Healthier fats, less processed foods

Healthier fats, less processed foods at the heart of new guidelines

The Heart Foundation is praising new eating and activity guidelines launched by the Ministry of Health today.

Dave Monro, nutrition spokesperson for the Heart Foundation, says the guidelines act as a helpful steer for practitioners and families on healthier eating.

“We’re pleased to see a greater emphasis on eating mostly whole, less processed foods, and on eating the right types of fat.”

He says there is clear evidence to show that replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats, particularly polyunsaturated fats, has benefits for heart health.

“These guidelines provide greater emphasis on fat being part of a balanced diet and the importance of replacing saturated fat from foods like butter, cream and coconut with more heart-healthy fats from foods like olive, rice bran and sunflower oils.

“However, this doesn’t mean the pendulum has swung back the other way and we that we should start consuming a very high fat intake.”

The new guidelines state that grains remain part of a healthy overall diet.

“We’re glad to see grains are very much still on the table,” Monro says. “The key is eating the right types of grains and grain products – those that are wholegrain, naturally high in fibre and less processed.”

Another positive feature of the guidelines is an emphasis on whole and less processed foods. Monro points out that highly-processed foods can contain high levels of added saturated fat, salt and sugar, and can be less nutrient dense than whole and less processed foods.

The Heart Foundation is also pleased to see a stronger focus on foods as whole, rather than on individual nutrients.

“This is a practical move to keep things relevant to what people are actually eating. If we all focus on eating mostly whole and less processed foods then the nutrients will take care of themselves,” Monro explains.

Today’s guidelines echo many key messages from the Heart Foundation’s Healthy Heart visual food guide launched in 2013. Monro says the Heart Foundation will be reviewing and tweaking this food guide if necessary, but it is great to see a high degree of alignment between our own food guide and the Ministry’s new guidelines.

Monro adds that for many people, these new guidelines won’t seem like rocket science, but the important thing is to make them work within our busy lives.

“If we concentrate on following the messages and themes in the Ministry’s new guidelines, we will be well on track to a healthier way of eating.”

ENDS

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