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Healthy Diet

Quiz
1. The experts are always changing their minds about what healthy eating
is –
true or false?
2. Are avocados a healthy choice?
3. Does dried fruit count as one of the five portions of fruit and vegetables
we
should eat every day?
4. Do we get most of the salt in our diets from the salt we add at the table
or
from processed foods?
5. Does healthier catering cost more?
6. Does healthy eating need to be boring?
7. Does margarine contain less fat than butter?
8. Can a traditional cooked breakfast ever be a healthy choice?
9. What’s the difference between sodium and salt?
10. Is red meat always a higher fat option then poultry?
11. Does eating eggs cause high blood cholesterol?
12. Are savoury foods less fattening than sweet foods?
13. Do people with diabetes need to eat a special diet?
14. Is adding bran to food the best way to increase the fibre content?
15. Is it necessary to take dietary supplements to have a healthy diet?

Healthy Diet
Answers
1 The experts are always changing their minds about what healthy
eating is – true or false?
False – It might seem as though nutrition experts regularly change their
minds and
don't agree with each other. But, in fact, the main messages about healthy
eating
have stayed the same for some time.
For example, the message to reduce the amount of fat we eat has been the
same
for more than 15 years, and we were being told about the importance of fruit
and
veg as long ago as the Second World War. Then the advice was to 'dig for
victory'
and grow our own.
When we do hear contradictory messages about healthy eating, this is often
because new scientific findings tend to be reported in the media before they
have
been fully researched, and without the findings being put into context.
2 Are avocados a healthy choice?
Yes – Avocados contain monounsaturated fat, which has a positive effect on
blood
cholesterol levels. As part of a healthy diet it's important to reduce the
amount of
saturated fat we eat and replace it with unsaturated fat, as well as reducing
the
total amount of fat we eat. This means avocados are a healthy choice.
Half an avocado also counts as one of the five portions of a variety of fruit
and
vegetables we should be eating each day. However, avocados do contain fat
and
eating too much of any food containing fat can lead to weight gain if the
energy
isn't used up through physical activity.
3 Does dried fruit count as one of the five portions of fruit and veg
we
should eat every day?
Yes – People sometimes think that only fresh fruit and veg count towards the
minimum of five portions of a variety of fruit and veg we are recommended
to eat
each day as part of a healthy balanced diet. But all types count, whether they
are
fresh, frozen, canned, dried or juiced (but fruit juice only counts as a
maximum of
one portion a day).
Dried fruit such as currants, sultanas, raisins, dates and figs provide energy
in the
form of sugar and are a good source of fibre. They also contain other
vitamins and
minerals, but not vitamin C, which is found in fresh fruit. A portion of dried
fruit is
one heaped tablespoon. This is less than a portion of fresh fruit because it’s
based
on the equivalent weight of fresh fruit.
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4 Do we get most of the salt in our diets from the salt we add at the
table
or from processed foods?
Processed foods – Three-quarters (75%) of the salt we eat comes from
processed foods, such as breakfast cereals, soups, sauces, ready meals and
biscuits. Just 10 to 15% comes from the salt we add when we're cooking or at
the
table.
Even if you’re making food from scratch, you may well be buying processed
foods
such as bread, sauces and biscuits, which can be high in salt. So take a look
at the
food you're buying – or ask the supplier how much salt their products contain
– as
well as checking how much salt you’re adding during preparation.
On average people are eating about 9.5g of salt a day. But we should try to
cut this
down to less than 6g of salt a day.
5 Does healthier catering cost more?
No – Although it's true that some healthier ingredients can be more
expensive,
often you only need to use them in very small amounts. And sometimes
choosing
the healthier alternative can actually save you money.
You can make meat go further by cooking it in casseroles or stir-fries with
cheaper
ingredients such as beans, pulses or seasonal veg. Basing your meals on
starchy
foods, such as rice, pasta or bread, is not only a good idea for a healthy
balanced
diet, but these foods are also good value and can make a meal go further.
Similarly, serving more bread or other starchy staples with meals is a
relatively
cheap step.
6 Does healthy eating need to be boring?
No it doesn’t – It's true that we shouldn't eat too much of certain foods, or
eat
them too often, such as those high in fat or sugar, but there are lots of
interesting
foods we should be eating more of, such as oily fish, starchy foods and fruit
and
veg.
And eating healthily doesn't mean cutting out people’s favourite foods, it's
about
getting the balance right.
If you add a bit of variety by regularly changing what you usually serve, you'll
also
get lots of opportunity to experiment. Remember, you can make healthy
eating
tasty, exciting and even exotic.
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7 Does margarine contain less fat than butter?
No – Butter and margarine contain different types of fat, but both contain a
similar
amount of fat. So whichever one you choose, the healthy option is to use it
sparingly.
8 Can a traditional cooked breakfast ever be a healthy choice?
Yes – If you grill lean bacon, poach the eggs and include reduced sugar/salt
baked
beans, grilled tomatoes and mushrooms cooked without fat, and serve it all
up with
thick crusty granary bread, you'll be giving your customers a delicious cooked
breakfast that is also healthy and balanced.
9 What’s the difference between salt and sodium?
Salt is also known as sodium chloride – 1g of sodium is equivalent to
about
2.5g of salt. It's the sodium in salt that can lead to health problems.
The recommendation for adults is to have no more than about 6 grams of salt
a
day, this means about 2.5g of sodium. And children should be having even
less
than this.
On average, people are actually having about 9.5g of salt a day. This means
we
are eating nearly 60% more salt than we should.
It's a good idea for everyone to try to cut down on the salt they are eating.
You
might find the following guide helpful:
per 100g food:
0.5g sodium or more is a LOT of sodium
0.1g sodium or less is a LITTLE sodium
At the moment most (but not all) foods are labelled with the amount of
sodium they
contain (in grams per 100g of the product) rather than the amount of salt.
This is
because not all sodium is in the form of sodium chloride. Other forms of
sodium
are used as flavour enhancers and preservatives, for example monosodium
glutamate and sodium bicarbonate.
The Food Standards Agency is working to get information about 'salt' rather
than
'sodium' included on food labels, to make labels easier to understand.

