‘You are what you eat’ is more than an old adage. Diets have huge implications on one’s health and body functions. In light of this, the NHS UK has outlined recommendations for a healthy and balanced diet. These guidelines are visually represented as the Eatwell guide, showing how much of what you eat should come from the five main food groups: fruits and vegetables, carbohydrates, protein, milk and dairy, and fats and oils.
However, various factors can alter an individual’s food choices and patterns. Among other factors like age, genetics, and lifestyle is one’s cultural environment. This article thus looks into whether British food is helping the population meet nutritional standards and become healthier or not.
A look into British health and diets
In 2021, the National Food Strategy report was published and called for a landmark shift in the public’s eating habits. Poor diets have been found to contribute to an estimated 64,000 deaths yearly and cost the economy around £74 billion. Yet the nonprofit research institute RAND Europe stated that the British diet has been slowly changing, with a declining trend in the consumption of food groups like red meat and sugar.
While Brits have become healthier in some aspects, people are generally not meeting the health standards because they do not consume enough fruits, vegetables, and fibre. Traditional and regional foods like the Canterbury apple pie and Folkestone pudding pie provide a rich source of vitamins and minerals with their use of fruits found in orchards and gardens throughout the county. But people have been consuming less of these traditional home-cooked foods and more unhealthy snacks and junk foods, primarily due to the advancement of digital technology for ready-made meals and fast food delivery.
Ways for Brits to eat and live healthier
But what can be done to address these unhealthy eating habits and lower the risk of obesity among the British population? Healthy eating can at once be promoted and practised in the following ways.
Avoid certain foods
One of the more straightforward ways to approach a healthier and more balanced diet is to know which specific foods and beverages to cut down on. High-calorie foods and drinks like white bread, jam, butter, chocolate, fruit juice, and sweetened beverages are popularly regarded as ‘British foods’, but their high fat and sugar content can be linked to increased risks of cardiovascular disease and decreased life expectancy. These food items may provide energy, but they often contain lower amounts of the nutrients the body needs. Reading food labels will also help consumers identify which specific items are high in calories but low in nutritional value.
Get advice from health experts
Besides doing your own research on how to eat healthily, it helps to get science-based and professional advice from health experts. Weight loss programmes can be much more effective in attaining both your weight goals and nutritional needs when they are customised to fit your daily behaviours, preferences, and overall lifestyle. Nutritionists and dietitians can guide you through making healthier food choices and eating the correct portion sizes with the help of a meal plan. To ensure that healthy habits stick and are fully integrated into your daily routine, experts also advise tracking the nutritional information of the food you eat.
Opt for homemade and locally-sourced
As discussed in the previous section, the growing preference for foods made and prepared outside of the home can be detrimental to one’s health. Moreover, these contemporary food habits among Brits can even damage the environment and threaten food security with their high carbon footprint. It is, therefore, crucial to opt for homemade foods with more fruits and vegetables and less sugar, fat, and salt. This transition can be made much easier by growing your own food or shopping for organic and locally-sourced ingredients at farmers’ markets.
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