Ten easy changes you can make that will ensure you eat a healthy diet

1 Fill up on fibre

Fibre will be the big buzz word this year. A survey of Irish diets showed that a whopping 80pc of us don't eat enough fibre. This is thought to affect both our health and our waistlines. A study commissioned by the World Health Organisation revealed that a person who ate more fibre tended to weigh less than a person who ate less fibre.

Observational studies and clinical trials conducted over nearly 40 years revealed that eating at least 25g to 29g or more of dietary fibre a day results in a 15-30pc decrease in death from heart disease and eating fibre-rich foods also reduced incidence of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer by 16-24pc. These are impressive results when you consider that per 1,000 people, the impact translates into 13 fewer deaths and six fewer cases of heart disease. Some foods are naturally very high in fibre and include linseeds, chia seeds, berries, pears, beans, peas, lentils and mangos. A tasty array of foods to take up eating regularly.

2 Keep a food diary

The interesting thing about keeping a food diary is that it often leads to better food choice and weight-loss, with or without intention to do so. This was shown in a study conducted in 2019, where people who were overweight were asked to track their food intake every day using a free smartphone app. Although they did not follow a particular diet, the average weight-loss within the study was significant. In a different study, that included nearly 1,700 people, keeping a food diary was shown to double a person's weight-loss.

Keeping a food diary doesn't have to be a super formal exercise. It can be kept in a diary, an app, or even an email or text to yourself. One of the benefits of documenting what you eat is that it starts the process of reflection. If you reflect on what you eat, you become more aware of your habits, leading to behaviour change.

3 Aim to be hydrated before you eat

Lots of people drink water when they eat and are hydrated by the time a meal ends. It may be beneficial to aim to be hydrated before the meal begins. In a study, two groups of participants were asked to follow a lower-calorie diet in order to lose weight. One group drank 500ml of water before eating their meals and the other group did not. Interestingly, the group that drank the water before meals lost approximately 2kg more than those that didn't and showed a 44pc greater decline in weight over the 12-week period of the study. These results are quite remarkable.

4 Include protein

Protein is filling and somewhat self-limiting. To give you an idea of what this means, a slice of toast with butter contains the same amount of calories as one chicken breast. If you were hungry, how many slices of toast could you eat?

If it's more than two, this is equivalent to more than two chicken breasts. Which do you think is easier to eat? Data suggests that eating protein prevents the secretion of the hunger hormone ghrelin and stimulates the secretion of the satiety hormones PYY (peptide YY), GLP-1 (glucagonlike peptide 1), and CCK (cholecystokinin).

A high-protein diet is not something that you have to follow to lose weight. However, by ensuring you eat enough protein at your meal times, it will also help you to preserve your muscle mass during the weight-loss process, helping to lower the percentage of your body that is fat. Great sources of protein include meat, poultry, fish, beans, peas, lentils, tofu and dairy.

5 Make some tasty changes to your breakfast to prevent snacking in the evening

A breakfast that is high in fibre and high in protein will not only set you up nicely for the day, studies suggest it improves our food choice throughout the day. For example, studies looking at the impact of high-quality, high-protein breakfasts have shown greater improvements in late-night snacking on foods high in sugar and fat than lower-protein, lower-fibre breakfasts.

If you currently make your porridge on oats and water, why not consider making it on milk, which is naturally rich in protein. For an extra protein and fibre boost, consider topping your porridge with yoghurt and nuts. If you currently enjoy eggs at breakfast, which are a terrific source of protein, why not add in more protein and fibre by eating a side of beans or including some green vegetables in your omelette?

6 Focus on volume eating

Foods are different sizes that are not necessarily proportionate to their calorie density. You could eat a small, light food with lots of calories or a large, more weighty food with very few calories. Volume eating is a great way to eat as you fill up on less calorie-dense foods. This is a great option for people who don't want to tot up their food at the end of the day. To give this a go, simply focus on eating lots of non-starchy vegetables, fruit, low fat dairy, tofu, quorn, lean white meat, white fish and shellfish.

7 Wonderful wholefoods

Wholefoods are often more filling than processed foods as they often contain more fibre and more water. Additionally, they may even contain less trans fats, sugar and salt. The simple of act of switching some of the more processed foods in your diet to more wholefoods has been shown to reduce weight and even improve mood. So why not switch chips for boiled potatoes, white bread for brown bread, fruit for fruit juice and chose high-fibre cereal like oats and muesli over the more processed variety.

8 Drink more water than tea or coffee

Tea and coffee are good for us, as long as we don't have certain conditions like anxiety or IBS. Despite common misconception, they are both also hydrating. However, they often come with extra calories. For instance, a study showed that roughly two-thirds of coffee drinkers and one-third of the tea drinkers put sugar, cream, flavourings or other calorie-rich additives in their drinks. For example, those who drink their coffee black consume about 69 fewer total calories per day, on average, than those who add sweeteners, cream or other substances to their coffee. Additionally, tea is often joked as being the gateway drug to biscuits! If a biscuit contained 100 calories, every 20 biscuits would equal a day's worth of food.

9 Sit down to eat, without distractions

Eating on the hop or while watching the TV interferes with our body's ability to listen to our satiety cues. Being present while eating is the first step to avoiding overeating. In research, getting a handle on mindless eating has been shown to lead to more weight loss, better blood sugar levels and even lower cholesterol. So put down the phone, limit the noise, eat your meal slowly and without distraction. Experience your meal with all your five senses! Pay attention to what your meal looks like, its texture, smell, the sound of your chewing and of course the taste.

10 Eat homemade food

Eating out not only costs more money, it often has more calories too. A study showed that home-cooked meals were associated with diets lower in calories, sugar and fat, but not higher monthly food expenses. Lunch is often eaten out for those who are working. Why not consider packing a lunch box? The most important thing is to keep it simple. If it's not something you can do every day, it's not a change that will be sustainable. Perhaps going back to basics and bringing in a sandwich with fruit? A healthy sandwich is made on wholegrain bread, contains a good quality protein source like meat, poultry, eggs or fish and is bursting with veggies!