If someone said to you, “I’ve got a way to reduce your risk of cancer by 40% and heart disease by 30%”. You’d say show me how. Eat more like a vegetarian! There is growing evidence that the healthiest diets are loaded with plant foods and light on animal foods, especially red meat. Scientists aren’t sure whether the health benefits accrue from eating more fruits and vegetables or less meat.

Ready

The important point is not that meat is good or bad but it is HOW OFTEN you eat it. I don’t want you to stop eating and enjoying a juicy steak weekly as part of an overall healthy diet. But, when you are planning an evening meal, first think about the types of vegetables and grains (pasta or rice) you want to serve first as they should provide the bulk of the meal. I suggest a gradual shift to eating less red meat and eating more fish and low fat high fibre alternatives such as lentils.

Set

Most people know that these foods are good but aren’t sure where to start or how to make the adjustments to a healthier diet. The first step is to arm yourself with some ideas from cookbooks or the internet (www.vegweb.com), ask your vegetarian friends, stock the kitchen with the foods you need and try one new recipe or idea each week (see recipes).

Go

What to have in your kitchen cupboards:

· Rice/Wheat noodles – for pasta dishes and Asian stir frys

· Basmati rice, Risotto rice

· Red lentils – for soups, dhal or lentil loaf

· Chickpeas – for homemade hommos or chickpea curry

· Arabic bread, wholegrain rye bread (a good quality bread)

· Potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, parsley, garlic

· Sunflower, pumpkin, sesame seeds

· Cashews, walnuts, pine nuts – great flavour burst to rice and pasta dishes

· Parmesan, low fat yoghurt/milk, soy milk, eggs

· Tinned tuna, salmon, sweetcorn

· Extra virgin olive oil, canola oil

With these basic foods in your cupboard, supplemented with fresh fruit and vegetables, be assured that you can throw a quick, nutritious (almost) vegetarian meal together such as: red lentil and sweet potato soup, potato-based quiche with a sprinkle of Parmesan, salmon rice loaf, cashew nut stir fry.

The food supply in the UAE is improving all the time with consumers demanding high quality fruit and vegetables, organic food and greater variety. So there is no excuse not to Veg Out!