Guideline
No. 1
Enjoy a Variety of Foods
 This first guideline urges you
to include lots of different kinds of foods in your diet; to
prepare them in different ways; to mix and match foods in ways
you haven't tried before; to avoid eating the same old things,
week in and week out.
Why is Variety Important?
 it increases
your chances of getting all of the nutrients needed for good
health, in the right amounts.
it stacks
your diet with protective factors that may disarm would-be cancer
causing substances. Protective factors include both nutrients
(vitamins and minerals) and non-nutritive substances present
in food.
it helps
to keep your intake of substances like fat, salt, caffeine and
alcohol at moderate and healthy levels.
How do you get Variety?
Getting variety in your
diet is really quite simple.
The most basic way to ensure that you eat a variety of foods is to plan your day's meals around the major food groupings: Grain products; Vegetables and Fruit; Milk products; Meat and Alternatives.
Take advantage of the marvelous
range of foods available in Canada. When fruits and vegetables
are in season, buy locally grown foods. But when winter sets
in, enjoy frozen or canned produce or choose from the wide range
of produce that comes form all parts of the world.
Enjoy ethnic foods and cooking; try the different fruits, vegetables and whole grains that you find in the ethnic markets and grocery stores.
 Shopping for healthy food is getting easier all the time. A quick check of the grocery store soon tells you that many companies are choosing to label their products with at least some nutrition information. The Canadian government and the food industry are working towards standards for nutrition information on food labels. You can use this information to get what you want and avoid what you don't want.
Info obtained from the Healthy Eating published by the Canadian Cancer Society
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