Eating a balanced diet is crucial to maintaining our health and productivity. For helpful tips and nutritious recipes to keep you feeling good, check out our resource blog article.
A healthy diet is a varied, balanced and fresh mixed diet that should consist mainly of plant-based foods. Here you will find 13 tips for a healthy diet and find out why it is important.
1. Enjoy variety
Allow variety in your food choices. The larger and more colourful the selection, the better. It helps to use the traffic light system for fruit and vegetables: for example, green salad, bananas and tomatoes.
2. Five a day
This means 2 portions of fruit and 3 portions of vegetables. One portion is always a handful. When eating vegetables, it is best to include a raw component, such as lettuce. If you like, you can eat more vegetables than fruit, as vegetables do not affect blood sugar levels. Fruit and vegetables contain vitamins, minerals and fibre that the body needs.
3. Cereal products and potatoes…
… should be on the menu every day. Choose mainly whole grain cereal products, as they contain a lot of fibre. A high intake of fiber reduces the risk of various diet-related diseases and is important for proper digestion.
4. Enjoy animal products in moderation
You can consume milk and dairy products every day. Choose the low-fat variety to save calories. These provide the body with protein and calcium. You can plan to eat fish once or twice a week. This provides valuable fatty acids that are essential for the body. Eat meat, sausages and eggs in moderation. It is better to eat white meat than red meat, as the latter is suspected of promoting bowel cancer, cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
5. Healthy fats
Fat is not bad per se. Quite the opposite! The type of fat is important. Linseed oil, rapeseed oil, nuts, seeds and sea fish provide omega-3 fatty acids, so-called unsaturated fatty acids, which are particularly important for the body. Omega-6 fatty acids are also unsaturated fatty acids and are found in sunflower oil, for example. However, these fatty acids can have a pro-inflammatory effect and should therefore only be consumed sparingly. You should also reduce saturated fats from animal products such as butter and hydrogenated fats, for example from ready-made baked goods or margarine. Fat enables the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins such as E, D, K and A.
6. Drink a lot
Drink at least 1.5 litres a day. In warm weather, 2 to 3 litres is better. Favour water and unsweetened teas. Drinking juice spritzers from time to time is okay. Avoid soft drinks and light drinks because they contain a lot of sugar.
7. Eat natural products as much as possible
Ready-made meals often contain a large number of unnecessary ingredients. Principle: the list of ingredients should be as short as possible and most ingredients should be known.
8. Sugar and salt in moderation
Use as little sugar or foods with sugar as possible, as these cause an increased blood sugar level, which the body keeps in check with insulin. If insulin is active in the body, less fat can be broken down at the same time and weight can increase in the long term.
Instead of salt, use fresh herbs for seasoning. In general, too much salt is used in Germany, which can have a negative effect on blood pressure.
9. Hunger or appetite
Strengthen your body awareness! Before every meal and snack, ask yourself whether you are really hungry or just feel like eating. Behind the craving for something between your teeth is usually a thirst signal from the body that we cannot always recognise as such. If it’s not thirst but a craving for sweets, it often disappears by itself if you wait a moment. By the way, this will save you calories. Eat regularly so that cravings don’t stand a chance. Otherwise, the body tends to quickly consume large and often high-calorie quantities so that the brain is quickly supplied with new energy.
10. Seasonality and regionality
Does your food come from the region and is it in season? Opting for regional and seasonal products shortens transport routes and thus protects the climate. Long transport routes often also affect the vitamin content of the food.
11. Gentle preparation
Prepare your food at the lowest possible temperature to preserve the nutrients. Use as little fat as possible to save calories.
12. Indulgence
Take your time when eating! Savour your food consciously and chew for longer: this ensures that all food is broken down well and the intestines have less work to do. This is because many bowel problems can be caused by insufficient chewing.
13. Eat without distraction
Avoid the TV and smartphone while you eat and enjoy your meal without distractions. Otherwise your body won’t realise what you’re actually eating and the amount you eat will automatically increase. Eat with family or friends and enjoy a delicious lunch or dinner together.
Healthy alternatives to crisps & co
Are you looking for alternative foods and want to swap unhealthy foods for healthier options? You can find some tips in the table below.
| Better not | Instead |
| Sweets and chocolate | Dried fruit and nuts |
| Sunflower oil, clarified butter | Rapeseed or linseed oil |
| White flour products (bread rolls, cakes, pasta) | Wholemeal products |
| Sugared tinned fruit, stewed fruit | Fresh fruit |
| Salt | Herbs |
| Fatty sausage, e.g. salami | Turkey breast, smoked pork, vegetarian spreads |
| Red meat, e.g. beef | Light-coloured meat, e.g. chicken |
| Crisps | Salt or sesame sticks |
| Lemonades and juices | Water, infused water, teas, juice spritzers |
| Beer, wine, cocktails | Non-alcoholic beer, fruit juice spritzer |
Vitamins and minerals: occurrence and effect
Vitamins and minerals are micronutrients. Although the body often only needs small amounts of them, they are essential for our health and performance. People who eat a healthy, varied and seasonal diet generally get almost all the important vitamins and minerals from their food.
However, there are exceptions: The need for vitamins and minerals increases during the growth phase, when there is increased stress, as well as when there is a double burden of family and work, malnutrition or when taking certain medicines. It may also be advisable to take dietary supplements during pregnancy or in the case of chronic and inflammatory diseases. This also applies to older people and people who avoid certain foods or frequently eat fast food products.
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