Course description

Confused by conflicting headlines about what to eat? Not sure what the colours on food labels really mean, or how to feed your family well without spending a fortune? This course explains nutrition in plain English, based on UK public health guidance, so you can make confident everyday choices without fad diets, guilt or complicated rules.

It's a full course, not a few quick tips. There are 10 sections and 52 written lessons, each with practical examples and a task you can do in your own kitchen or supermarket. Every section has a practice pack with checklists, planners and a printable cheat sheet. Throughout the course you follow a Bristol bus driver and his family as they change how they eat, one small step at a time.

What you'll learn

• The basics: what nutrients do, how your body uses food, and how to spot myths and fads.
• The Eatwell Guide: what a balanced diet looks like, and what counts towards your 5 A Day.
• Nutrients: carbohydrates, fibre, fats, protein, vitamins, minerals and drinks.
• Food labels: traffic lights, nutrition panels, ingredients, allergens and date marks.
• Sugar, salt and fat: where they hide and simple swaps that work.
• Planning and shopping: meal plans, eating well on a budget, batch cooking and food safety.
• Every stage of life: children, pregnancy, later life, vegetarian and vegan eating, and food and culture.
• Food and health: wellbeing, alcohol, allergies, coeliac disease, heart health, type 2 diabetes risk and supplements.

Final project

You'll look back at your own food diary and plan a week of balanced meals for your household, with a shopping list, using everything you've learned.

Who this course is for

• Anyone who wants to understand healthy eating without fad diets.
• Parents and carers feeding a family on a budget.
• People who have been told to eat less salt, more fibre or more fruit and vegetables.
• Anyone curious about nutrition as a first step towards further study.

How the course works

Read each lesson, then do the Try it task using food from your own cupboard, shop or fridge, with the checklists and planners from the practice pack. The course gives general information, not personal medical advice; if you have a medical condition, please talk to your GP or a registered dietitian before making big changes. You keep lifetime access, so you can come back whenever you need a reminder.

What will i learn?

• Understand what a balanced diet looks like using the Eatwell Guide
• Know what carbohydrates, fats, protein, vitamins, minerals and fibre do
• Read traffic light labels, nutrition panels and ingredients lists with confidence
• Spot hidden sugar, salt and saturated fat and make simple swaps
• Plan a week of balanced meals and shop well on a budget
• Store, batch cook and reheat food safely
• Adapt healthy eating for children, pregnancy, later life and plant-based diets
• Tell trustworthy nutrition advice from myths and fads

Frequently asked question