Nutrition
Understanding the Food Pyramid
Ireland's official healthy eating model made practical: shelves and servings, serving sizes, top shelf foods, simple swaps and a 7-day tracker.
€11.99Buy
Everyday nutrition courses built on the Irish Food Pyramid
Short, practical courses that turn Ireland's Healthy Food for Life guidelines into meals, shopping lists and label checks you can use this week.
- 5 courses
- Tools in every course
- Certificate included
Ireland's national Healthy Eating Guidelines, known as Healthy Food for Life, are shown as the Food Pyramid, published by the Department of Health in December 2016. Adults are advised to have 5 to 7 servings a day from the vegetables, salad and fruit shelf, 3 to 5 servings of wholemeal cereals and breads, potatoes, pasta and rice (up to 7 for teenage boys and men aged 19 to 50), 3 servings of milk, yogurt and cheese, and 2 servings of meat, poultry, fish, eggs, beans and nuts. Fats, spreads and oils are for very small amounts, and the top shelf of foods and drinks high in fat, sugar and salt is not needed for good health at all.
Knowing the shelves is one thing; using them in a supermarket on a busy weekday is another. These courses focus on that second part: building meals that roughly match the pyramid, reading the EU nutrition label in seconds, planning a week of dinners, feeding a household on a tight budget and understanding what the guidelines say about fibre and digestion.
The figures in the lessons come from official Irish sources such as the Department of Health, the HSE, safefood and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI). Every course is written by Dr Aqsa Mukhtiar, PhD in Nutrition. If you live with a medical condition, take regular medicines or follow a special diet for health reasons, check any changes with your GP, practice nurse or a CORU-registered dietitian first.
All nutrition courses
Nutrition
Healthy Meal Planning
A balanced week planned in about 20 minutes, with a batch-cooking planner, store-cupboard staples and quick meal cards for busy nights.
€19.99Buy
Nutrition
Reading Food Labels
Reference intakes, ingredients, allergens and sugar, salt and fat benchmarks decoded, with a cheat card you can use in the aisle.
€17.99Buy
Nutrition
Healthy Eating on a Budget
Cheaper, healthier weekly shops: plan meals, work out cost per meal, stock up on cheap protein, batch-cook and find Irish food supports.
€17.99Buy
Nutrition
Gut Health and Digestive Wellness
More plants and more fibre, step by step: track variety, keep a food and symptom diary and know which gut symptoms need a GP.
€19.99Buy
Which nutrition course to start with
- New to healthy eating? Begin with Understanding the Food Pyramid, our shortest course, which explains each shelf, what counts as a serving and how many servings to aim for across a day.
- Confused in the shop? Reading Food Labels covers the nutrition declaration per 100g, reference intakes, use by and best before dates, and the 14 allergens that must be emphasised on packaging.
- Short of time in the evenings? Healthy Meal Planning shows how to plan seven days of meals, batch cook and use up leftovers without stress.
- Watching the food bill? Healthy Eating on a Budget shows how to plan, batch cook, compare cost per meal in euro and lean on cheaper protein foods such as beans, lentils, eggs and tinned fish.
- Curious about gut health? Gut Health and Digestive Wellness looks at fibre, plant variety and fermented foods without the hype, and lists the symptoms that need a GP.
What the nutrition tools do
Each lesson ends with something to fill in rather than just read.
- Printable Food Pyramid and meal balance checker: sketch a meal and see which shelves are missing from it.
- Label cards and comparison worksheets: compare two similar products per 100g, the same basis every EU nutrition label uses.
- Meal planners and a cost-per-meal calculator: turn a week of meals into a shopping list and a running total.
- Trackers, such as the plant variety tracker and the food and symptom diary, save to your account so you can look back over several weeks.
Ireland has no mandatory front-of-pack colour coding. You may see a voluntary reference intake panel on the front, and some imported products carry other colour schemes, so the back-of-pack nutrition table is the most reliable place to compare.
When to speak to your GP
Changing what you eat is not the answer if something feels wrong. Contact your GP if you notice:
- weight loss you cannot explain, or a loss of appetite that does not pass
- a lasting change in your bowel habit, or blood in your poo
- difficulty swallowing, or heartburn on most days
- tummy pain or bloating that keeps coming back
Call 112 or 999, or go to the emergency department, if you have signs of a severe allergic reaction, such as swelling of the throat or difficulty breathing. Outside surgery hours, use your out-of-hours GP service. HSE Live on 1800 700 700 can tell you about health services near you.
Nutrition courses: your questions
Do I need any nutrition knowledge before I start?
No. The courses start from the basics and explain any technical terms, such as reference intakes or wholegrains, in plain English the first time they appear.
Is the Food Pyramid right for everyone?
The main Food Pyramid covers adults and children aged 5 and over. There is a separate Children's Food Pyramid for 1 to 4 year olds and a Food Pyramid for older adults aged 65 and over. If you have a medical condition or special dietary needs, follow the advice of the health professional who looks after you.
What are top shelf foods?
Foods and drinks high in fat, sugar and salt, such as biscuits, cakes, crisps, sweets and sugary drinks. The Department of Health says there are no recommended servings for them because they are not needed for good health, and advises very small amounts once or twice a week at most.
How much should I drink each day?
The Food Pyramid advises at least 8 cups of fluid a day, and water is best. The HSE suggests choosing water instead of sugary drinks.
Will a course give me a personal diet plan?
No. The courses are general education. You get templates and planners to fill in yourself, so the choices stay yours, but nobody sets you a personal plan or target.
How much fibre and salt does Irish guidance suggest?
The FSAI's scientific recommendations suggest adults aim for at least 25g of fibre a day, and Department of Health guidance is no more than 6g of salt a day. Irish labels show salt rather than sodium, so you can compare products directly.
Official sources
Build one balanced meal today
Open the Food Pyramid course, read the first lesson and try the meal balance checker with tonight's dinner.