To be confused about "healthy eating"

[Van34]

It's not that I don't understand what foods are and aren't healthy (or so i thought). But I have no idea how to eat healthily. Bear with me.
I used to have a jacket and tuna (with a dash of mayo) but then I was told that it was as unhealthy as sandwiches. So then I tried salads but remain hungry no matter how much I had. Went onto soup but was then told that they are also unhealthy and ultra processed. What should I have?
I understand moderation but portion sizes are minute. One portion of cereal is enough for a toddler. That's not going to fill me up until lunchtime. Is a slice of toast healthy? It used to be a staple breakfast when I was growing up. Or should we be having something else (not a tiny portion if cereal)
We eat home cooked food everyday, no ready meals. But are they healthy? Chilli, steak and chips, chicken in pittas, fajitas, mince and dumplings. All staples from childhood and all filling. But are they healthy? I know what's in them so they should be...
It's a minefield. No red meat. No wine. Low sugar. Low salt. Low carb. High fibre. Low fat. No fat. High protein. Low cal. But so many of these diet foods are processed....
I am so confused about it all.

Sorry

I don’t find fruit and veg at all filling. No matter how much l eat. Aren’t they high in water ?

If you listen to anyone and everyone's random opinions then you're going to get confused.

Eat lots of veg
Avoid processed foods
Don't put loads of sugar on everything

A jacket potato with tuna and salad is fine for lunch.
Homemade veggie soup is fine, tinned Heinz is processed.

Homemade/low processed toast with eggs or sugar free peanut butter and fruit for breakfast is fine.
Shop bought white bread with jam or nutella is going to be a lot less healthy though!

Just to add with regards to your salads comment - I eat a lot of salads, particularly for lunches but will always have grains and protein source in them. For convenience, we tend to buy the microwave grains (qunoia/lentils/bulgur etc) and have tofu/tempeh/cheese as a protein source. We also tend to have hot veg in there such as butternut squash, sweet potato and dips made of beans or chickpeas. This will keep you full for a while whereas just the salad component is only useful as a side to main meal

Nothing wrong with your jacket and tuna unless you have problems processing fast acting carbs

If you are a healthy weight and don't suffer from huge sugar crashes eat whey seems right to you

Everyone is different and many people in the uk are overweight and that is associated with trouble managing insulin levels which requires diet changes to manage

But they don't need to force that on everyone as "healthy"

And there is an industry that wants to maximise its profits by getting you to not eat low cost basically healthy food but instead eating high value foods ( meat for example ) and processed foods

I used to have a jacket and tuna (with a dash of mayo) but then I was told that it was as unhealthy as sandwiches

I got as far as this. I cannot see what is unhealthy about a jacket potato with tuna and mayo, or a sandwich (a proper one made at home, not a shop bought one with gobs of cheap mayo).

Told by who?

I think there can be advise that focuses on low calorie but isn't actually very healthy.

I try to eat loads of veg, nuts and good fats. Low processed. That's my preference for sustainable eating long term that doesn't make you ravenous all the time

See this is a load of shite. Sorry, but it is!

There are roughly 60g carbs in a jacket potato. The average adult should be eating roughly 225 - 325g of carbs a day. So a jacket potato is between 19% and 27% of an adult’s RDA for carbs. As one of your three meals a day it is COMPLETELY FINE and not ‘too large a portion of carbs’.

Carbs have been demonised by diet culture to the point where people seem to think almost any quantity of them is inherently unhealthy, and it just isn’t true. Carbs are an essential part of a balanced diet for most people, and root veg is a particularly healthy and delicious way to eat them.

So you did! 😂

OP, I'm genuinely curious to know if / why you feel you're currently not eating healthily? Is it a weight / health conditions reasons? Or is it more a case of being worried about what you hear is healthy?

My SIL is Sri Lankan she eats rice three times a day, as do all her family and not a single one is overweight or health issues. The demonisation of carbs never adds up for me.

I eat pretty much what I want but I avoid processed foods so I make all my food from scratch. I make my own bread.as shop bought is very processed. I'll have the odd treat now and then. I dont eat processed meat and mostly eat vegetarian but I like fish once a week. Its important to eat lots of veg and I make my own soup. I'll never eat canned soup.
I wouldn't obsess about it. You'll only die young if you fill your body with absolute garbage.

