Eat Well
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Easy habits to help control your appetite The busy lifestyles many women have these days mean it is very easy to slip into bad food habits which could lead to unhealthy eating and potential weight gain.

For instance, grabbing a quick chocolate bar during elevenses is much easier than pre-preparing something more nutritious before your morning commute.

However, nutritionist Fiona Hunter from Good Food magazine said it is actually quite easy to get yourself into good food habits that will mean you only eat as much as you need each day.

To begin with, she pointed out that you are more likely to overeat at meal times if you are really hungry to begin with (or if you have been restricting yourself on fad diets, which is another no-no).

So, the trick is to eat before you get over-hungry, using healthy snacks such as a handful of unsalted nuts or crudites with houmus every three or four hours.

The beauty of this is that it's easy to achieve even at work, as carrot sticks and pitta breads will easily transport in a cool bag ready for an afternoon or mid-morning energy boost.

When it comes to your evening meal, Fiona recommended starting with a light soup to take the edge off your appetite and choosing good carbohydrates such as brown rice or pasta to prevent an energy slump afterwards.

Thirst could also be a factor if you tend to over-eat, as your body can sometimes mistake dehydration for hunger. Combat this by making sure you sip water throughout the day and drink a glassful before you sit down to your dinner, she said.

And finally, if you tend to catch up on the soaps while you take your evening meal, then you could unwittingly be eating more than you need.

A recent study by the University of Toronto and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research found that people who watched the box while eating consumed an average of 225 more calories than those who did not.

"Eating while watching television overrides our ability to know when to stop eating. In effect, mindless television-watching produces mindless eating," the scientists said.

So there you have it. A little bit of preparation and making sure you focus on your food could mean that healthy eating becomes fun - and more importantly, second nature.