Login or Sign-up How Healthy is your Diet? Take The Quiz Takes less than 10 minutes!

Back to Podcasts

Can gum disease make healthy teeth fall out? And why good nutrition matters... with Dr Zanab Malik

Nutrition Science Bites with Professor Clare Collins AO

Play Podcast

Can gum disease make healthy teeth fall out? And why good nutrition matters... with Dr Zanab Malik

In this episode, Prof Clare Collins talks with Dr Zanab Malik, a special needs dentist, about the vital connection between nutrition and your oral health. They cover how what you eat, drink and oral hygiene practices affects bacteria levels in your mouth as well as your teeth and gums. They discuss how regular dental visits can prevent cavities and gum disease, especially in children and vulnerable populations and include practical strategies for having a healthy mouth.

Key topics

The effect of fermentable carbohydrates on dental health
Why having a balance between good and bad bacteria matters in your mouth
Differences between dental caries and gum disease
How diet influences gum health
Effective oral hygiene practices for children and adults
The role of fluoride and protective foods
Tips for encouraging kids to floss and brush
When to see a dentist for dental issues

Dental Health Week 2026: https://teeth.org.au/dental-health-week

Your Personal Healthy Eating Quiz

What you eat or don’t eat affects how you look, feel and perform. Take our short quiz to find out what foods you could introduce to help you be your best.

Read More Show Less

What is healthy eating?

Eating healthy is making sure you enjoy a wide variety of foods from each of the five major food groups daily, in the amounts recommended. The five major food groups as recommended by the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating are:

vegetables and legumes/bean
fruit
lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds, legumes/beans
grain (cereal) foods, mostly wholegrain and/or high cereal fibre varieties
milk, yoghurt, cheese and/or alternatives, mostly reduced fat.

Foods are grouped together because they provide similar amounts of key nutrients and eating a variety of foods from the list above helps to promote good health and reduce the risk of disease.

How do I improve my diet?

If you want to improve your diet you have come to the right place. By completing the Healthy Eating Quiz you’ll receive instant personalised feedback and a report on your diet quality to highlight any areas where you can improve your overall eating habits. Your score is based on the frequency and variety of the foods consumed from the five major food groups mentioned above. No Money No Time can help you improve your score by providing tips, goals and suggestions. On top of this we will provide quick, cheap and healthy recipes as well as credible answers to diet hacks, myths and FAQ’s.

Is my diet healthy?

Dietary habits are different between people. Some people choose to follow a particular diet (i.e., Keto diet or vegan diet) while some have to make changes due to certain food restrictions or health conditions. If you want to know if what you usually eat is healthy, then do the Healthy Eating Quiz today to give you the answers in less than 10 minutes.

Why is healthy eating important?

Your HEQ score and personalised feedback report is based on the frequency and variety of healthy core foods you usually eat. This is important because no single food contains all the nutrients we need to stay healthy. Some foods are higher in nutrients than others and people who have a lot of variety in the foods they eat are more likely to be healthy and to stay healthy. In other words, if you can eat a large variety of vegetables as opposed to only 2-3 types of vegetables, the benefits are much greater. This type of diet also helps you to feel better, think better and perform better during your usual daily activities.

Take the Healthy Eating Quiz

The University of Newcastle Australia