It depends if by healthy you mean, nutrition wise or if something is slimming.
A jacket and tuna is nutritious, but not what I'd have of trying to loose weight.
Avacado, and cashew nuts for example, super healthy, but high calorie. So it depends what you mean!
Sounds like your families diet is good though. Fresh and homemade. Up the veg and plants if you want to go super nutritious

Sándwiches snd jacket potatoes aren't unhealthy - it depends what you put in them. mayo heavy and no veg, not the best. But a slice of ham, scrap of mayo, a good amount of salad and tomato on seeded bread - excellent!
If you look at a plate: half veg (and I don't mean cauliflower cheese), quarter starch (potato etc), quarter or less protein. Variety - eat the rainbow!

I used to be on slimming world, who advocate for sweetners, low fat and low sugar foods.

Forget cooking from scratch because its so difficult to measure how many syns things are!

It's all about UPFs.

I've actually reverted back to sugar in my tea and full fat yogurts and real butter etc.

I actually feel better in myself!

I'm a healthy weight. I try to scratch cook or bake everything and avoid all UPFs wherever possible.

It just feels great. Make your own soups and meals, go for it!

I’ve had health professionals give me different messages. One school would criticise the contents of my child’s packed lunch (whole wheat pasta made with oil free home made sauce, berries (fruit), salad, home made banana bread type . (They kept criticising it no matter what I did, even home made bread) and made me change to school dinners which was pizza and nuggets 🤷‍♀️. current school allows sausage rolls, crisps and giant cookies in the packed lunch!

60g is like a full days worth of carbs for me. It’s nothing to do with “diet culture”. Just health and concerns about developing diabetes. You need to keep your blood sugar down or you end up being diabetic.

I think to a certain extent our bodies all work differently.

When I was first diagnosed with type 2 diabetes I used a continuous glucose monitor for a few weeks. I found out my glucose spikes with a banana, more than with chocolate.

I think eating as much veg as you can and having good quality protein is healthy for most people.

I tend to eat low but not no carbs and I have protein for breakfast so eggs, ham, cheese rather than cereal. I only occasionally have white bread or potatoes.

My glucose is well controlled with this but it doesn't mean it would be for everyone.

Soup from a tin or a packet might be processed but a home made soup isn't.

Do you acknowledge that 60g of carbs is a low amount compared to most people? YOU need to keep your blood sugar down due to being pre-diabetic (?) but I assume you wouldn't take it upon yourself to tell someone eating a jacket potato or a sandwich that they were eating too many carbs and risking diabetes?

A whole jacket potato is too large a portion of carbs. It’s better than bread of course, because it’s less processed, but you still have to restrict your serving size. When people say eat more plants, they mean plants - not roots like potatoes and carrots etc which are heavy on carbs

And this is precisely what messes with people's heads.

"Eat as much veg as you can - but not carrots etc cos they're full of evil carbs!" No! root vegetables have carbs and lots of goodness- as well as being tasty.

Potatoes were left out of the 5 a day only because the British don't need any encouragement to eat them! Moderation is the key.

Supermarket sandwiches are packed with calories but a homemade butty with the right ingredients is fine. Real butter, slice of protein and some salad - fab!

I think you have been given some odd advice, OP. A jacket potato with tuna is far healthier than a sandwich as a potato isn't a processed food which bread is.

Homemade soup is very healthy. Tinned and packet soups may be less so. If you make up a big pan of veggie soup and freeze some portions, you can have it often. It is so easy and quick to make.

Haven't RTWT, so apologies if this has been said, but a simple way of ensuring you eat healthily is to use the "healthy plate" model:
at least one meal a day 2/3 plate veg & 1/3 protein.

Other meal 1/4 protein, 1/4 carbohydrate & half vegetables. Avoid UPFs & eat no more than 2 pieces of fruit a day.

I find it easiest to eat fruit at breakfast, especially if not eating eggs etc, so I have 40g oats made into porridge with nuts or nut butter for protein & the fruit.

I don't think eople realise how stupid it actually sounds to try to impose someone's medically required diet due to specific health issues on others. That btw is basically what's happened to low carb.
It's the same like the gluten free craze which made it harder for actual celiacs because their medical diet became annoying fad.

Sorry guys i did respond but it's disappeared.
It was the Dr that told me a jacket is unheathly. I have a couple of health complaints that they are blaming on eating an unhealthy diet... but then won't tell me what they think is healthy. I cook fresh every night. OK, portions might be a bit large, but it is all fresh food (no jar sauces) its not like we have pizza and kebab each night. Our fridge is restocked with meat and veg each week. Could live without a freezer and have a small staples pantry.

@Van34 OP I feel your pain. healthy eating is really very simple. firstly stop feeling guilty about eating. if you really crave something, eat it. eat good quantities of fruit, veg, protein, fibre. enjoy home made meals mainly with the occasional shop bought/takeaway meal.

everything you have described sounds fine.

but also exercise, sleep more and reduce stress by no longer worrying too much about what you eat.