Tips & Glossary

Healthy Tips

Here are some fantastic simple ideas to bring better health into your life. Send your tip to us

Juice please!

Drink a glass of juice with your dinner, not only does one glass of juice count towards your fruit and vegetable for the day but the vitamin C will also help iron absorption.

Hide the vegetable

Grate vegetables like carrots and courgettes into your mince dishes, pasta sauces and soups to add valuable vitamins, minerals and fibre to your meal (and hide the vegetables from fussy eaters).

The Healthy Plate

Do you worry about how much you should be eating at meal time? It’s easy; your meat or other protein source should be a ¼ of the plate, the carbohydrate like rice, pasta or potatoes should also be a ¼. The other ½ of the plate should be filled with a variety of different veges. If you are concerned about keeping a healthy weight choose a plate that isn’t too big!

Soup – the winter warmer

Soups make a great winter meal as it warms you up on the cold days and there are so many delicious flavours! Choose a hearty soup with pasta or potato and meat or beans along with lots of vegetables and it will set you up for a long afternoon of work.

The Power of Beans

Beans are a fantastic source of protein, fibre and other essential nutrients like B vitamins, iron, zinc and calcium and also low in fat! If you are new to eating beans and a bit nervous at the thought then a good way to introduce them is by replacing some of the meat in your curry, casserole or chilli con carne with beans.

Sounds Fishy

The recommendation is to eat at least 2 servings of fish per week to boost are omega 3 fatty acid intake, but sometimes this can seem difficult. Don’t forget canned fish such as tuna and salmon count as well. Not only are small cans convenient to take to work or school for lunch but there are also lots of yummy flavours!

Allergen Free Products

Have you got a food allergy or intolerance and you are concerned whether you can eat a particular product? Hop onto the website for the Manufactured Food Database (www.mfd.co.nz). This wesbite shows all the products that are free from different allergens, including gluten and dairy.

Eat a Rainbow

Phytochemicals in fruits and vegetables give them their different bright colours as well as some of their various heath benefits, so aim to ‘eat a rainbow’ every day to gain maximum health benefits.

Do you really need that snack?

Before you reach for a snack ask yourself whether you are really hungry or just bored! Perhaps go for a quick walk, have a chat to someone or do another task and you may find you didn’t really need something extra to eat at that time.

In A Minute