The benefits of healthy eating

It can be helpful to think about what a 'healthy balanced diet '' means. This is especially true if you're unsure about whether you want to start changing what you eat or the way you eat.

Along with cutting back on alcohol, smoking less and being more active, eating well is one of the best things you can do to prevent certain diseases and maintain your overall health. But there are other benefits too.

What is a healthy balanced diet?

Having a healthy balanced diet means eating a variety of foods. It also means getting lots of essential vitamins, minerals, fibre and healthy fats.

This helps you stay in good health and feel your best. You can find out more about this topic at The Eatwell Guide.

You can also discover some great ideas to improve and make your diet more balanced.

What are the benefits?

There are so many benefits you can get from eating well, compared to a poorer quality diet. These can include:

• Having more money to spare. Even cheap takeaways or fast foods generally cost more than making your own meals.
• Having more energy
• Getting better sleep
• Improved mood
• Looking better, including healthier skin, hair and nails

This can all lead to increased confidence and a better sense of well-being.

Also, a healthy diet can improve your body's ability to fight infection. You're less likely to pick up infections like coughs and colds.

If you're eating the recommended amount of fruit and vegetables, you'll get a good amount of fibre and this helps with digestion. This can lead to:

• Having a healthier gut, fighting against digestive problems
• Less chance of problems like constipation or bloating
• Less risk of developing some cancers such as bowel cancer

Feel the benefits for longer

If you start to eat in a more healthy, balanced way, you may see changes within a short time.

Maintaining these small lifestyle changes can make huge differences over time as your new habits become a way of life. Maintaining these changes can lead to:

• Getting to (and staying at) a healthy weight
• Having better long-term mental health and mood
• Having stronger bones and teeth
• Having improved brain function, including better focus and memory
• Reducing the risk of obesity-related diseases. These include diabetes, stroke, heart disease, high blood pressure and some cancers.

Influencing others

If you start to make small changes to what and how you eat, this can have a positive effect on others around you.

You may motivate friends and family to make changes themselves or join you in trying new foods.

If you have children at home, they may be more likely to try different foods if they see you eating them.

What's next

Now go to Following the Eatwell Guide at home.