Want to lose weight? Then get cooking say the dietitians of Australia.
And with Healthy Weight Week starting today, the Dietitians Associations says it’s young women who want to be healthier who need to get creative in the kitchen.
“With Australia in the grip of an obesity epidemic, and younger women particularly prone to weight gain, cooking a proper main meal at home could be the answer to improving diet and weight problems in this age group,” according to Professor Clare Collins from the University of Newcastle.
She said that a recent survey of young women, commissioned by the Dietitians Assocation found that, while three quarters of the women surveyed (76%) enjoy cooking to some degree, many still opt for regular take-aways meals like pizza, fast food chaindinners and fish and chips.
The Newspoll survey, of 200 young women aged 18-24, found one of the hurdles young women face in eating well is that they perceive take-away foods as convenient and easily available, compared with making a meal at home.
Professor Collins said studies have found people who report being more involved in buying and preparing food or who cook more often are more likely to meet nutrition guidelines. She also said that a dislike of cooking is linked with a lower intake of fruit and vegetables, and eating food prepared away from the home and on the run is associated with a poorer diet, higher in total fat and saturated fat.
“Food cooked at home is typically more nutritious than that prepared away from home. It’s easier to get in lots of variety by cooking at home using fresh ingredients, and it can be fast if you plan ahead.
“At home, you can pick and choose your ingredients – so you can add healthy flavours from lean cuts of meat, vegetables, herbs and spices, and go easy on the less healthy ingredients. That way, you’ll get important nutrients like protein, iron and calcium, without overdoing the nasties like saturated fat, added sugar and salt,” said Professor Collins.
Accredited Practising Dietitian Michelle Ryan, 25 of Ballarat, says her top tips involve planning ahead.
- Set aside some time each week to work out a menu plan for the week ahead which includes what you’ll eat for lunch and dinner.
- Factor in the times you know you'll be out.
- Make a detailed shopping list.
- Head to the shops or local markets to stock up on fresh, healthy food. If you live in a place with a farmer's market or a fish market, even better.
- Do the food shopping once a week. If you plan ahead, you should be able to purchase everything you need (except for an 'emergency') once a week.
- When you go food shopping, make an outing of it. Where there's food, there's also usually good coffee shops!
- Take your partner. You'd be surprised how much fun it can be.
"Watching talented amateur cooks and celebrity chefs on TV is one thing, but actually doing the cooking ourselves is what matters,’ said Ms Ryan.
Celebrity chef Luke Mangan, who has a ‘simple, healthy and fresh’ approach to food, has thrown his support behind Australia’s Healthy Weight Week with a cookbook containing seven delicious and easy recipes for you to try including some top tips from seven accredited dietitians. Find a copy here.
And look out for Motherpedia's own recipes section which includes a new recipe every weekend, as well as other guest recipes from time-to-time.
__small.png)
