Eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health, and can help you feel your best.

Eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health, and can help you feel your best.

 A diet based on starchy foods such as potatoes, bread, rice and pasta; with plenty of fruit and vegetables; some protein-rich foods such as beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins; some milk and dairy foods or dairy alternatives; and not too much fat, salt or sugar, will give you all the nutrients you need.

When it comes to a healthy diet, balance is the key to getting it right. This means eating a wide variety of foods in the right proportions, and consuming the right amount of food and drink to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight.

How the Plan Works

Each day, pick one breakfast, one lunch and one dinner.
Choose three sweets, treats or snacks (two if you’re trying to lose weight).
For items with a *, swap in a new fruit, vegetable, whole grain or protein from the Swap It! list whenever you want.
Per the American Heart Association guidelines, about 30% of your daily calories will come from fat (mainly the heart-healthy type, with less than 7% from saturated fat), and you’ll have no more than 300 mg cholesterol or 1,500 mg sodium.

What are the benefits?

As with all of our diet plans, we steer clear of processed foods and pack our recipes with healthy fats, lean protein and slow-release carbs. Each day comes in at approximately 1,500kcal and deliversmore than five of your five-a-day. As a result, you can expect to cut back on added sugar, lose excess pounds, increase energy, stabilise moods, improve digestion and boost your immunity.
If you’re looking to lose weight, the daily 1,500kcal intake should be ideal to help you reach your goals. However, if you’re particularly active or want to add some extra calories, we have healthy snack and drink suggestions for you.

 How does healthy eating affect mental and emotional health?

We all know that eating right can help you maintain a healthy weight and avoid certain health problems, but your diet can also have a profound effect on your mood and sense of wellbeing. Studies have linked eating a typical Western diet—filled with processed meats, packaged meals, takeout food, and sugary snacks—with higher rates of depression, stress, bipolar disorder, and anxiety. Eating an unhealthy diet may even play a role in the development of mental health disorders such as ADHD, Alzheimer’s disease, and schizophrenia, or in the increased risk of suicide in young people.
Eating more fresh fruits and vegetables, cooking meals at home, and reducing your intake of sugar and refined carbohydrates, on the other hand, may help to improve mood and lower your risk for mental health problems. If you have already been diagnosed with a mental health problem, eating well can even help to manage your symptoms and regain control of your life.

While some specific foods or nutrients have been shown to have a beneficial effect on mood, it’s your overall dietary pattern that is most important. That means switching to a healthy diet doesn’t have to be an all or nothing proposition. You don’t have to be perfect and you don’t have to completely eliminate foods you enjoy to have a healthy diet and make a difference to the way you think and feel.

Need to lose weight?

Most adults in England are overweight or obese. Check whether you’re a healthy weight using the BMI calculator.
You can use the panel below to download the NHS weight loss guide, our free 12-week diet and exercise plan.
The plan, which has been downloaded more than 2 million times, is designed to help you lose weight safely – and keep it off.

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