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Healthy Food Information Biography

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Being healthy doesn't mean you must compromise taste and creativity, as this week-long meal plan shows.

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Monday

A two-egg omelette with mushrooms and spinach provides a protein-rich start to the day. Eggs are one of the few "complete proteins" in that they contain all eight amino acids and the Australian Society of Nutrition recommends one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. Bon appetit!

Tuesday

Expand your breakfast horizons with amaranth porridge. The Aztec grain, which boasts high levels of proteins and fibre, is perfect accompanied by cinnamon-stewed fruit. Cinnamon is clinically proven to stabilise blood-sugar levels and is the ideal answer to sugar cravings.

Wednesday

Treat your body to a double goodness whammy with quinoa flake cereal with apple, cinnamon and flaxseeds. The quinoa is incredibly high in protein while flaxseeds are a water-soluble fibre that keep you feeling full while lowering your blood pressure and cholesterol level.

Thursday

For a hearty breakfast, try scrambled tofu with tomatoes and fresh herbs. Not only is tofu a source of omega-3 fatty acids - essential for brain and heart health, as well as hormonal balance - it also contains phytoestrogens, which help fight the symptoms of menopause.

Friday

Start the last day of the working week with a low-GI breakfast of fetta and scrambled eggs. Low-GI carbohydrates release energy into your body more slowly than high-GI carbs and this keeps your energy levels consistent throughout the day. Say goodbye to that afternoon slump.

Saturday

Kick off the weekend with a breakfast of avocado, tomato and basil on crusty sourdough toast with a touch of balsamic. A tasty blend of anti-inflammatory omega-3s and low-GI for consistent energy release, this meal is so delicious you might want it for lunch too!

Sunday

Wholemeal spelt flour pancakes with fresh seasonal fruit and a dollop of natural yoghurt are a perfect weekend treat. Spelt is a source of niacin, which has been shown to help protect against cardiovascular disease. Spelt is also good for helping to lower cholesterol levels.

Breakfast Burritos

Craving Mexican food but not the fat and calories that accompany your favorite dish? These breakfast burritos are the perfect alternative. Use egg whites instead of regular eggs to cut back on fat and cholesterol and flavor as desired with salsa.

Calories: 282

Eating a morning meal is a healthy habit if you're watching your weight. Research shows that regular breakfast eaters tend to be leaner and dieters are more successful at losing weight—and keeping it off—when they eat breakfast. What's more, people who typically eat breakfast also get more fiber (more on why this is important later), calcium, vitamins A and C, riboflavin, zinc and iron—and less fat and dietary cholesterol. Perhaps it's because they often eat cereal, which is fortified with vitamins and minerals, and fruit, which is naturally nutrient-rich.

Strawberry Parfaits

If you've got a sweet tooth when you roll out of bed, head straight for this low-fat strawberry parfait. Breakfast that tastes like dessert? That's our kind of morning!

1. Raspberries

A cup of raspberries delivers a whopping 8 grams of fiber (that's more than double what's in a cup of strawberries and about the same amount in a cup of some types of beans). What's so great about all that fiber? Recent research in the Journal of Nutrition suggests eating more fiber as a way to prevent weight gain or even encourage weight loss. Over the course of the two-year study, the researchers found that boosting fiber by 8 grams for every 1,000 calories resulted in about 4 ½ pounds of weight lost.

2. Oatmeal

Oatmeal can help you lose weight in two ways. First, it's packed with fiber and it keeps you feeling fuller longer. Second, a recent study in the Journal of Nutrition reported that eating a breakfast made with "slow-release" carbohydrates—such as oatmeal or bran cereal—3 hours before you exercise may help you burn more fat. How? Eating "slow-release" carbohydrates doesn't spike blood sugar as high as eating refined carbohydrates (think: white toast). In turn, insulin levels don't spike as high. Because insulin plays a role in signaling your body to store fat, having lower blood sugar levels may help you burn fat.

