Uni-Smart Eating

To stay healthy, adults should try to be active daily and should do:

• at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity such as cycling or fast walking every week, and 
• strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms). 

OR

• 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity, such as running or a game of singles tennis every week, and
• strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms)

OR

• A mix of moderate and vigorous aerobic activity every week. For example, two 30-minute runs plus 30 minutes of fast walking equates to 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity, and
• strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).  

• Choose activities that you enjoy and can do regularly.
• Do at least 10 minutes of activity at a time as shorter bursts will not have the same health benefits.
• Keep it interesting by trying something different on alternate days. Every little bit adds up and doing something is better than doing nothing.
• Join the university’s gym or sports’ team. Take a friend for support and encouragement.
• Do house chores like cleaning the house or mowing the lawn with a push mower.
• Get off the bus or subway one stop early and walk the rest of the way.
• Replace a coffee break with a brisk 10-minute walk. Ask a friend to go with you.

• stand on the train or bus
• take the stairs and walk up escalators
• set a reminder to get up every 30 minutes
• alternate working while seated with standing
• place a laptop on a box or similar to work standing
• stand or walk around while on the phone
• take a walk break every time you take a coffee or tea break
• walk to someone’s desk instead of emailing or calling
• swap some TV time for more active tasks or hobbies.

Alcohol intake higher than the recommended allowance can lead to weight gain and increase your waistline. In addition, it increases the risk of developing serious health conditions and diseases such as mouth cancer, breast cancer, heart diseases, high blood pressure, liver damage, depression, aggressive behavior, memory loss and infertility.

Binge drinking usually refers to drinking lots of alcohol in a short space of time or drinking to get drunk. It is usually defined as consuming eight or more units in a single session for men and six or more for women, although this might vary among individuals.
Binge drinking increases the risk of accidents, alcohol poisoning and heart disease. At each of your drinking session try to control your intake and accompany it with food or water.

Maintaining a healthy body weight is important for your health as excess weight increases the risk of developing diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart diseases, breathlessness, high blood pressure, low back pain and some types of cancer.

Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple measure to estimate body size. The BMI calculator will help you to see if you are underweight, healthy weight, overweight or obese.

Fast food consumption has been associated with adverse health outcomes including increased risk of excess weight, body fatness, poor dietary quality, and insulin resistance/diabetes. This might be due to their high content of saturated fat, low fibre content and large portion sizes.

Young people who have a high fast-food intake tend to have increased body weight, larger waistline, higher levels of triglycerides and double chances of developing a condition called metabolic syndrome compared to their counterparts with lower intakes. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of abnormal health indicators such as central obesity, high blood pressure and low levels of HDL (good) cholesterol.

People with apple-shaped bodies, meaning they have large waists and accumulate fat around their waistline, have a higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases compared to those who have accumulated fat around their hips (pear-shaped bodies)

Fat is a source of energy as a gram of fat provides 9 kcal (37kJ). It also helps the body absorb vitamins A, D and E and is a source of essential fatty acids.

There are several types of fat in our diet. The main types of fat found in food are saturated fats and unsaturated fats. Most fats and oils contain both saturated and unsaturated fats in different proportions.

Saturated fats are found mainly in animal products. Good sources of saturated fat are butter, ghee, lard, suet, dripping, cheese, cream, full-fat milk and fat on meat and poultry. Processed foods such as burgers, sausages, pastry, pies, cakes, and biscuits are also rich in saturated fats.
Having a lot of saturated fat is linked with raised levels of harmful (LDL) cholesterol. Too much LDL cholesterol can lead to fatty deposits developing in the arteries which increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Trans fats are found naturally at low levels in some foods, such as meat and dairy products.
They can also be produced during manufacturing of hydrogenated vegetable oils, which are the primary source for trans fats in processed food. Foods that are produced from or use hardened vegetable oils as an ingredient typically contain some trans fats - for example, biscuits, pies, cakes, pastries, fried foods, fast-food, as well as some fat spreads and margarines.

Trans fat can raise the levels of 'bad' LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides and reduce ‘good’ HDL cholesterol. All of these effects can raise the risk of coronary heart disease.

There are currently no legal requirements for food manufacturers to label trans fats. This means you need to check ingredients lists for hydrogenated fats or hydrogenated vegetable oils.

Found primarily in oils from plants, unsaturated fats can be either polyunsaturated or monounsaturated.
Monounsaturated fats are found in olive oil, rapeseed oil and their spreads, avocados, some nuts, such as almonds, brazils and peanuts. Monounsaturated fats help protect our heart by maintaining levels of HDL (good) cholesterol while reducing levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol.