10 Is red meat always a higher fat option than poultry?


No – Removing visible fat can make a big difference to the fat content of meat. In
fact, lean red meat is quite low in fat at 4–8g per 100g. When the lean and fat
components of meat are blended together in mince or meat products, this can
make the fat content much higher.
Meat products, whether they've been made from red meat or poultry, can also be
high in fat because of the other high fat ingredients they contain, such as the
pastry in a meat pie or pasty.
Skinned poultry meat only contains about 1–3g fat per 100g, and white meat
contains less fat than darker meat. But if the skin and fatty deposits beneath it
aren't removed, the fat content will be much higher.
So try to go for leaner cuts, always remove the visible fat, and remove the skin
from poultry.
11 Does eating eggs cause high blood cholesterol?
No – Eggs contain cholesterol and high cholesterol levels in our blood increase the
risk of heart disease. However, the cholesterol we get from our food – and this
includes eggs – has less effect on the amount of cholesterol in our blood than the
amount of saturated fat we eat.
So, if people are eating a balanced diet they only need to cut down on eggs if they
have been told to do so by their GP or dietitian. If someone has been told to watch
their cholesterol levels, their priority should be cutting down on saturated fats.
12 Are savoury foods less fattening than sweet foods?
No – Sweet and savoury foods can both be high in fat. Fat contains twice the
calories and so provides twice as much energy as the same weight of sugar.
So even if a food isn’t sweet, this doesn’t mean it’s not fattening. Savoury foods
that have been fried, such as crisps and battered foods, can be particularly high in
fat.
But remember that people should also be trying to eat food and drinks containing
added sugars only occasionally because these foods contain calories but few other
nutrients. Sugar is added to many types of food such as fizzy drinks and juice
drinks, sweets and biscuits, jam, cakes, pastries and puddings and ice cream.
Sugary foods and drinks can cause tooth decay, particularly if people have them
between meals. This includes fruit juice and honey.
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13 Do people with diabetes need to eat a special diet?
No – People with diabetes should try to maintain a healthy weight and eat a
balanced diet. There are no foods that people with diabetes should never eat. And
there is no need to cut out all sugar.
But, like everyone, people with diabetes should try to eat only small amounts of
foods that are high in sugar or fat, or both. People who have diabetes can eat
cakes and biscuits sparingly, as part of a balanced diet. But drinking very large
amounts of fruit juice could cause problems with controlling blood sugar for some
people with diabetes, because of the fruit sugar (fructose) it contains.
The Food Standards Agency and Diabetes UK (formerly the British Diabetic
Association) don't recommend special diabetic products. Foods that are labelled
'diabetic' aren't necessarily healthier or more suitable for diabetics than other
foods. And they tend to be more expensive than other products. Many of the
products that are labelled 'diabetic' are sweets, chocolates and biscuits.
14 Is adding bran to food the best way to increase the fibre content?
No – Bran does contain fibre, but it also contains substances called phytates.
Phytates can stop minerals, such as calcium and iron, from being absorbed into
the body. This means it’s not a good idea to add a lot of bran to food.
Good sources of fibre include wholegrain cereal products – such as bread and
breakfast cereals – fruit, vegetables, beans and pulses.
15 Is it necessary to take dietary supplements to have a healthy diet?
No – A healthy balanced diet will provide all the nutrients that most people need.
Vitamin and mineral supplements are no substitute for good eating habits. A
healthy diet is a diet that:
Includes plenty of fruit and vegetables
Is rich in starchy foods
Contains moderate amounts of dairy products and moderate amounts of
meat and meat alternatives
Fruit and vegetables are rich in a range of nutrients, including fibre and
antioxidants such as vitamins C, E and A (in the form of carotenes).
Many of these nutrients are also available in the form of dietary supplements.
However, current thinking suggests that it's unlikely that these nutrients work in
isolation. Rather, it's a mixture of different components that seem to be the most
effective. So, taking supplements won't necessarily have the same benefits as
eating the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day.

Recommended Amounts
From the list below, circle the amount you believe is the recommended amount
per
day, per person.
Calories
Men 1500 3500 2500
Women 2000 1500 1000
Fat
Men 75g 95g 115g
Women 70g 80g 90g
Salt
Men 3g 5g 7g
Women 3g 5g 7g

Recommended Amounts
Answer Sheet
The correct answer is in bold and underlined
Calories
Men 1500 3500 2500
Women 2000 1500 1000
Fat
Men 75g 95g 115g
Women 70g 80g 90g
Salt
Men 3g 5g 7g
Women 3g 5g 7g

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