idea to eat five small meals throughout the day, but that's not practical when you have to work. Three meals a day is a good compromise. Going for long stretches with no food can make you tired and irritable, or so hungry you start snacking on whatever comes to hand.

I seem to have less trouble eating healthily when cooking for myself than when going out, perhaps because cooking forces you to plan your meals in advance if you don't want to be shopping every day.

You should always eat breakfast - make time before you go to work by getting up slightly earlier, or take something in to work to eat at your desk. This really does stop you snacking through the whole day, and if you have ceriel it means you're getting a good dose of calcium too.

This summer there were posters all over The Hague stating:

A balanced diet is a pint of Murphy's in each hand.

I thought I'd let you know...

Terry

It is worth saying that while we are encouraged to include oily fish in our diets, we shouldn't eat more than two portions a week due to the levels of mercury and other pollutants absorbed by the fish from the sea. This is a sorry state of affairs indeed