What guidelines do you follow to have a healthy (but nice!) diet?!

[roamingcat]

Hello all,

I've recently become more interested in living a healthy life following the diagnosis of a chronic illness and listening to Dr Rangan Chatterjee's podcast and one of the things I need to look at is my diet. We definitely eat better than some people (no jar sauces, limited ready meals/takeaways), however, there are areas for improvements (too many puddings, too much chocolate/crisps, and I shouldn't eat too much red meat due to my illness) and it's currently making me feel stressed. I grew up in a household where my parents had odd rules/phases around food (e.g. they went on the slimfast diet, we weren't allowed things like chocolate very often and sweets at all, we were forced to eat food we hated, they thought pasta was "bad"), which I think is adding to this stress because I don't have good experiences to learn from.

The whole area seems to be a bit of a minefield and I know we're never going to be able to do something like giving up puddings and chocolate completely (and this would make me sad!) but I would be interested to see whether you have any guidelines you follow or principles which help you have a healthy diet whilst still enjoying treats every so often. I don't want to eat in a way which is restrictive and I still want to be able to enjoy things like a big bowl of pasta and garlic bread, but I also want to feel calm in the knowledge I am eating "well".

Thanks!

I hesitate to say I have a healthy diet as I could with losing many pounds, but that's to do with portion size, I think, rather than food choices. I was very lucky to grow up in a house where nobody had food hangups and my mum was a good cook. Her father was a gardener and that may be one reason why we always ate plenty of vegetables. We also had pulses very regularly, often in soup. I would say those are two good food habits to get into.

Sorry to be off topic but could I ask what your illness is? (What means you can't eat too much red meat)

Personally I feel that Slimming World guidelines are good for a general (but simple) 'eat well' approach, whether you're trying to lose weight or not.

Unlimited low fat protein, eggs, pasta, rice, noodles, fruit and veg. Two portions of dairy, one of extra carbs (like two weetabix or a slice of bread) a day. Everything else has a Syn value which means you can still have sauces, treats etc but limited amounts.

If you were doing it but not trying to lose weight, I suppose you could just up how many Syns you had a day until you hit the right level.

A lot of what we have been 'fed' about healthy living has been marketing rather than science based, which imo accounts for a lot of the confusing now around food.

The people from the Zoe project do seem to have good basis for what they suggest. They have also had Dr Chatterjee on one of their podcasts

I generally l follow the Zoe guidelines. I find I feel much better for eating a wide range of vegetables, some fruit plus protein and fat to make it all tasty. Keeping my blood sugar stable is the key for me to feel good during, after and between meals.

Nowadays, in my sixties, that means really very little sugar indeed.

Not everyone has the same sensitivity to sugar and processed foods that they confirmed in me, so it won't be relevant to everyone. It works for me.

I have crohns disease - so nhs advice is to limit red meat, which is annoying as Bolognese was one of my go-to meals!

I'm by no means claiming to have a 'healthy' diet but I do aim for 10 portions of fruit & veg a day (9 veg 1 fruit) but it helps that I really enjoy veg! Meals tend to be be veg based with lean protein.

@roamingcat Do you like marshmallows - I've got a sweet tooth but try to just grab a couple of marshmallows instead of choc/biscuits/puddings etc. Good for Crohn's

At least 50% of my daily food is raw fruit or veg. I'm vegan so no meat but lots of pulses. I love pasta and have that with a homemade sauce quite often. I do eat cakes and cookies but only homemade so I know what is in them. My diet is by no means extremely healthy but combined with a reasonable amount of exercise it helps me maintain a lowish weight.

Low carb - specifically pasta, bread, potatoes, starch. Higher fat than we think of as ‘healthy’. Get your carbs primarily from veg and pulses. And of course sugar is pure carb. As a general guide, I think it would improve most people’s diet through stabilisation of blood sugar (carbs) and managing hunger (fats).

I just try to think of it as moderation rather than limitation. We still have pudding, cakes, biscuits, chocolate, just less frequently and smaller portions.

Loads of fruit and veg, lots of lean meat and fish. You can still have Bolognese, try making it with chicken or turkey mince instead? It's not quite the same but scratches the same itch, I find.

I also think just tracking what you eat helps - it's helped me be more mindful about what I'm actually eating, instead of just sitting there slowly crunching through a whole bag of pretzels without really thinking about it.

We had a lovely meat free bolognese the other week. Think I used finely diced carrot or lentils. You don't need beef for that. And there's always Quorn I suppose (bleh).

I try to have mostly vegetarian in the week then meat at the weekend. Doesn't always work that way though.

I think bolognese is delightful with more pasta, less meat. Maybe you could keep it in the mix but change the ratio.

I try to pay attention to how food makes me feel after eating. Eat more of what gives me energy and is easy to digest and less of what tires me out and makes me feel too full.

I was just in Italy and noticed that I always felt great. My hosts fed me much of the same food I always eat, but everything was made more simply and much lighter than the way I prepare it. Smaller portions, too but I always felt satisfied. Always with a small salad and piece of fruit after. Cheese, too.

