National Accident Helpline launches Eat for Recovery campaign
Watching what we eat becomes even more important as we enter our older years. Maintaining a stable diet can help us stay healthy and active for longer, and when we do find ourselves facing illness or injury, eating well can actually boost recovery.
National Accident Helpline has teamed up with expert nutritionist Amanda Hamilton to launch a healthy eating and nutrition campaign called Eat for Recovery. Amanda’s specially tailored set of recipes and advice has been designed with recovery from illness and injury in mind; so whether you’re cooking for your parents or simply want to point them in the right direction, you’ll find plenty of inspiration and support.
With healthy recipes for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the myths of superfoods debunked and nutritional recipe and hints and tips videos from Amanda, the Eat for Recovery campaign has solid advice to help older people stay fighting fit or recover from illnesses faster, and a particular focus on coping with difficult times.
Speaking about the campaign, Amanda said: “It’s at times of stress – either emotional or physical – that we need to look after our nutrition even more. However, many of us will be familiar with the concept of ‘running on empty’ or grabbing quick fixes when life gets challenging. This National Accident Helpline initiative aims to rebalance that, providing accessible advice to those who need it most.”
National Accident Helpline’s Chief Executive Officer Russell Atkinson added:
“The process of recovering and getting back to life as normal following an illness or injury can be stressful, and we are here to help, but it’s also vital that people take care of themselves. Good, healthy and hearty food plays an important part in this..”
The principles behind Eat for Recovery
When suffering from illness, or following an injury, it’s often easy to fall into bad eating habits. Comfort-eating and snacking become especially tempting, and it can be hard to find the time or motivation to plan meals when feeling run down. Eat for Recovery has been put together with just these issues in mind.
Amanda’s 13 healthy recipes, split into breakfast, lunch and dinner, are filled with all of the essential nutrients we need to live a long, active and healthy lifestyle. In addition to eating the right macronutrient balance of protein, carbohydrate, fat and fibre, expert nutritionist Amanda digs a little deeper into the key minerals and phytochemicals needed to make sure our food is as healthy as it can be.
A top tips advice article also explains some of the basic science behind the nutrition decisions we make every day. Understanding why certain foods are better than other can be the key to making the right choices when planning meals or browsing the supermarket.
Amanda’s breakfast recipes focus on getting the day off to the very best start using simple, cheap and delicious ingredients. One top tip is to eat slow release carbohydrates such as oats first thing to make sure you don’t get hungry in the middle of the morning, which can lead to snacking, quick fixes and poor nutritional choices. The slow release of energy can help maintain a stable blood sugar level, which also reduces the risk of mid-morning hunger pangs. Adding spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg keeps flavours interesting.
Lunch recipes
From the delicious simplicity of button mushrooms on toast through to vitamin-packed roasted butternut squash with goat’s cheese, Amanda’s healthy lunch recipes suggest a keeping midday meals light to avoid overburdening the digestive system and risking an upset stomach.
Prepared in just five minutes, the smoked salmon omelette recipe contains a great mix of omega-3 fatty acids which provide benefits for brain, heart, joints and general wellbeing.
Dinner recipes
With budget in mind as well as health, Amanda recommends batch cooking evening meals to help make ingredients go further and save on energy bills. Fresh food can be kept covered in the fridge for up to three days, Amanda recommends, while batch cooked meals can go in the freezer and be kept much longer so you know that a healthy option is always on offer with little effort. This is particularly handy if you’re visiting elderly parents at the weekend and want to know that they’ll be well provided for during the week.
And if you are keeping an eye on costs, Amanda’s leftover curry recipe really dials up the savings as it’s composed of leftover foods that you might have in your fridge after the weekend.
Getting to know your superfoods
Did you know that dark chocolate actually provides a number of health benefits? Or that yoghurt contains all nine essential amino acids, making it a great source of protein?
A lot has been written about “superfoods”, and things can get confusing. The Eat for Recovery web page contains a visual guide to the very best superfoods to help you cut through all of the conflicting advice that’s out there and make some great nutritional choices the next time you’re shopping for yourself or your parents, either online or in the supermarket.
By following the 13 healthy recipes that Amanda recommends, you can make sure to include all of the top superfoods for recovery in your diet, ensuring that you and your parents are putting your best foot forward with your diet to get well and stay well.
Who is Amanda Hamilton?
Expert nutritionist Amanda Hamilton is a household personality in the world of health and well-being after making TV appearances on the BBC and ITV for more than 10 years. Amanda is a member of the British Association of Nutritional Therapists and is currently reading an MSc in Obesity Science at Robert Gordon University. With three books published about diet and nutrition, Amanda is a regular contributor to national media and is one of the leading names in nutrition.
Find out more about the campaign
You can find out more about the Eat for Recovery campaign, see recipes, a superfoods infographic and advice videos from Amanda Hamilton on the National Accident Helpline website.
