Healthy Eating

What is a healthy balanced meal?

Ideally, you should eat 3 small meals a day, with healthy snacks in between. Half your plate should consist of vegetables, salads or fruit, a quarter of your plate should consist of high-fibre starchy foods (e.g. brown rice, wholewheat, Sweet potato, brown ugali) the other quarter of your plate should consist of lean protein (e.g. fish, skinless chicken or lean meat, beans or lentils). The meal should also contain a small serving of healthy fat (e.g. vegetable oil, avocado or unsalted nuts). Healthy snacks between meals to keep up your energy throughout the day include fresh fruit or fruit salad (without added sugar), low-fat/fat-free yoghurt, unsalted nuts, raisins or other dried fruit, raw vegetables (e.g. cucumber, carrots, celery).

The benefits of a healthy diet are:

• Your immune system is stronger
• You get sick less often
• You miss fewer days of work.
• You save money on fewer doctor’s visits and medicines
• You have more energy
• You are more likely to maintain a healthy weight
• You can concentrate and learn more easily
• Your skin, hair and nails all look better
• Your teeth are stronger/li>
• You reduce your risk of getting diabetes, hypertension, cancer and heart disease

Controlling your portion size

Remember that controlling the amount of food you eat at every meal is an important way to lose weight or to avoid putting it on. These suggestions may help you:

• Use a smaller plate and don’t overfill it
• Decrease your portion sizes gradually over time, so you don’t notice it as much
• Fill half your plate with vegetables or salad
• Dish up only once and avoid having second helpings
• Eat more slowly and chew your food properly
• Don’t finish your children’s’ leftovers
• Sit down at the table and eat with your family
• Don’t watch TV while you eat