Food for Thought - Session 1

Today we had a visit from Adele who is from the Heart Foundation. 

We learnt that we there are 2 really important reasons for why we need to eat good food:

• For our learning - so we can concentrate
• Gives us energy - especially of we do lots of physical activity

We also learnt that there are 4 food groups:

1. FATS
There are some foods that are high in sugar, salt and fats. When we eat too much salt this causes the blood in our veins to stiffen up. When we eat too much fat, it sticks to our arteries and clogs them. This makes it hard for the blood to pump around your body. When the arteries become totally blocked, we can have a heart attack or stroke.



2. FRUITS & VEGETABLES
We should try and eat 5+ a day (3 vegetables + 2 fruit, because fruit has sugar in it). This means 5 servings. A serving size is the size of your palm. 

These give us vitamins and minerals. Citrus fruits (like lemons, limes, oranges, grapefruit) are high in vitamin C, which helps us to fight off bugs & germs.

They also give us fibre which helps us go to the toilet!

If you can't get fresh fruit and vegetables, you can have other types like canned, frozen, juice (without added sugar) or dried.

3. BREADS & CEREALS

Sandwiches, grains and starches, bread (brown is better than white), weetbix, oats, rice, noodles, pasta, crackers, bagel, wraps

These contain carbohydrates which is energy food. They also contain fibre, which fills you up fibre.


4. LEGUMES, MEAT, SEAFOOD, POULTRY (Legumes are chickpeas, beans, lentils, nuts and seeds, hummus, falafel)

We should eat 1-2 servings a day.

Serving sizes:

• Red meat (lamb, beef, pork) - palm size
• Poultry - knuckle to palm
• Fish - whole hand

Don't forget to cut the fat off the meat!

We get iron from these foods which is good for our muscles. If you play sport, you need this to help repair your muscles!

5. MILK & MILK PRODUCTS (Cow’s milk, soy milk, milk, yoghurt, cheese, ice cream)

2-3 servings

These foods contain calcium which is good for our bones. You need calcium to develop your bones.

Caffeine is the ENEMY of coffee.

On our dinner plate we should have:

1/2 salad or vegetables

¼ carbohydrates

¼ protein

To have a healthy lunch, we need something from each group.

What's in your lunchbox today?