3. Yogurt

A recent report, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and out of Harvard revealed which foods are correlated with weight change, including the top 5 foods that promote weight loss. Yogurt was one of them! (See more of the Best Foods for Weight Loss, and 5 Foods That Make You Gain, here.) Another reason to eat yogurt: the protein in it may give you an extra edge if you're looking to get leaner. When researchers fed two groups of mice a high-fat diet for 11 weeks, the mice that got water spiked with whey protein (a type of protein found naturally in yogurt and other dairy) packed on 42 percent less weight and nearly a third less body fat than the mice who just drank plain water, despite the fact that they ate roughly the same number of calories. The whey eaters also gained 7 percent more lean body mass (e.g., muscle mass). Save calories—and unnecessary sugar—by choosing plain yogurt. If you need a little extra sweetness, try fresh fruit (maybe raspberries?).

4. Peanut Butter

Nuts were also among the top 5 foods that Harvard researchers said promote weight loss. I love to slather a tablespoon or two of peanut butter onto whole-wheat toast (ahem, a "slow-release" carbohydrate), but you could also add nuts to your oatmeal (another "slow-release" carb).

5. Eggs

Eggs deliver protein, which is great for dieters. Compared to carbohydrates and fat, protein keeps you satisfied longer. Plus, in one study, dieters who ate eggs for breakfast felt fuller longer and lost more than twice as much weight as those who got the same amount of calories from a bagel for breakfast.

Two eggs scrambled in a pat of butter contain approximately 200 calories. So how does Denny's get from 200 to 1,150 with their Heartland Scramble? And how do so many other restaurants sling together scrambles with more than 1,000 calories? Simple: excessive oil and egregious amounts of cheese. This scramble has all the makings of hearty breakfast fare--butter, cheese, protein--but with healthy fats, fresh vegetables, and a light caloric toll. Serve it with a scoop of roasted potatoes and fresh fruit.

Ingredients

Serves: SubmitPrep: 5min |Cook: 8min |Total: 13min

Food variety means eating a wide variety of foods from each of the five food groups, in the amounts recommended. Eating many different foods helps maintain a healthy and interesting diet which provides a range of different nutrients to the body. Eating a variety of foods promotes good health and can help reduce the risk of disease.

Five major food groups

The five food groups are:

vegetables and legumes/beans

fruit

lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds, legumes/beans

grain (cereal) foods, mostly wholegrain and/or high cereal fibre varieties

milk, yoghurt, cheese and/or alternatives, mostly reduced fat.

Foods are grouped together because they provide similar amounts of key nutrients. For example, key nutrients of the milk, yoghurt, cheese and alternatives group include calcium and protein, while the fruit group is a good source of vitamins, especially vitamin C.

These food groups make up the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating.

Choose a variety of foods

Eating a varied, well-balanced diet means eating a variety of foods from each food groups daily, in the recommended amounts. It is also important to choose a variety of foods from within each food group because different foods provide different types and amounts of key nutrients.

Choosing a variety of foods will help to make your meals interesting, so that you don’t get bored with your diet.

Occasional foods

Some foods do not fit into the five food groups because they are not necessary for a healthy diet. These foods are called ‘discretionary choices’ and they should only be eaten occasionally. They tend to be too high in either energy (kilojoules), saturated fat, added sugars, added salt or alcohol, and have low levels of important nutrients like fibre.

Examples of ‘discretionary choices’ or occasional foods are:

sweet biscuits, cakes, desserts and pastries

processed meats and fattier/salty sausages, savoury pastries and pies, commercial burgers with a high fat and/or salt content

sweetened condensed milk

ice cream and other ice confections

confectionary and chocolate

commercially fried foods

potato chips, crisps and other fatty and/or salty snack foods including some savoury biscuits

cream, butter and spreads which are high in saturated fats

sugar-sweetened soft drinks and cordials, sports and energy drinks and alcoholic drinks.

Small allowance for healthy fats

Unsaturated fats are an important part of a healthy diet. The two main types of unsaturated fats are monounsaturated fats (found in olive and canola oil, avocados, cashews and almonds) and polyunsaturated fats like omega-3 fats (found in oily fish) and omega-6 fats (found in safflower and soybean oil and Brazil nuts). These fats can help reduce the risk of heart disease and lower cholesterol levels when they replace saturated fats in the diet.

The Australian Dietary Guidelines include a small allowance for healthy fats each day (around 1–2 tablespoons for adults and less for children). The best way to include healthy fats in your diet is to replace saturated fat that you may currently be eating (such as butter and cream) with a healthier, unsaturated fat option (such as polyunsaturated margarine or olive oil).

