Healthy Eating Eating a well balanced diet is important for everyone no matter what your age or activity level. In Australia we are lucky to have a broad range of foods available which means choosing a healthy diet can be relatively easy - as long as you know what you are looking for. The following information provides a general guide to choosing foods so that you can be sure you're doing the best for you and your family's health!
Try and choose the recommended amounts of foods from each of the five food groups every day. Within each group different foods provide more of some nutrients than others, so try and choose a variety of foods within each group.
Bread, cereals, pasta, rice & noodles
This group of foods provide carbohydrates, protein, fibre and a wide range of vitamins and minerals including folate, thiamin. riboflavin, niacin and iron. Wholegrain varieties provide more fibre, vitamins and minerals.
Aim to eat between 5 and 12 serves from this group daily. The amount you need depends on your energy requirements and can be estimated by consulting a dietitian or using your appetite as a guide. Generally, the less active and older you are the lower your energy requirements will be. The more active and younger you are, the more you will need to eat to satisfy your appetite.
Vegetables and legumes
This group includes all varieties of different vegetables and legumes which are the seeds of the plant from the Leguminosae family. Legumes include dried beans and peas such as kidney beans and chickpeas, lentils and canned beans such as baked beans.
Vegetables and legumes are excellent sources of a broad range of vitamins and minerals and dietary fibre. Some, such as the legumes, potatoes, corn and other starchy vegetables are also good sources of carbohydrate. Try to have at least 4 serves a day from this group.
Fruit
Fruit provides a broad range of vitamins including vitamin C and folate, one of the B group vitamins-Fruit also provides carbohydrate in the form of natural sugar and is a good source of fibre. Fruit juice falls into this group, however, has a much lower fibre c6ntent than fresh fruit. Try to eat at least 2 serves of fruit a day.
Milk, yoghurt & cheese
The most important nutrient contributed by this group of foods is calcium. Very few other foods in the Australian diet contain as much of this important nutrient. Milk, yoghurt and cheese are also important sources of protein, riboflavin and vitamin B12. For most people over 5 years of age the best choices in this group are low fat varieties; for children, full cream varieties are recommended. Try and have at least 2 serves from this group daily.
Meat, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts & legumes
The foods in this group are a good source of protein. iron, niacin and vitamin B12 and at least one serve should be eaten daily. Legumes are included in this group as well as the vegetable group as they are good sources of protein as well as carbohydrate and fibre.
Other foods
What about all the other foods that don't fit into the five food groups such as biscuits, alcohol, cakes, pastries, pies, pasties, chocolate and lollies? These foods can be enjoyed in small amounts or occasionally as they don't contribute many essential nutrients to the body.
Oils & margarines Oils and margarines contain essential fatty acids which can be beneficial to heart health when included in a low fat diet. Use them in small amounts as a spread on bread or in cooking.
This handout is provided by Network for Fitness Professionals
P0 Box 57, Neutral Bay, NSW 2089.
Web site: www.globalfit.net