• Schedule weekly meal planning

• Choose brightly coloured, seasonal vegetables

• Change the way you cook to reduce fat

• Substitute salt for healthier seasoning & spices

• Control your portions, think space on your plate

Breakfast

This is when you break your fast by eating, usually after a good night’s sleep.  Breakfast will help fuel up the energy stores you have used during the night, and it will also give you mental and physical energy for your morning, such as school, college and work.

Why Is Breakfast Important?

Besides providing you with energy, a healthy breakfast gives you many other nutritional benefits. A healthy breakfast provides your body with essential nutrients such as fibre, iron, and vitamins. Studies have shown that people who eat breakfast enjoy more balanced meals than those who to skip it. They are also less likely to be overweight and have decreased risk of certain diseases.

When you miss breakfast, you are more likely to snack on unhealthy foods later in the morning and you will struggle with a nutritional catch up later in the day.

Breakfast also helps improve your mental performance, concentration, and having a better mood.

What Makes For A Healthy Breakfast?

A healthy, well-balanced breakfast should be based on the main food groups and provide you with about 20-25 per cent of your daily nutritional requirements.

1. Breads, cereals, rice, and other starchy foods – give you energy, B vitamins, iron, and fibre. Choose wholegrain varieties when possible to boost up your fibre and nutrients, and try to avoid cereals that are coated in sugar.

2. Meat, fish, eggs, legumes – give you protein, iron, and vitamins. Choose lean meat cuts and avoid high fat foods such as processed meats and fried eggs. Choose healthy cooking methods such as grilling or poaching, instead of frying.

3. Milk and dairy foods – give you protein, calcium and B vitamins. Choose low-fat/skimmed milk and dairy foods. If you are not having cereal, drink a glass of milk on its own or as a milkshake, or have a cup of yogurt or spread low fat cheese or labnah on bread.

4. Fruit and vegetables – these are good sources of essential vitamins, minerals, and fibre. Breakfast is a perfect time to include at least one portion of the recommended five portions a day of fruits and vegetables. Add vegetables like peppers, broccoli, mushrooms or tomatoes to your egg or egg white omelette, or add strawberries or blueberries to your cereal or toast.

What Else?                                                                                                          

Include a drink in your breakfast, water, milk, 100% pure juice, and vegetable juice are the best options!

Avoid foods and drinks that are high in both fat and sugar as they are low in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients

Remember, at your breakfast. It really is the most important meal of the day!

Healthy Lunch

Your lunchtime meal or lunchbox doesn’t have to be boring; rather, you can use your imagination and make it healthy, tasty, and more creative than standard lunch-on-the-go ‘cafeteria or fast food’ food. Just make sure you have something from each of the four food groups  in your lunchbox, put a drink, and off you go! 

Start With Grains - breads, cereals, pastas

To make your sandwich more interesting, try using a variety of breads, even a different bread every day! Here are some bread types to consider: multigrain, wholemeal, whole-wheat, flax, rye, pita, pumpkin.

You could also pack some leftovers from the night before – such as homemade, fresh thin-bread pizza. For a quick pasta dish, add some vegetables, tomato sauce, tuna or chicken and your favourite olive oil or fresh tomato sauce dressing.

Tasty, Balanced Sandwich Fillings and Extras

Try to include a good mix of lean meat cuts, fish, chicken, legumes, nuts, and seeds in your lunchbox:

• Tuna with cucumber, tomato, and green pepper
• Cooked chicken or turkey, mustard, tomatoes , and lettuce
• Peanut butter and grated carrots
• Hummus with olive oil
• Egg with light mayonnaise and cucumber
• Labnah with tomatoes, cucumber, and olives
• Salmon with pickles, and lettuce

Remember, if choosing non-processed, cheese or labnah spreads, make sure you they are the low-fat or skimmed versions!

Fruit and Veggies

It is important to eat at least five portions of fruits and vegetables everyday. Here are some good lunch time choices:

Consider choosing raw veggies and have at least one dark green or orange vegetable choice, such as cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, broccoli, bell pepper, spinach, and romaine lettuce or a mixed salad

Also, remember some fresh fruit such as apple, pear, kiwi, orange or berries, and include some low-glycemic index fruits and vegetables. 

Dairy Pleasure

To keep your bones and teeth healthy, try to include low-fat or skimmed dairy products at lunchtime.