I have had gastric surgery so have to follow these guidelines but they can be good for anyone. 3 meals and two snacks per day. Focus on your protein and this should be at least 50% of your portion, your fruit and veg should be 30% of your portion and carbs only 20% and eaten last if you are not already full. Don't deny yourself foods that you enjoy but don't constantly eat crap! Make sure you drink 2 litres of water a day.

You can still have Bolognese just use a plant based alternative. Soya, Quorn, lentil, mushroom etc. Swap meat for vegan alternatives.

Bolognese made with lentils is great. Fry a little pancetta to start and use green lentils instead of mince. It'll be delicious.

We eat reasonably healthily. Part of it is that we probably only eat meat once a week. Breaking the idea that meal=meat opens you up to lots of fantastic food without having to feel particularly restricted. Check out mob.co.uk for brilliant veggie recipes.

You could still have bolognaise but with turkey breast mince. I use it a lot.

We eat loads of veg, start meals with salad (winter salads with cabbage, beetroot etc) or veg soup. Cut meat in curries/casseroles/bolognaise/chilli and top up with lentils or beans. Ditch white carbs entirely - wholemeal pasta is nice nowadays (years ago it was hard work), my kids prefer brown rice now. All cakes, biscuits and puddings home made - it's a huge faff so we eat less of this stuff - I cook a batch of cereal bars, muffins or biscuits for packed lunches and we have one home made pudding a week. The only cheese I buy is extra mature cheddar and that gets grated and frozen so it's not available for easy snacking. Kids (teens) snack on oatcakes/tuna; pasta, beans and cheese; fruit; smoothies with natural yog and frozen fruit; eggs; soup; microwaved 'cakes' they make from porridge oats, eggs, banana, cocoa powder; pancakes, quorn sausages. They need a substantial snack after school then main supper about 7.

I would say in this case when it comes to red meat when you do have it make sure it's organic. Same with dairy if you're still having that.

Non organic red meat will have been pumped full of antibiotics which will effect its quality. Did you know if a breastfeeding mother takes antibiotics sometimes the babies get diarrhoea? So makes sense to only have organic red meat and dairy because god knows what the inorganic stuff is doing to our gut health.

My DH has Crohns and he follows the carnivore diet as he has found that to be the least inflammatory diet. Before that, he was on the AIP diet which is also high in (quality!) meat. I think a lot of it is personal though so you may react differently. He finds avoiding too much sugar, dairy and gluten is what helps the most. He also does intermittent fasting to give his gut a rest. He's now off all medication.

My best diet tip is to try to avoid ever being hungry so you don't have to battle your will power too much! So high protein breakfast (eggs maybe) and regular access to healthy foods so you don't end up falling off the wagon. Also, set reasonable expectations of yourself (which is sounds like you are).

I hope you feel better soon. You people living with Crohns are real troopers!

Thanks all, so it feels like the following are principles that I should try and follow:

• Plenty of yummy fruit and veg
• Try and homemake the sweet stuff so you know what's in it (I like baking so this one is easy)
• Reduce the meat and increase the lentils/beans. Buy good quality meat if having it.
• Keep the blood sugar steady - this is definitely one that I slip up on as I end up being waaay too hungry then head for the rubbish snacks! I usually eat breakfast at work but perhaps I could try and pre-make some sort of egg muffins to heat up in the microwave when I'm there?

If anyone has any particular recipes or recipe books they would suggest please let me know! Any lunchtime suggestions? This is an area I definitely could improve upon, I either take a sandwich and end up getting hungry so buy vending machine snacks or I buy a meal deal with the similar unhealthy snacking issue!

Thank you this is really helpful! Buying organic red meat is a really good idea, I enjoy it so I don't want to cut it out completely but I think this would make me feel less worried about eating it if it's good quality.

What is your sons eating window with IF? I've also heard this can be really good for helping your gut repair itself.

buy a meal deal with the similar unhealthy snacking issue!

While I am very keen on organic everything, because of the impact of fertilisers and non organic weed control on the environment, it would absolutely fit our 'meal deals' long before I was worrying about how my meat was produced.

I'd focus on finding good quality food to take to work. Do you have a 'fridge at work? If so, how about getting hold of a 'kilner' style jar, with the stay in place lid. Fill it with a wide range of salad veggies. Aim for thirty different kinds of veg over the week.

Add some delicious dressing (in a separate container if it will make the veggies go limp' plus some interesting protein to fill you up. Something delicious you will look forward to eating snd not have to resort to ready made meals.

Enjoy eating delicious and well prepared food.

There's an American registered dietician on YouTube & tiktok that I find a bit OTT, but I do like her rule of thumb that every meal and large snack should include protein, carbohydrate, healthy fats and fibre.

Another dietician I've found on YouTube (trying to educate myself here too!) recommended focusing on what you can add to a meal to make it healthier, eg add fresh fruit to porridge, rather than what you should take away.

I like these kind of overall rules of thumb rather than having a strict 'diet', because it applies whether you're at home or dining out, in a hurry or meal prepping etc.

Both of them do say that if you're craving a treat, have the treat (in a sensible portion), because otherwise you'll inevitably eat loads of other stuff trying and failing to hit that craving.

BTW, the Zoe app says upfront that it isn't suitable for Chrons, IBS or IBD.

I like the overall rules of thumb rather than strict rules too. The one I keep coming back to is that at every meal there is an opportunity to improve your health.