Adults

Fascinating facts

• 48% of Irish women between 18-50 years old do not eat enough dietary iron
• 1 in 3 have low iron stores and 1 in 30 have iron deficiency anaemia
• 33% of Irish women are overweight and 16% are obese
• 1 in 4 women over 50 in Europe have osteoporosis
• 1 in 4 Irish women do not eat enough calcium
• 46% Irish men are overweight and 20% are obese
• Irish adults spend an average of 18 hours a week watching TV
• In the main adults eat too much salt, fat and alcohol and do not eat enough fibre or take enough exercise.

Weight loss

How do I know if I need to lose weight?
Over 57% of Irish adults are either overweight or obese. See if you need to lose weight by calculating your Body Mass Index by using our BMI calculator.

Are you an apple or pear shape?
If you are overweight, it is where your body stores the extra fat that can affect your risk of suffering from heart disease.

If the extra fat is stored around your waist, this gives you an apple shape. This shape is linked with a higher risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and some cancers. If extra fat is stored around your hips this gives you a pear shape and this shape is less harmful to your health.

Use a measuring tape to measure your waist and then check the table below to assess your risk.

Waist measurement table

Losing weight is a matter of balance. You gain weight if you eat and drink more than you need. To lose weight you must either reduce how much you eat, or increase how much you exercise. The most successful way is by combining both.

Fat has over twice the amount of energy than protein and carbohydrate so cutting down on foods which are high in fat is a good place to start.

Alcohol is very high in calories. It can also stimulate hunger and so should be cut down as much as possible if you are serious about losing some weight.

Don’t try to lose weight too quickly – you are more likely to be successful and keep the weight off if you lose about 1kg (2lb) per week.

Eat – Don’t let yourself get weak with hunger. Eat smaller amounts more frequently.
Drink – Make sure you drink plenty of water. It can reduce your feeling of hunger.
Watch – Your portion sizes. Eat slowly and enjoy your food.
Increase – Your activity. Try to go up and down the stairs as often as you can. Park further away from where you want to go, and walk the rest! Get the garden into shape, walk the dog, spring clean the house.

When losing weight remember: cut the calories, not the nutrients!

Swap foods that are high in fat for healthier choices. You should choose the following;

• Low fat spread instead of butter or margarine
• Low fat milk instead of full fat milk
• Low fat cheese like Edam or light cheddar instead of cheddar or cream cheese
• Lean meat, chicken (no skin) or fish instead of beef burgers, sausages and streaky bacon rashers
• Low fat salad dressing instead of mayonnaise and high fat dressings
• Fruit instead of cake and biscuits
• Small amounts of hard boiled sweets occasionally, instead of chocolate

Choose healthy low-fat ways of cooking

• Oven-bake, grill, boil, poach, stir-fry or microwave food instead of frying
• Boil, steam, dry-roast or bake potatoes instead of having chips
• Try a light cooking spray instead of cooking oil
• Cut all visible fat off meat and take the skin off chicken
• Drain fat off meat and sauces when they are cooked
• Choose tomato-based sauces instead of creamy sauces for pasta and rice dishes

Bringing it all together

• The key points for healthy eating during adulthood is to make sure you are using the food pyramid as a guide to know the portion sizes you should be eating<
• Try to be physically active everyday
• Plan your meals to help you make more healthy choices
• Know what your body mass index is and what it should be, and over time try to improve it
• Don’t drink more alcohol than the upper weekly safe limit of 14 units for women and 21 units for men>

Click here to see 10 simple steps to a healthier you!

Food Pyramid

To see how many servings of each of the food groups you should be including in your diet on a daily basis, view our Food Pyramid or download our detailed PDF.

Ask the Dietitian