Eating a healthy, balanced diet is an important part of maintaining good health, and can help you feel your best. It doesn't have to be difficult either. Just follow these eight tips to get started.

Base your meals on starchy foods. Starchy foods should make up around one third of the foods you eat. Starchy foods include potatoes, cereals, pasta, rice and bread. top tip number 1

Eat lots of fruit and vegetables. It’s recommended that we eat at five portions of fruit and vegetables each day. top tip number 2

Eat more fish Fish is a good source of protein and contains many vitamins and minerals. Oily fish contains omega-3 fats, which may help to prevent heart disease. top tip number 3

Cut down on saturated fat and sugar Saturated fat is found in many foods, such as hard cheese, cakes, biscuits, sausages, cream, butter and pies.. Sugary foods and drinks, if eaten too often, can contribute to weight gain. They can also cause tooth decay, especially if eaten between meals. top tip number 4

Eat less salt The daily allowance is 6 grams which is 1 teaspoon. One packet of crisps contains 10% of your daily allowance, but beware of hidden salt in take away food and ready meals. top tip number 5

Get active – get off the PlayStation! Walk, run, join a team, play football, tennis- anything that makes you active top tip number 6

Don't get thirsty We need to drink about 1.5 to 2 litres of water each day to stop us getting dehydrated – and its free! top tip number 7

Don’t skip breakfast A healthy breakfast an important part of a balanced diet, and provides some of the vitamins and minerals we need for good health top tip number 8

8 top tips homework task Make a film. Design an app. Write a tweet or tweet conversation – 147 characters in each tweet. Design a game – board or computer game – use Scratch Create a comic strip –a top tips superhero. Join a new club and write about your experience. Tell me about a new activity you have participated in – add pictures. Make a healthy breakfast and share it with your friends. Cook a dish that’s new to you that contains fish. Make a smoothie and describe how and share with others – come up with a new idea. Make sure you include pictures and descriptions. This is extended homework and I will give you a hand in date in your planner. Give yourself plenty of time to do the task. Talk to me if you have any problems. All the top tips are brilliant for keeping you healthy and fit. Your task is to get this message across to others in a creative and original way! Here are some examples to help with your ideas. Top tip homework