Dieting is a huge undertaking for any individual and can be very confusing for people who simply just want to lose weight or eat more healthily, here we have gathered a list of diet tips to help you on your way:

• Choose brown rice, wholemeal bread and whole-wheat pasta, as these are higher in fibre than the “white” varieties and will help fill you up.

• Plan your meals ahead and make sure you leave enough calories for your evening meal and take into consideration any snacks you might have during the day. The main reason people on diets do not lose weight is due to eating more calories during the day than you burn off.

• Exercising more along with eating a healthy diet will help you lose weight more quickly.

• Don’t try to lose too much weight too quickly, aim for around 1 to 2 pounds per week and include your favourite foods as part of a well balanced diet.

• Choose low fat dairy products and include three servings each day in your diet.

• Choose wheat products that are high in fibre such as wholegrain cereal, whole-wheat pasta and granary bread.

• Eat five different portions of fruit and vegetables per day which can either be fresh, canned or frozen but preferably those that are in unsalted or unsweetened water.

• If you use butter then spread it thinly or just put butter on one slice of bread when making a sandwich.

• Choose lean cuts of meat and make sure you trim off any fat from the outside before cooking and grill or dry roast the meat.

• Try to snack on fresh fruit instead of sweets, biscuits or crisps.

• Stick to your daily calorie allowance with base meals of high fibre but remember to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables per day and keep fatty or foods containing high sugar levels to a minimum.

• Check the calorie content of low fat foods, often there is little difference in those and “normal” products.

• In restaurants don’t be fooled into thinking just because it’s a salad its healthy, if it contains a lot of high fat ingredients then it might have more calories than steak and French fries.

• Many products specifically packaged as “healthy eating” focus only on cutting out the fat, many contain the same if not more calories than the normal foods.

• Always check the nutrition label on packages carefully especially the calorie content.

• The term organic doesn’t mean the food is healthier, organic only refers to how the food was grown.

• Research has shown that a diet including a moderate amount of fat can actually help with weight loss and can help lower the risk of heart disease.

• The more you weigh the more calories you can have and still lose weight.

• As you lose weight the amount of calories you can have per day and still lose weight will drop.

It is important to follow a healthy eating plan as excessive body weight can lead to many problems, one of them being heart disease. Along with sensible eating we should exercise, those needing to lose weight should do so a little at a time and slowly increase daily physical activity.

Guidelines for a physical activity programme

• Consult a Doctor before attempting a physical activity programme, especially if you are obese or have any major health problems such as diabetes or problems with your heart.

• Don’t rush, build up your exercise routine slowly to let your body get used to the new regime.

• Build up to 30 minutes or more of moderate cardiovascular exercise everyday, this can be all at once or spread out over sessions throughout the day.

• Try to add strength developing exercises into your daily routine.

• Walk instead of using the car or public transport whenever you can.

• Find activities you enjoy doing in your spare time such as gardening, biking and joining in sports.

• Match your activities to your age and physical condition.

• Make your daily exercise routine enjoyable for example listen to your favourite music.

• Never try to do too much exercise always know your limits.

Weight loss tips

• The way to successful weight loss is taking in less calories than you expend.

• Make your meals smaller and eat more often.

• Eat foods that are packed with nutrients such as whole grains, fruit and vegetables.

• Take your time and savour each mouthful of food and always wait 15 minutes before having second helpings.

• Don’t rule out the foods you enjoy just because you are on a diet, many people give up because of this reason. If you enjoy sweets, biscuits, cakes or chocolate then treat yourself to a small amount weekly.

• Make sure there are plenty of healthy snacks available such as carrot sticks and fresh fruit.

• Make sure you drink plenty of water.

• Three quarters of your dinner and lunch should consist of vegetables, fruits, cereals, bread and grain products.

• Eat as much dark green and orange vegetables as you can.

• Choose low in fat dairy products and make sure meat is lean and trim off any outside fat before cooking.

• Limit the use of extra fats in cooking such as oil and margarine.

• Limit your intake of caffeine, alcohol and salt. Also try and cut down on added sugar in your diet.

• Don’t eat just for the sake of it, there are no rules that state just because it’s lunch or dinner time you have to eat.

• Limit the amount of snacks you eat such as biscuits, chocolate and cakes as these are high in salt, sugar and fat.

• Eat a variety of foods don’t think just because you’re on a diet it has to be boring.

