Simple Swaps
Introducing healthier food into your family meals needn’t feel drastic or too demanding. These simple ideas will steer you right next time you go shopping or prepare them food. Start with small changes. Make one or two new changes, then, once you’re comfortable with those, make another. The changes add up! Start today with one of the ideas below.
1. Switch from white to wholegrain bread. Energy-producing wholegrains will help power your family through the whole day. There’s no need to stop at just bread, by choosing wholegrain versions of pasta and cereals, you’re giving them fibre and nutrients often lacking in white or refined versions. Try porridge oats for breakfast, wholemeal spaghetti, brown rice and homemade popcorn (without butter and salt!) as a snack.
2. Swap full-fat milk and dairy products to reduced, low- or no-fat versions. You’ll instantly reduce the amount of saturated fat in your family’s food, without compromising on calcium.
3. Say goodbye bad fat, hello good fats! Boiled eggs are a great snack idea–they’re not only a great source of healthy fat, but of protein and vitamins too. Nuts and seeds can also be a great way to get more healthy fats into your day: a handful of walnuts and sunflower seeds can bring a green salad to life.
4. Swap snacking on chips and chocolate for fruit and nuts. Your mid-afternoon energy low is a great time to fill up on one of the two servings of fruit we should be eating daily. Or if you fancy something a little bit more substantial, try a handful of plain, unsalted nuts and some veggies with hummus.
5. Swap butter for margarine. Use margarine spreads made from canola, sunflower or olive oil, and spreads that have earned the Heart Foundation Tick instead of butter and other dairy blends.
6. Swap deep-fried for roasted. Roast in the oven on a lined tray or grill tray. Food can be lightly steamed or microwaved first, then brushed with oil such as canola, olive or sunflower oil for crispness. Crumbed fish, chicken and oven fries can be cooked in the oven rather than deep-fried.
7. Swap hidden salt for reduced salt. There’s salt in most foods and not all of it is obvious, like in soups stocks and canned veggies. If you’re buying these, look for those that are labelled as having “no added salt” or have the Heart Foundation Tick, and resist adding salt to your cooking (use herbs and spices to add flavour).
8. Swap soft drinks for water. Encourage family members to drink water rather than fizzy drinks, cordial, sports drinks or fruit juice.
9. Bake with margarine rather than butter. Butter contains a whopping 50% saturated fat compared to the 14% found in margarine, when you think about the quantity of these that we use when baking cakes – swapping one for the other makes a huge difference. The minimum fat required for biscuits is about two tablespoons per cup of flour – this will retain crispness. Plain sponges, muffins and scones generally use less fat; whilst swapping white flour for wholegrain or wholemeal will help add some extra fibre.
10. Swap the “naughty” for the “not-so-naughty”. The Heart Foundation Tick is a quick way of spotting healthier food options – so if your family has their heart set on pizza, you can relax knowing that those with the Tick are lower in saturated fat, salt and kj.
Also check out our table of fabulous swaps to show how even small and simple changes can make a big difference.
Get the good eating habit
This handy booklet features useful information on choosing healthier fats and checking for salt levels in foods.
Click here or call 1300 36 27 87 for your free copy!