You should not smoke
If you
smoke, stopping smoking is often
the single most effective thing that you can do to reduce your risk of future
illness. The risk to health falls rapidly as soon as you stop smoking (but
takes a few years before the increased risk reduces completely). If you find it
hard to stop smoking, then see your practice nurse for help. Medication may be
advised to help you to stop.
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Do some regular physical activity
Anything
that gets you mildly out of breath and a little sweaty is fine - for example,
jogging, heavy gardening, swimming, cycling, etc. A brisk walk each day is what
many people do - and that is fine. However, it is thought that the more
vigorous the activity, the better. To gain most benefit, you should do at least
30 minutes of physical activity on most days. Two shorter bursts are thought to
be just as good - for example, two 15-minute bouts of activity at different
times in a day.
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Eat a healthy diet
Briefly,
a healthy diet means:
- AT LEAST five portions, and ideally 7-9 portions, of a variety of fruit and vegetables per day.
- THE BULK OF MOST MEALS should be starch-based foods (such as cereals, wholegrain bread, potatoes, rice, pasta), plus fruit and vegetables.
- NOT MUCH fatty food, such as fatty meats, cheeses, full-cream milk, fried food, butter, etc. Use low-fat, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated spreads.
- INCLUDE 2-3 portions of fish per week, at least one of which should be 'oily' (such as herring, mackerel, sardines, kippers, pilchards, salmon, or fresh tuna).
- If you eat meat it is best to eat lean meat, or poultry such as chicken.
- If you do fry, choose a vegetable oil such as sunflower, rapeseed or olive.
- Try not to add salt to food, and limit foods which are salty.
Try to lose weight if you are overweight or obese
You don't
need to get to a perfect weight. If you are overweight you can gain great health benefits by losing
5-10% of your weight. This is often about 5-10 kg. (10 kg is about one and a
half stone.)
Don't drink too much alcohol
Men should drink no more than 21 units of
alcohol per week, no more than four units in any one day, and have at least two
alcohol-free days a week. Women should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol
per week, no more than three units in any one day, and have at least two
alcohol-free days a week. Pregnant women should not drink at all. One unit is
in about half a pint of normal strength beer, or two thirds of a small glass of
wine, or one small pub measure of spirits.