• Low-fat or skimmed yogurt – plain or fruit flavoured
• Milkshake
• Rice pudding

Healthy Drinks

Water – still or sparkling

Plain milk – low-fat or skimmed 

Soya milk – low-fat or skimmed

100% fruit juice or vegetable juice

What Else?

• Make sure that the serving sizes are reasonable – check our the fist guide
• Ensure that high calorie foods containing fat, sugar or salt - the ones that are not part of the four groups - are absent
• Make sure that cold food is kept cold and  hot food is kept hot
• Add a little something special to make lunch really enjoyable

Healthy Snacks           

Snacks can be a good thing. They can ‘top us up’ and help us feel good by giving an energy boost as the right snacks provide added important nutrients. For example, it is often a good idea to snack before or after exercise, or if there was a long period between meals. The key is to choose snacks that provide energy and are packed with vitamins and minerals, not the ones that are high in calories, fat, and salt. Opt for snacks that contain 100 calories or less to stay within your daily calorie goal.

Choose snacks from these food groups:

Breads and Other Starchy Foods        

These foods provide energy to our body throughout the day. They are low in fat; contain vitamins, minerals, and more fibre if you choose wholegrain types. Here are some suggestions for an easy snack:

• Slice of toast with hummus and cucumber
• Small bowl of wholegrain cereals with low-fat/skimmed milk
• Handful of rice crackers or a rice cake
• Handful of dry cereals
• mini sandwich with low-fat cheese and tomatoes

Fruits and Vegetables           

Eating fruits and vegetables can satisfy a hunger pang, without adding fat and only a small number of calories. Fruits and vegetables also provide vitamins, minerals, fibre and other essential nutrients. Here are some interesting ideas to eat fruits and vegetables:

• Layer fresh berries with yogurt
• Handful of dried fruits
• Tomatoes, carrot sticks with low-fat or skimmed Areesh cheese or labnah
• Sliced pineapple or grapefruit

Nuts and Seeds      

Nuts and seeds are a tasty source of protein, which will help you feel fuller for longer period of time. Nuts and seeds are high in fibre, rich in vitamins and minerals. They are also high in the healthy kind of fat and calories – so it is not a good idea to eat too many of them! Choose almonds and walnuts, as they are good source of omega 3.

• Add walnuts on yoghurt
• Handful of almonds and pumpkin seeds
• Sprinkle flaxseed on salad

Dairy Foods   

Snacking on these foods will help you reach the recommended 3-4 servings of dairy foods each day. Cheese, yoghurt, laban, labnah and other dairy products are good sources of calcium, protein, and many other vitamins and minerals. Just make sure you choose the low-fat or skimmed versions of these products.

• Low-fat or skimmed cup of yoghurt
• Nescafe made with low-fat milk
• Areesh cheese with crackers
• Strawberry smoothie made with low-fat milk

Remember…

Healthy snacking doesn’t have to be boring! With a  little reorganisation and creation, you can make your snacks a healthy and valuable part of your diet!

Eating Healthy When Eating Out    

Eating healthy doesn't have to mean that you avoid eating at restaurants all together. Just remember to make wise food choices and plan ahead when you eat out.

• If you know ahead of time that you're going to a restaurant, cut back on calories or go light with your other meals that day or that week.

• For sandwich toppings, go for low-fat options like lettuce, tomato and onion

• Many restaurants serve huge portions, sometimes enough for two or three people. Eat a smaller portion, and ask to take the leftovers home for another meal.

• Choose a restaurant that has a wide range of food choices

• Menu terms that could indicate that the food item is rich in fat and calories include: batter-fried, pan-fried, buttered, creamed, crispy, breaded, rich or au gratin.

• Choose foods that are baked, grilled, broiled, steamed, or poached (instead of fried or breaded).

• Replace your French fries with a salad and ask for the dressing to be aside

• Choose a healthy dessert, such as fruit salad, or simply share one dessert

• Don’t be intimidated to ask for information in the restaurant or to ask to replace some food items with others to make a more nutritious meal

• Start with a non-cream soup or salad that might help you feel satisfied and then opt for a light main course

• Remember to eat slowly. It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to get the message from your stomach that you are no longer hungry. Fast eaters often are overeaters, while slow eaters tend to eat less and are still satisfied.

• Avoid upsizing: although it might seem tempting to go for a larger food portion at a low cost, but you have to know that by doing this you are taking extra calories and fats which are difficult to get rid of. So if you still choose to take this meal, share it with someone or take half of it home for another meal.

Finally remember it’s all about balance! Keep the four food groups in mind when thinking about your meals, since they might help you make wise choices.