This month, chef Jamie Oliver praised fast-food chain McDonald's for reducing the fat in their meals and using only free-range eggs and organic milk. It's another step in the ongoing campaign to encourage food manufacturers to make their products healthier.

Here's your chance to test your nutrition knowledge with a quiz that gives food for thought...

TAKE THE HEALTH TEST

(1) Which has less fat - steak with oven chips or a chicken korma curry?
Answer: The steak meal is far lower in fat than the creamy curry which can contain up to 45g of fat.

(2) Which contains more sugar - a bowl of cereal or a slice of chocolate cake?
Answer: If it's a sugary cereal such as a honey-and-nut covered one, it can contain up to 15g of sugar compared with just 6g in the cake. Cereals are one of the worst offenders for hidden sugar, so check the label.

(3) How many teaspoons of sugar in a sweet-and-sour pork takeaway?
Answer: One sweet-and-sour dish can contain up to 10 teaspoons of sugar.

(4) Which contains more fat - a bowl of breakfast granola or a bar of chocolate?
Answer: Granola is likely to be higher in fat thanks to the oil and nuts but the fat does tend to be the heart-healthy type, not unhealthy saturated fat.

(5) Which is saltier - a can of soup or a cup of seawater?
Answer: Some shop-bought soups contain more salt (over 6g of salt per 250g bowl) than sea water. Ideally a serving of soup should contain no more than 1.5g of salt, so check the label.

(6) Which is saltiest - a packet of crisps, a Pot Noodle snack or a portion of supermarket mashed potato?
Answer: The Pot Noodle. But the potato can be almost be as bad, while the crisps, despite being high in fat, have the least salt of the three.

(7) Which is better for you - white sugar, brown sugar or honey?
Answer: They all contain empty calories and no nutritional goodness. And there's nothing especially healthy about honey as the traces of micronutrients it contains are too small to be beneficial.

(8) How long does it take for your stomach to feel full after eating - five minutes, 20 minutes or an hour?
Answer: It takes at least 20 minutes for your brain to register that your stomach is full, so the slower you eat the better.

(9) Which is higher in fibre, a slice of wholemeal bread or an orange?
Answer: The orange wins with nearly 3g of fibre compared to 2g in bread. Eating around 18g of fibre a day is vital for a healthy digestive system, lower cholesterol and protecting against heart disease and bowel cancer.

(10) Which contains more disease-fighting antioxidants - a glass of red wine, a bar of dark chocolate or a cup of green tea?
Answer: The chocolate. Its cocoa beans contain more than double the antioxidants of red wine, and three times as many as green tea.

(11) Which has more calcium - a pot of yogurt or a tinned salmon sandwich?
Answer: The tinned salmon sandwich has more because it contains the soft bones of the fish, and it provides over half of an adult's recommended daily intake of calcium. The yogurt provides around a third.

(12) Which serving of vegetable has more calcium than a cottage cheese portion - broccoli, tomatoes or peas?
Answer: Broccoli - a great way to boost your calcium intake if you're not a dairy lover.

(13) Drinking which drink can help you absorb more of the iron from your meal - orange juice or milk?
Answer: Orange juice - the vitamin C increases iron uptake.

(14) Which is kindest to your teeth: orange juice, a glass of milk or a glass of fizzy water?
Answer: Milk. Orange juice is very acidic and can erode tooth enamel. Fizzy water is as kind as plain water, but milk contains phosphorous and calcium - the two main components for strong, healthy teeth.

(15) Is there more vitamin C in an orange or kiwi?
Answer: A kiwi contains more of this immune-boosting vitamin.

GET FOOD SAVVY

Know the basics: A healthy diet means five fruit and veg a day, wholemeal carbs, protein from lean meats, fish and nuts, and a decent amount of low-fat dairy products. Follow this and you won't go wrong.

Keep it simple: My golden rule for healthy eating is always to try to eat foods in their most natural state. So a raw carrot stick is better than a cooked one, and a potato cooked in its jacket is better than one that's peeled and fried. Plus the more home-cooked meals you eat the better, as you control how much fat, sugar and salt goes in.

Forget clearing your plate: Stop eating as soon as feel full - the Okinawans, the longest-living race on the planet, do this and eat 25% fewer calories as a result.

Watch your portion size: You can eat healthy food but you'll still put on weight if the portions are enormous. As a rule of thumb, half your plate should be filled with veg, a quarter with lean protein such as chicken, and a quarter with starchy carbs such as pasta or rice.

EAT RIGHT, LIVE LONGER...

Eating a healthy diet will slash your risk of these conditions...

Source: Daily Mirror