A little change in your food choice can go a long way. Here are simple ways you can practice every day to make sure you reduce unhealthy caloric consumption.
- Cut the junk.
- Base your diet on fruit and vegetables.
- Eat high fiber, low GI grains like oats, rye, barley and quinoa.
- Eat lean protein.
- Choose low fat dairy sources.
- Watch your portion sizes.
- Have a little of what you fancy, mini desserts included!
- Read the label. Low fat does not always mean low calorie.
- Know your calories - even healthy foods can be high in calories
- Don’t add fat to food.
- Don’t add sugar to food.
- Salads are healthy but watch the extras.
- Choose cooking method wisely - boil, steam, grill, oven bake etc.
- Swap fried chips for oven-baked.
- Choose your snacks wisely e.g. nuts
- Skip the added extras e.g. cream in coffee
- Avoid buffets.

BONUS
Tips on how many servings of carbohydrates, proteins and fats to be included in your meals on a daily basis.
- Choose any 6 servings of carbohydrates (bread, cereals and potatoes)
- Any 5 servings of fruits and vegetables
- Any 3 servings of milk and dairy products
- Any 2 servings of meat, fish, eggs and alternatives (proteins)
- Any 2 servings of fats and oils (only small amounts)
- Any one serving of foods high in sugar, fats. Limit pastries once a week.
Carbohydrates
- While choosing carbs, you can have any food made from wheat, brown rice, oats, cornmeal, barley, buckwheat and quinoa.
- Choose wholegrain where possible at least 50% of the time e.g. brown bread, wholegrain cereals
- Limit or avoid refined carbs like cornflakes, muesli and any of these flavored breakfast cereals have high sugar content.
- One serving size with respect to type of carbs is measured as below. Add these in your meals as they are high in fiber.
*1 serving = 1 medium sized bowl of cereal
*1 serving = 1slice of bread
*1 serving = 3 dessert spoon of cooked pasta or rice
*1 serving = 1 medium-sized potato
Fruits and vegetables
- Choose green leafy vegetables and citrus fruits frequently.
- Fruit juice only counts for one serving each day.
- One serving size of fruits and vegetables are measured as below:
*1 serving = 1 small glass of fruit juice
*1 serving = 1 medium sized apple, banana or any fruit of your choice
*1 serving = 2 small sized fresh fruit like plums or kiwis
*1 serving = 3-5 dessert spoon of cooked vegetables like peas and beans