Eat well

• Eat at least 5 serves of vegetables and 2 serves of fruit each day.
• Eat a variety of wholegrain, wholemeal and high-fibre foods, such as bread, pasta, oats, rice, legumes (beans, peas and lentils) and nuts.
• Limit your intake of red meat and avoid processed meats like ham, salami, devon and bacon.
• Avoid snacks that are high in added fats, sugar and salt, such as chips, biscuits and chocolate. Replace them with fruit, vegetables, unsalted nuts or yoghurt.
• Limit takeaway foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt such as pies, sausage rolls, fried chicken or fish, burgers and hot chips. Replace them with BBQ chicken (with skin removed), sandwiches, wraps, sushi and home cooked meals.
• Choose water instead of sugary drinks such as soft drinks, sports drinks, cordial, iced tea and fruit drinks.
• Drink less alcohol, it can lead to weight gain and increases cancer risk. If you don’t drink alcohol, you shouldn’t start.
• Use the Health Star Rating system to choose packages foods. Choose products with the most stars. For more information, see healthstarrating.gov.au.
• If you can, breastfeed your baby for at least 6 months.

Fruit, vegetables and wholegrains are important for good health and we should eat lots of these foods every day. They are a great source of fibre, vitamins and minerals. Fibre helps protect against bowel cancer.

Fruit and vegetables also contain other nutrients, such as antioxidants, that can protect against cancer. Eat a rainbow because different types of coloured fruit and vegetables contain different nutrients.

Fruit and vegetables also help to maintain a healthy weight. This is because fruit and vegetables are low in energy (kilojoules) and high in fibre, which makes us feel fuller and may help us eat less.

Overweight and obesity is a risk factor for 13 types of cancer, including cancer of the bowel, oesophagus, kidney, liver, pancreas, endometrium, and breast (after menopause).

• Two serves of different fruit each day.
• At least 5 serves of different vegetables, including legumes (beans and lentils), each day.
• About 4–6 serves of different bread and cereal foods each day with at least two-thirds wholegrain or wholemeal varieties such as wholemeal pasta, brown rice and multigrain or high-fibre bread.

• Build your snacks around fruit, veg and wholegrains. For example,
  • fresh fruit
  • canned fruit (in juice, not syrup)
  • a small handful of dried fruit
  • vegetable sticks or wholegrain crackers with hummus or other dip
  • baked beans
  • vegie muffins or fritters (link to Healthy Lunch Box recipe)
  • plain air popped popcorn
  • wholemeal or wholegrain crispbread with cheese and tomato
  • handful of nuts
• Keep canned fruit (in juice, not in syrup) and canned vegetables and legumes (no-added salt) such as baked beans, chickpeas and kidney beans in the cupboard.
• Keep frozen fruit and vegetables in the freezer for times when you don’t have fresh, e.g. frozen berries, mango, peas, corn, broccoli, carrots and green beans.
• Choose vegetables and fruit that are in season – they taste better and cost less.
• Eat whole fruits and vegetables rather than drink juice. The fibre in fresh fruit and vegetables is lost when they are juiced. If you drink juice, choose 100% juice and limit to a small serve (125 mL or half a cup) occasionally. A better option is a small fruit smoothie as you use the whole fruit and keep all the fibre.
• Fill at least half of your dinner plate with veg.
• Reduce the amount of meat in mince dishes such as bolognaise, burrito mixture, meatballs and shepherd’s pie and bulk up with vegetables such as chopped mushrooms, grated zucchini, carrots, lentils or kidney beans.
• Reduce the amount of meat in stews and curries and bulk up with vegetables and legumes such as carrots, corn, lentils and chickpeas.
• Have a meat-free meal at least once a week. Try a vegetable-based pasta, risotto, frittata, soup or curry.
• Choose wholegrain, wholemeal or high fibre breads instead of white.
• Choose brown rice instead of white rice.
• Choose wholemeal or high fibre pasta like pulse pasta, instead of white pasta.

Red meat includes foods such as beef, veal, pork, lamb, mutton, venison and goat.

Processed meat includes foods such as ham, frankfurts, devon, salami, bacon, jerky and corned beef.

We know that eating processed meats probably causes bowel cancer and eating too much red meat probably increases risk of bowel cancer. Cancer-causing chemicals are also formed when red meat is charred or burnt.

• Replace processed meat such as ham, bacon, devon or salami with other options. For example,
  • replace ham on a sandwich with BBQ chicken (with skin removed), cheese or tuna
  • swap bacon at breakfast with haloumi or baked beans
  • switch out pepperoni on pizza for chicken, beef mince or prawns.
• Consider some alternatives to red meat at dinner. For example,
  • use fish, tofu or chicken in curries and casseroles
  • try chicken skewers as an option for a barbecue
  • create pasta dishes using prawns, chicken mince or turkey mince.
• Reduce the amount of meat in recipes and replace with more vegetables and legumes e. g. add carrot, mushrooms, celery and capsicum to bolognaise sauce and chickpeas to curries.
• Avoid charring meat, instead try casseroling, slow roasting or marinating foods to prevent burning.
• Eat a meat-free meal at least once every week. Try a vegetable-based pasta, risotto, frittata, soup or curry.

• Avoid consuming processed meat such as ham, devon, salami and bacon.
• Consume no more than 455g cooked (or 700g raw) red meat per week.
  • A serve of red meat is equal to 90–100 g raw or 65 g cooked:
    • ½ cup lean raw mince
    • 1 lamb loin chop
    • ½ cup diced raw meat
  • This means, you could have a serve of red meat every day or 2 serves across 3–4 meals a week.

• For more recipes and ideas visit healthylunchbox.com.au
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Guide to Healthy Eating