Polyunsaturated fats are found in sunflower, corn, soya, rapeseed oil, nuts, seeds and oily fish. There are two types of polyunsaturated fats: omega-3 and omega-6. Some types of omega-3 and omega-6 fats cannot be made by the body and are therefore essential in small amounts in the diet.

For good health, it is good to cut down on all fats and replace saturated fats with some unsaturated fats.

Most pre-packed foods have a nutrition label on the back or side of the packaging. These labels include information on energy in kilojoules (kJ) and kilocalories (kcal), usually referred to as calories. They also include information on fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, sugars, protein and salt. It may also provide additional information on certain nutrients, such as fibre. All nutrition information is provided per 100 grams and sometimes per portion of the food.

Nutrition labels can also provide information on how a particular food or drink product fits into your daily diet.
Reference intakes are guidelines about the approximate amount of particular nutrients and energy required for a healthy diet.

Colour-coded nutritional information tells you at a glance if the food has high, medium or low amounts of fat, saturated fat, sugars and salt.

In short, the more green on the label, the healthier the choice!

Most pre-packed food products have a list of ingredients on the packaging or an attached label. Ingredients are listed in order of weight, so the main ingredients in the packaged food always come first. That means that if the first few ingredients are high-fat ingredients, such as cream, butter or oil, then the food in question is a high-fat food.

As well as fresh fruit and vegetables, the following also count towards your 5 A DAY:

• Fruit and vegetables cooked in dishes such as soups, stews or pasta.
• Beans and pulses: these only count as one portion a day, no matter how many you eat, because they contain fewer nutrients than other fruits and vegetables.
• Frozen and canned fruit and vegetables: some of them are high in salt, sugar and fat, so only have them occasionally and in small amounts.
• Fruit/vegetable juice and smoothies: try to limit consumption of fruit/vegetable juices and smoothies to a combined total of 150ml a day (one portion). Further consumption does not count towards your 5 A DAY. Crushing fruit into juice also releases the sugars contained in the fruit, which can cause damage to teeth. Even unsweetened fruit juice and smoothies are sugary.

Potatoes do not count towards your 5 A DAY as they are usually eaten as a starchy food.

Fruit and vegetables are rich in carbohydrates and a good source of vitamins and minerals. They are also low in fat and calories and can help you maintain a healthy weight. A high intake of fruit and vegetables lowers the risk of health problems, such as heart disease, stroke and some cancers.

Fruits and vegetables are also a good source of dietary fibre. Dietary fibre is a range of compounds found in cereal grains, pulses, vegetables, fruits as well as in the skin of potatoes. All these foods are good sources of dietary fibre. A diet high in fibre helps to maintain a healthy gut and prevent constipation and other digestion problems. It can also reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and bowel cancer.

In general, one portion of fruit or vegetables is 80g. For small-sized fruits, one portion is two or more (e.g. two plums), for medium-sized fruits, one portion is one piece of fruit (e.g. one apple), and for large fruit, one portion might be half of it (e.g. half of grapefruit) or a slice of it (e.g. a slice of melon). Find out on NHS Livewell for more information on portion sizes.

• Chicken salad (tomato, cucumber, lettuce, cheese) with West Indian bread, mango slices and fresh fruit (e.g. orange).
• Rye bread and low-fat cream cheese, green salad with celery sticks and apple slices, small packet of mixed seeds and raisins, cottage cheese, and grapes.
• Tuna and sweetcorn sandwich (brown bread with reduced-calorie mayonnaise), muesli low-fat yoghurt, with honey and two kiwis.

• Starchy foods such as bread, cereals, porridge. Opt for wholegrains varieties and cereals low in sugars/salt.
• Fruit and vegetables: add berries to your yogurt, banana to your cereals or eat an orange with your omelette.
• Milk and dairy foods: opt for low-fat products. If you use milk and other products not made from cow’s milk such as soya or rice, make sure they are unsweetened and fortified with calcium.

Although a non-dairy source of protein is not essential at breakfast, you can add a healthy option such as a boiled or poached egg or baked beans for variety.

• Fresh fruits, dry fruits (e.g. raisins)
• A handful of nuts and seeds
• Vegetables sticks with low-fat cheese or reduced-fat hummus
• Low-fat yogurt
• Unsalted ricecakes, corncakes or oatcakes
• A handful of dry, reduced sugar cereal with a few raisins or sultanas.

