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Milk and dairy foods
These are a good source of proteins, vitamins and minerals, and provide most of our calcium. This food group is also particularly important for growing children.
KEY TIPS
- Eat or drink items from this food group three times a day
- Choose semi-skimmed or skimmed milk
- Choose reduced-fat or lower-fat options where possible
- When having higher-fat options, reduce the quantity used
MAIN NUTRIENTS
- Calcium
- Protein
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin B2
- Vitamin A and D
- Zinc
COOKING TIPS
- Try using lower-fat cheese on toast, in sauces and in cooking
- Try using less of strongly flavoured cheese such as Parmesan or mature Cheddar
- Grate cheese rather than using it in chunks to make it go further
- Try using skimmed or semi-skimmed milk in sauces, milk puddings, custard and other recipes
PORTIONS GUIDE
- 1/3 pint (200ml) semi-skimmed milk
- small (6oz; 150g) pot of yogurt or fromage frais
- 1oz (25g) piece of hard cheese
- small (4oz; 100g) pot of cottage cheese or quark
DID YOU KNOW?
Only a very small number of people are allergic to particular foods. The most common food allergies are to wheat, gluten, eggs, fish, soya, and milk
Foods such as nuts when eaten by a susceptible person can cause a severe reaction called anaphylaxis
Some foods are relatively easy to exclude from the diet. Others need to be replaced with a nutritionally comparable alternative. For example, soya milk fortified with calcium can be used by those who cannot tolerate cow's milk