Your diet whilst pregnant not only affects the mother but also the baby’s growth, we have all heard the term “eating for two” but is there any truth to this saying?. You will need additional nutrients while you are pregnant to keep both yourself and your baby healthy but this isn’t a sign to eat twice as much and whatever you like.

You only need to have about an extra 300 calories per day and it is important that you eat the right diet and are eating foods which give you vitamins, minerals and protein as these help in the development of your unborn child.

What changes need to be made to the diet?

As long as you were eating a sensible diet before you became pregnant then there are not many changes that you will have to make during pregnancy, the recommended daily intake of calories for a pregnant woman is between 2,500 and 2,700 per day.

These calories of course should come from foods that are healthy and rich in vitamins, nutrients, minerals and protein. It is advisable as well as eating a sensible diet for a pregnant woman to take a multivitamin everyday; foods should be eaten on a daily basis from the following food groups

Fruit and vegetables

Pregnant women should eat at least 7 or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day as these are rich in vitamins, fibre and minerals, especially vitamin C which is not only essential to your health but helps your baby to develop healthy gums and tissue.

Examples of fruit rich in vitamin C include strawberries, melon, oranges, cabbage and broccoli. Eating a diet which includes plenty of fruit and vegetables will provide you with the added energy you will need in pregnancy.

Try to include some dark vegetables in your diet as these are rich in iron, vitamin A and folate which are essential nutrients during pregnancy.

Whole grains, bread and cereal

While pregnant you should eat between 6 and 9 servings from this category, bread, rice and pasta all contain iron, B vitamins, fibre and minerals. Some breakfast cereals contain 100% of the folic acid needed during pregnancy.

Dairy products

Calcium is essential in your baby’s growth; it helps build strong bones and teeth. All dairy products are excellent sources of vitamins A and D, protein and B vitamins. Low fat or non fat milk is preferable as this provides you with the vitamins needed but keeps fat to a minimum.

Proteins

A pregnant woman should eat 60 grams of protein every day; this can be found in lean cooked meat, fish and poultry. Nuts, eggs, beans and peas are also an excellent source of protein.

Protein is needed for both the mother and the baby and aids in building muscle, tissue, hormones and antibodies. Foods rich in protein also have B vitamins and iron which is important for the blood.

Other nutrients

Folic acid is a B vitamin which helps in the prevention of serious birth defects and the easiest way to make sure you obtain enough is to take a multivitamin daily, orange juice and spinach are also good forms of folic acid.

A pregnant woman should also drink plenty of water on a daily basis, at least 6 glasses are recommended as this will help carry the nutrients from what you eat to your baby.

We all know the importance of having a nutritional diet but how do we know what’s in the food we eat, how many calories are in it, what vitamins, how much protein, what is the salt content and carbohydrates?

Fortunately just about every packaged food must now contain food labels that show us the nutritional values of food. These labels provide us with the necessary information of the content and this is usually “per serving” or so many grams, but the labels are not always clear and sometimes confusing particularly for elderly people.

Serving size

The serving size is usually based on the amount of food a person would typically eat; this of course may not be the serving amount you would normally eat so attention has to be paid to the serving size.

The package will normally tell you how many servings it holds and as a guide you can then tell how much you actually eat. As a typical guide the nutritional information on the packaging relates to a serving, so for example if the package states that per serving is 200 calories and the package holds four servings, if you were to consume the whole package you would have eaten 800 calories.

This is one area where some people may get confused in thinking that because the package states 200 calories then the entire package is 200 calories, it is not.

Nutrients

The nutrient section on the package will list all nutrients within the package by the percentage of the recommend daily amount. Labels will have the recommended daily amount based on a set amount of calories per day such as a 2,000 and 2,500 calorie diet.

Ingredients

Every food product should include an ingredient list on the packaging; ingredients will normally be listed from the largest to the smallest amount by weight. This means that the ingredient first on the list will be found more in the food than the last on the list.

Claims on the label

Some labels will claim to be low in cholesterol or low in fat, these can only be put on the food if they meet certain standards per serving such as:

Fat free or sugar free – The food must contain less than 0.5g of fat.

Low fat – There must be 3g or less of fat in the food.

Reduced fat or reduced sugar – The food must contain less than 25% fat or sugar content.

Cholesterol free – The product must contain less than 2mg of cholesterol and 2g or less of saturated fats.

Reduced cholesterol – The product must contain less than 25% cholesterol and not more than 2g of saturated fat.

Calorie free – The food must contain less than 5 calories.

Low calorie – The product must contain less than 40 calories.

Light or Lite – The product must contain 1/3 fewer calories or 50% less fat.