It can also affect your long-term health and help determine how long you'll live, so it's really worth thinking about.

Once you discover the benefits of eating healthy foods - feeling better with more energy and even greater self-esteem - you'll be inclined to keep it up and stay away from things that are bad for you.

The longer you follow healthy eating habits, the easier they become and you actually start to enjoy them. But how can you get there in the first place? It’s all so simple. First, know that there are five basic food groups:

- Bread, cereals, rice, pasta, noodles
- Vegetables, legumes
- Fruit
- Milk, yoghurt, cheese
- Meat, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts

And, to plan a healthy diet there are four things to remember:

1. Eat something from each of the five food groups every day,
2. Choose different varieties of foods from within each of the five food groups from day to day and week to week,
3. Eat lots of plant foods (bread, cereal, rice, pasta, noodles, vegetables, legumes, nuts and fruit); moderate amounts of animal foods (milk, yoghurt, cheese, meat, fish, poultry, eggs) and only very small amounts of fats and oils,
4. Drink lots of water – eight glasses a day is a good start.

The new healthier you won't happen overnight.  You have to set realistic goals and stick to your plan for a period of months rather than weeks. Break down big goals into a series of little goals and keep track of how you're going.

On the plus side, you'll notice a positive difference almost immediately, and from then it just gets better and better. Temptations may arise and you're only human. As long as your slippages are only occasional don't let it worry you.

It takes a firm resolve and a lot of will power to cut out all those fats and kilojoules from your diet.  You have to develop healthy habits to replace the eating patterns of a lifetime, and that means finding the motivation to do it.

Find a friend who shares your healthy goals so you can share what you learn along the way and have someone to share encouragement with when progress seems to level off.

Keep track of your progress, and when you reach a goal, whether it's weight loss or an improvement in some other area like distance walked or blood pressure reduction, give yourself a reward. Not a box of chocolates, but something you really like - a massage or a night out. You deserve it.