What Are The Healthiest Foods?

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So many people want to eat more healthily - but don't know which are the best foods to choose. Check out this handy list of the healthiest foods.

Fresh food - not processed. Always go for the foods that have had the least amount of processing, and are closest to their natural state. Every stage of processing robs food of nutrients, and often puts in unwholesome additives that are better avoided. Instead of bagged salad, buy a lettuce and shred it yourself. Instead of ready-made pizza, make or buy a wholewheat base and add your own fresh toppings. Instead of a sweetened juice drink, buy and squeeze a couple of oranges...and so on.



Plenty of fruit and vegetables. You've heard it before, of course, but are you really eating as much fresh fruit and veg as you could? Add some to every single meal, whether it's a chopped apple with your cornflakes, and banana mid-morning, salad in your lunchtime sandwich or a cup of vegetable soup, a juicy pear for an afternoon snack and two generous helpings of veggies with your evening meal. Make it a habit.



Choose less red meat, more poultry, fish and pulses. When you plan your main meal, be sure you include several meals each week that focus away from red meat. Get a vegetarian cook book too, and cook veggie once or twice a week.



Pick wholegrains over refined. Bread, pasta, rice - buy the wholegrain varieties, not the white ones, which have had most of their goodness extracted.



Buy organic at least some of the time. Use a little organic meat or poultry, and bulk out the dish with beans, chickpeas or potato. Organic food can be expensive, but try to add some regularly to your weekly shop.



Cut alcohol down, or out. Drink more water too, and fewer caffeine-heavy coffees and teas.



Reduce the sugar in your diet. Eat less chocolate and sweets. Try nibbling on dried fruits or nuts instead.

If eating healthily means making a lot of changes to your diet, do it gradually, and get used to each change before you make the next one. But do do it! It's vital, for your health and your family's wellbeing.