By Jerry Hall Leo
These foods provide:
Vitamin C: needed for healthy skin and tissue, also to aid the absorption of iron
Carotenes: required for growth and development
Folate: needed for red blood cells
Fibre: keeps the gut healthy and helps prevent constipation
Carbohydrate: a source of energy
Phytochemicals*: may help protect against some diseases
• Choose fruit or chopped vegetables as a snack
• Add dried or fresh fruit to breakfast cereals
• Have a salad with sandwiches or with pizza
• Add vegetables to casseroles and stews and fruit to desserts
• Try not to eat the same fruits and vegetables every day
Grain Products
This food group, sometimes referred to as ‘starchy carbohydrates’, includes bread, potatoes (including low fat oven chips), yams, breakfast cereals, pasta, rice, oats, noodles, maize, millet and cornmeal.
Carbohydrates are the most important source of energy. They contain the elements Carbon, Hydrogen and Oxygen. The first part of the name "carbo-" means that they contain Carbon. The second part of the name "-hydr-" means that they contain Hydrogen. The third part of the name "-ate-" means that they contain Oxygen. In all carbohydrates the ratio of Hydrogen atoms to Oxygen atoms is 2:1 just like water.
Base a third of your food intake on foods from this group, aiming to include at least one food from this group at each meal, e.g. potatoes with fish and vegetables, a chicken salad sandwich, stir-fried vegetables with rice, or porridge oats for breakfast.
Potatoes, yams, plantains and sweet potato fall into this group, rather than fruit and vegetables, because they contain starchy carbohydrates.
These foods provide:
Carbohydrate: a source of energy
Fibre: keeps the gut healthy and helps prevent constipation
Some calcium: required for the development and maintenance of healthy bones
Some iron: needed for healthy red blood cells
B vitamins: e.g. thiamin and niacin – which help the body use energy
Folate*: needed for red blood cells
Healthy eating tips
• Base your meals around foods from this group
• Eat wholegrain or wholemeal breads, pastas and cereals as well as white choices
• Choose low fat oven chips rather than fried chips (oven chips fall into this food group but fried chips don’t)
• Eating more foods from this group will help to reduce the proportion of fat and increase the amount of fibre in the diet
• Avoid frying or adding too much fat to these foods
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