The constituents of a healthy diet are confusing to many. What should I be eating? Is a question asked by many people when it comes to starting a new healthy lifestyle.

The three major food groups are called macronutrients. The macronutrients are more commonly known as Carbohydrate, Protein and Fat. They are separated by way of their chemical make-up, and each have a very important role in the human body – it is important that you consume adequate amounts of each to ensure you are eating a balanced diet.

By consuming a wide variety of foods from each of the food groups you will ensure you meet your body’s nutritional requirements.

Carbohydrates

We derive most of our energy from carbohydrates, so the bulk of our diet should consist of foods from this group. Without carbohydrates your body has to rely on other sources for its energy, which is very inefficient and can lead to lots of health problems, ranging from bad breath to death by organ failure in extreme cases.

There are two different types of carbohydrate – simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are so-called as they break down easily during digestion and release their energy quickly. Simple carbohydrates are generally bad for us. The best example of a simple carbohydrate is white sugar.
Complex carbohydrates take longer to break down, therefore release their energy over a longer period of time. These are better for us as they contain more fibre and stabilize insulin levels better. Examples are oats and wholegrains.

Carbohydrates consist of sugar molecules, which are broken down to the simple sugar (glucose) the body uses for energy. One gram of carbohydrate contains 4 kilocalories.

Sources of healthy carbohydrates include¦

Oats
Brown rice
Oatcakes
Sweet potato
Wholewheat pasta
Wholewheat pittas
Wholewheat tortillas
Ryvita
Boiled and baked potato

Proteins

At a cellular level protein is the macronutrient responsible for building and repairing the body. Without an adequate protein supply, wounds wouldn’t heal, hair and nails wouldn’t grow and muscles would shrink. Put simply, protein is vital for sustaining life.

Proteins are also known as amino acids- this confuses the matter. There are 20 amino acids- these are tiny molecules that when are structured in certain orders form different proteins. There are both essential and non-essential amino acids. The human body cannot produce essential amino acids; therefore it is ESSENTIAL that they are ingested from food sources. The non-essential amino acids can be fabricated by the body. When a protein contains all of the essential amino acids it is said to have a complete amino acid profile.

Foods from animal sources contain a complete amino acid profile. Vegetarians and vegans can ingest all of their amino acids by combining various foods.

One gram of protein contains 4 kilocalories.

Sources of healthy proteins include:

Lean Meats
Fish
Eggs
Natural peanut butter
Cottage cheese
Skimmed milk

Fats

Despite their bad press, fats are actually very important. They act as a carrier for flavours and aromas, making food more palatable. Dietary fat comes in four different varieties: Saturated, Polyunsaturated, Monounsaturated, and Hydrogenated.

For practical use, these four can be narrowed down some more into good fats and bad fats.

Saturated and hydrogenated fats are known as bad fats as they clog your arteries, making it difficult for blood to get through freely causing all types of cardiovascular diseases. Unfortunately for us, these are the fats that are easy to come by. Fortunately however, they are also easy to spot!

Hydrogenated fats are liquid oils that have been chemically treated to make them semi-solid, like margarine, and saturated fats are animal fats that come from meat and dairy products.

The good fats on the other hand can actually reduce blood cholesterol levels and protect against heart disease. These can be found in most oils, e.g. Vegetable oil, nut oil, etc. Fats also contain the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K.

One gram of fat contains 9 Kcal of energy.

Sources of healthy fats include¦

Rapeseed oil
Olive oil
Peanuts
Fish oils
Almonds
Walnuts
Pistachios

Fruit and Vegetables

Fruit and vegetables are carbohydrate in nature. Everyone knows we should eat lots of fruit and veg, but very people know the exact reasons why!

They have an extreme density of vitamins and minerals. Fruit and vegetables are commonly referred to as ‘superfoods’ – they are full of goodness and are very low calorie. For this reason I have dedicated a section to them entirely!

Vitamins and minerals are known as micronutrients. The micronutrients are organic chemical elements and compounds that the human body requires in tiny quantities for optimum health and performance, but which we are unable to synthesize ourselves. Given they are chemical compounds the body cannot manufacture; we have to ingest them from our diet. This means we have to consume a wide variety of foods to ensure we take in our full compliment of vitamins and minerals.

Common examples of vegetables include¦

Spinach
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Carrots
Leeks
Peppers
Peas
Green beans
Baby sweetcorn
Onions (red, white & spring)
Mixed frozen veg
Garlic

Common examples of fruit include

Apple
Banana
Kiwi fruit
Blueberries
Pears
Strawberries
Oranges
Mango
Raspberries
Cherries
Plums

It is actually easy to consume 5 from the list – a piece of fruit with breakfast, two vegetables with lunch, a fruit snack mid afternoon and two vegetables with your evening meal and you have already eaten over the minimum recommended 5-a-day!

The Healthy Diet

Typically a healthy diet would contain a wide selection of foods from the list above. A good starting point is to take 60% of your intake from carbohydrates, 25% from protein and 15% from fats. You should also be aiming to consume at least 5 items per day from the fruit and vegetable list. These are ideally spread out throughout the day, to ensure a constant vitamin and mineral supply. It is actually easy to consume 5 from the list – a piece of fruit with breakfast, two vegetables with lunch, a fruit snack mid afternoon and two vegetables with your evening meal and you have already eaten over the minimum recommended 5-a-day!

You don’t have to be an expert cook, starting every meal from scratch – there are plenty of timed foods that could be consumed as part of a healthy diet – just avoid anything kept in sugared, salted water, brine, syrup and oils.

The following are all perfectly acceptable in your store cupboard¦

Tinned kidney beans
Tinned chickpeas
Tinned tomatoes
Tins of beans (butter and kidney are nice)
Tins of sardines and tuna (in spring water)
Tinned vegetables

Traditionally healthy foods are considered boring and bland – this needn’t be the case if you use herbs, spices and condiments to help add extra flavour. There are plenty of healthy options – you needn’t cover food in high sugar and salt sauces!

Try using the following to help add flavour and taste to foods¦

Paprika
Turmeric
Coriander
Dill
Parsley
Mint
Basic
Balsamic vinegar
Pepper
Chives

So there you have it – an outline of a healthy diet and a list of foods big and varied enough to help you to stick to it! On the grand scale of things these lists are tiny – there is a whole world of culinary options available to you! Have fun as you try to concoct new and interesting recipes. You may discover a whole new dish! Eating healthily needn’t be a dull or boring experience, so go ahead and give it a try. You will almost certainly lose weight and feel much better!

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