Eating well for good health Te kainga pai e ora pai ai

Have regular meals during the day and give your body a rest from food for at least 12 hours overnight. Regular eating can help keep your energy levels up and your mind focused. Regular meals can also prevent hunger pains and overeating.

If you are physically hungry between meals, have a small nutritious snack such as:

• a small handful of nuts (30g)
• plain or natural yoghurt with chopped fresh fruit
• a hard-boiled egg
• a small tin of tuna — on its own or spread on wholegrain toast or crackers
• a fruit smoothie made from milk, plain yoghurt and fresh or frozen fruit
• cheese, hummus, peanut butter or avocado on a slice of wholegrain toast or crackers.

Being physically hungry is your body telling you to eat. Signs include your tummy rumbling or feeling low on energy.

Vegetables and fruits are full of fibre and polyphenols. Polyphenols are a type of phytonutrient (natural plant-based chemicals) that give vegetables and fruits their colour. Fibre and polyphenols help keep you healthy and reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes and some cancers.

• Have at least 7 servings of vegetables and fruit every day (a serving is about a handful).
• Choose a mix of different coloured vegetables and fruit.
• Try to have vegetables or fruit at all meals.
• They also make great snacks.

Wholegrains can help keep your bowels healthy. They can help you feel fuller and reduce your cholesterol and blood glucose (sugar) levels. They can also reduce your risk of diseases such as heart disease and bowel cancer.

Have at least one meal a day based around a wholegrain. Wholegrains include:

• wholegrain bread
• rolled oats
• brown rice
• wholemeal pasta
• grains like quinoa, millet, barley and buckwheat.

Milk, yoghurt and cheese give you nutrients like protein, calcium and some B vitamins. These help to keep your body and bones healthy and strong. If you do not like or cannot tolerate cow's milk, choose a plant‑based milk such as soy, oat or almond. Make sure it has added calcium.

Fruit yoghurts can contain lots of sugar and additives so choose a natural or plain yoghurt and add your own fresh or frozen fruit.

While almost all foods have had some kind of processing, it is best to eat foods that are minimally processed or as close to their natural state as possible. These foods keep their nutritional value and do not usually have added:

• sugar
• salt
• unhealthy fats
• additives, such as emulsifiers, preservatives or artificial colours, flavours and sweeteners.

Ultra-processed foods tend to have more than one ingredient you will never or rarely find in a home kitchen. They also tend to have a long shelf life. Examples of ultra-processed foods include:

• deli meats — like ham and salami
• some breakfast cereals
• many fruit flavoured yoghurts
• many packaged snack foods
• soft drinks and energy drinks.

Use your hand to judge portion size. Or follow the healthy plate model for lunch and dinner:

• fill half your plate with non-starchy vegetables or salad
• fill a quarter of your plate with wholegrains or starchy vegetables such as potato, kumara, yams, corn or taro
• fill a quarter of your plate with protein‑rich food like legumes (dried beans, split peas and lentils), tofu, tempeh, lean meat, chicken, seafood or eggs.

Food portions (using your hand) — Heart Foundation [PDF, 1MB] (external link)

Use extra virgin olive oil or other liquid plant oils such as sunflower or canola oils. Oily fish (salmon, tuna, sardines and mackerel), olives, avocados, nuts and seeds also contain healthy fats.

Fermented foods and drinks that contain live bacteria can help to keep your gut healthy. Having a healthy gut can help maintain and improve your physical and mental health. Fermented foods and drinks include:

• plain or natural yoghurt
• most cheeses
• miso (fermented soybean paste)
• tempeh (fermented soybeans)
• fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut and kimchi
• kefir and kombucha (drinks).

You can make some of these fermented foods and drinks at home. You can also buy them from the refrigerator section at your supermarket.

Drink at least 8 cups of fluid a day. Water is best. Low fat or reduced fat milk (light‑blue, green or yellow top) and tea and coffee with no sugar are also fine.

Try to cook most of your meals at home. This can help you take charge of what you are eating and check exactly what goes into your meals. If you do have takeaways, choose healthier options.

Eating quickly, on the run or while distracted can lead you to eat more food than you realise or need. Eating mindfully can help you gain control over your eating habits.