Include the five food groups in your diet

It’s not hard to include foods from the five food groups into snacks and meals. Some suggestions include:

Vegetables and legumes – raw or cooked vegetables can be used as a snack food or as a part of lunch and dinner. Salad vegetables can be used as a sandwich filling. Vegetable soup can make a healthy lunch. Stir-fries, vegetable patties and vegetable curries make nutritious evening meals. Try raw vegetables like carrot and celery sticks for a snack ‘on the run’.

Fruit – this is easy to carry as a snack and can be included in most meals. For example, try a banana with your breakfast cereal, an apple for morning tea and add some berries in your yoghurt for an afternoon snack. Fresh whole fruit is recommended over fruit juice and dried fruit. Fruit juice contains less fibre than fresh fruit and both fruit juice and dried fruit, and are more concentrated sources of sugar and energy. Dried fruit can also stick to teeth, which can increase the risk of dental caries.

Bread, cereals, rice, pasta and noodles – add rice, pasta or noodles to serves of protein and vegetables for an all-round meal. There are many varieties of these to try. Where possible, try to use wholegrains in breads and cereals.

Lean meat, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts, legumes and tofu – these can all provide protein. It’s easy to include a mixture of protein into snacks and meals. Try adding lean meat to your sandwich or have a handful of nuts as a snack. You can also add legumes to soups or stews for an evening meal.

Milk, yoghurt and cheese – try adding yogurt to breakfast cereal with milk, or using cottage cheese as a sandwich filling. Shavings of parmesan or cheddar can be used to top steamed vegetables or a salad. Use mostly reduced fat products.

Serving sizes of vegetables and legumes/beans

One standard serving of vegetables is about 75 g or:

½ cup cooked vegetables

½ cup cooked dried or canned beans, peas or lentils

1 cup salad vegetables

½ cup sweet corn

½ medium potato or other starchy vegetables (such as sweet potato)

1 medium tomato.

Serving sizes of fruit

One standard serving of fruit is about 150 g or:

one medium piece (apple, banana, orange, pear)

two small pieces (apricots, plums, kiwi fruit)

1 cup diced, cooked or canned fruit (no added sugar).

Or only occasionally:

125 ml (1/2 cup) fruit juice (no added sugar)

30 g dried fruit (such as 4 dried apricot halves, 1½ tablespoons sultanas).

Serving sizes of grain (cereal) foods

Choose mostly wholegrain and/or high cereal fibre varieties of grain foods.

One serve equals:

one slice of bread (40 g)

½ medium roll or flatbread (40 g)

½ cup cooked rice, pasta, noodles, barley, buckwheat, semolina, polenta, bulgur or quinoa (75-120 g)

½ cup cooked porridge (120 g)

¼ cup muesli (30 g)

2/3 cup breakfast cereal flakes (30 g)

3 crispbreads (35 g)

1 crumpet (60 g) or small English muffin or scone (35 g)

¼ cup flour (30 g)

Serving sizes of lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds and legumes/beans

One serve equals:

65 g cooked lean red meat (such as beef, lamb. pork, kangaroo), ½ cup lean mince, 2 small chops, 2 slices of roast meat (about 90-100 g raw weight)

80 g cooked poultry such as chicken or turkey (about 100 g raw weight)

1 cup (150 g) cooked dried or canned beans, lentils, chick peas or split peas

100 g cooked fish fillet (about 115 g raw weight) or 1 small can of fish

two large eggs (120 g)

1 cup (150 g) cooked dried or canned legumes or beans, such as lentils, chickpeas or split peas (no added salt)

170 g tofu

30 g nuts or seeds, or nut/seed pastes(no added salt), such as peanut or almond butter, tahini.

Serving sizes of milk, yoghurt and cheese

When choosing serves of milk, yoghurt and cheese or alternatives, choose mostly reduced fat.

One serve equals:

1 cup (250 ml) fresh, long-life or reconstituted powdered milk

½ cup (120 ml) evaporated unsweetened milk

2 slices (40 g) hard cheese (such as cheddar)

½ cup (120 g) ricotta cheese

¾ cup or one small carton (200 g) of yoghurt

1 cup (250 ml) soy, rice or other cereal drink with at least 100 mg of added calcium per 100 ml.

Serves for children and adolescents daily