A healthy balanced diet is important to help maintain a healthy body weight and reduce the risk of diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes. A healthy diet should include bread, potatoes, cereals, fruits and vegetables, together with moderate amounts of milk, dairy products, meat, fish and small amounts of foods containing fat and sugar. Foods from the largest groups should be eaten most often and foods from the smallest group should be eaten least often.

The key message is that having a balance and variety of foods in the diet is important for health. Aiming to achieve this balance every day is a sensible and practical approach, although it is not necessary to achieve it at every meal. Choosing different foods from within each group is also important as this adds to the range of nutrients consumed, as well as variety to the diet.

Over one third of food is eaten outside of the home so menu choices should include a variety of foods and offer healthier options.

The Food groups are

• Bread, rice, potatoes, pasta and other starchy foods

Fruit and vegetables
• Milk and dairy foods
• Meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein
• Food and drinks high in fats and/or sugar