Not only does healthy eating keep your immune system strong to fight off disease, but combined with the right amount of exercise, it helps you stay at a healthy body weight.
Canada's Food Guide should be used in planning your daily food intake. The number of servings you eat from each food group depends on your age, sex, activity level and body size.
- Grain products (pasta, breads, cereals): 5 - 10 servings per day.
- Fruits & vegetables (includes fruit or vegetable juices): 5 - 10 servings per day.
- Milk products (milk, cheese, yogurt, etc): 2 - 4 servings per day.
- Meat & alternatives (fish, chicken, peanut butter, baked beans): 2 - 3 servings per day.
To decrease fat intake, choose lean meats, lower fat dairy products and bake, broil or microwave meals instead of frying.
Dark green and orange vegetables and orange fruit are higher in certain vitamins and nutrients.
Young women should have an adequate calcium intake. Your bones do not absorb as much after 30 years of age, so this is the time you need to build up stores of calcium to prevent osteoporosis later on.
Information and advise on healthy eating is available at Health Services.
