eat less saturated fat and sugar
To stay healthy we need some fat in our diets
What is important is the kind of fat we are eating. There are two main types of fat:
- Saturated fat - having too much can increase the amount
of cholesterol in the blood, which increases the chance of developing heart disease
- Unsaturated fat - having unsaturated fat instead of saturated fat lowers blood cholesterol
Try to cut down on food that is high in saturated fat and have foods that are rich in unsaturated fat instead, such as vegetable oils (including sunflower, rapeseed and olive oil), oily fish, avocados, nuts and seeds.
Foods high in saturated fat
Try to eat these sorts of foods less often or in small amounts:
- meat pies, sausages, meat with visible white fat
- hard cheese
- butter and lard
- pastry
- cakes and biscuits
- cream, soured cream and crème fraîche
- coconut oil, coconut cream or palm oil
For a healthy choice, use just a small amount of vegetable oil or a reduced-fat spread instead of butter, lard or ghee. And when you are having meat, try to choose lean cuts and cut off any visible fat.
Eat less sugar
Most people in the UK are eating too much sugar. We should all be trying to eat fewer foods containing added sugar, such as sweets, cakes and biscuits, and drinking fewer sugary soft and fizzy drinks.
Having sugary foods and drinks too often can cause tooth decay, especially if you have them between meals. Many foods that contain added sugar can also be high in calories so cutting down could help you control your weight.
Look at the ingredients list and watch out for other words used to describe added sugars, such as sucrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, hydrolysed starch and invert sugar, corn syrup and honey. If you see one of these near the top of the list, you know the food is likely to be high in added sugars.
How do I know if a food is high in fat or sugar?