The World Cancer Research Fund refers that there is strong evidence that eating a lot of red and processed meat can increase the risk of developing bowel cancer and eating processed meat can increase the risk of developing stomach cancer.
Some meats are also high in fat, especially saturated fat. Eating a lot of saturated fat can raise cholesterol levels in the blood, and having high cholesterol raises your risk of heart disease.

Red meat includes beef, pork, lamb and goat – foods like hamburgers, minced beef, pork chops and roast lamb.
Processed meat is meat which has been preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or by the addition of preservatives. Examples include ham, bacon, pastrami and salami, as well as hot dogs and some sausages. Hamburgers and minced meats only count as processed meat if they have been preserved with salt or chemical additives.

The Department of Health has advised that people who eat a lot of red and processed meat a day (more than 90g cooked weight) cut down to 70g a day.

A medium portion of roast beef or pork is about 90g. In addition, three thinly cut slices of beef, lamb or pork are about 90g, where each slice is about the size of half a piece of sliced bread. A cooked breakfast containing two typical British sausages and two rashers of bacon is equivalent to 130g.
When you go for shopping, as a rough guide 500g of cooked red meat is the same as 700g of raw red meat.

Increased salt intakes can raise your blood pressure, which puts you at increased risk of health problems such as heart disease and stroke. It is estimated that in England about one in every three people who have high blood pressure don’t know it.  In addition, high intakes of salt-preserved foods increase the risk of stomach cancer.

According to the Department of Health:

• High-salt foods contain over 1.5g of salt (0.6g sodium) per 100g.
• Low-salt foods contain less than 0.3g of salt (0.1g sodium) per 100g.

Some foods are almost always high in salt because of the way they are made.

• anchovies
• bacon
• cheese
• gravy granules
• ham
• olives
• pickles
• prawns
• salami
• salted and dry-roasted nuts
• salt fish
• smoked meat and fish
• soy sauce
• stock cubes
• yeast extract

Some foods can contribute a lot of salt to our diet. But that’s not because these foods are always high in salt – it’s because we eat a lot of them. Some brands use more salt in their products than others.

• bread products such as crumpets, bagels and ciabatta
• pasta sauces
• crisps
• pizza
• ready meals
• soup
• sandwiches
• sausages
• tomato ketchup, mayonnaise and other sauces
• breakfast cereals

Added sugars include table sugar, honey and syrups. More specific, added sugars can be listed on ingredients labels as sucrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, fruit juice, molasses, hydrolysed starch, invert sugar, corn syrup, and honey.

Eating too much sugar can lead to weight gain, which in turn increases your risk of health conditions such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
Sugary foods and drinks can also cause tooth decay, especially if you eat them between meals. The sugars found naturally in whole fruit are less likely to cause tooth decay, because the sugars are contained within the structure of the fruit. But when the fruit is juiced or blended, the sugars are released.

High-sugar drinks and foods are also low in nutrients and fibre and have a high Glycaemic Index (GI). Foods with a high GI cause a rapid increase in your blood glucose after eating them.

Added sugars shouldn't make up more than 5% of the energy you get from food and drinks each day. That's about 30g or 7 sugar cubes a day.
Added sugars are found in foods such as sweets, cakes, biscuits, ketchup, chocolate, and some fizzy drinks and juice drinks – these are the sugary foods we should cut down on. Here you can find the top sources of added sugar in our diet. Sugars also occur naturally in foods such as fresh fruit and milk, but we don't need to cut down on these types of sugars.

Sugary drinks include fizzy drinks, sweetened juices, milkshakes, squashes, energy drinks, and cordials. Natural fruit juice also contains free sugars, so it's best not to drink more than one glass (150ml) a day.

Sugary drinks contain a large amount of added sugars. Nearly a quarter of the added sugar in our diets comes from sugary drinks. For example, a can of cola (330ml) contains 37g of sugar which is the equivalent of 7 teaspoons of sugar.
Increased consumption of soft drinks is associated with increased energy (caloric) intake. Sugary drinks don't really fill you up even though they are quite high in calories. That means they do not make you feel as full as if you had eaten the same calories from solid food. The more ounces of sugary beverages a person has each day, the more calories he or she takes in later in the day.
In addition, calorie-sweetened beverages might play a role in the obesity epidemic, metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease, whereas reducing intake of soft drinks is associated with less weight gain and metabolic improvement.

‘Diet’ soft drinks contain little or no sugar; however, most are still acidic enough to harm your teeth if consumed too often.
There is also evidence that the quality of the diet of those who consume sugary-free beverages is low, similarly to those who consume sugary-drinks.
In addition, a study found that those who do not consume diet beverages have a lower risk of central obesity and metabolic syndrome compared to those who drink diet beverages.