LAURA WARREN: Take the healthy road less travelled – prepare your own air fare

LET’S face it – plane food is, on the whole, just plain unappetising.

Prison food, in some cases, is probably better. When ordering their last meal, the prisoner on death row seldom requests the soggy muck they munched 30,000 feet above sea level all those years ago.

In a bid to improve airline fare, Singapore Airlines once hired Gordon Ramsay as a consultant. Air France has used Joel Robuchon and in 2011 British Airways sought help from Heston Blumenthal, of Fat Duck fame.

But such luxuries, unfortunately, are usually confined to premium passengers.

Us poor plebs at the back of the bus must make do with the overpriced plastic sandwiches and miniature bottles of plonk you’d need to take out a second mortgage on.

But there is a way to beat the mile-high culinary cramps.

Before I embark on any journey I always try to fuel up on good, nutritious food before I leave the house instead of being robbed blind at the airport for a bit of scrambled egg on toast.

Nothing beats a good hearty breakfast to set you up for a day’s travelling. My personal favourite is eggs benedict, scrambled eggs on brown bread or scrambled eggs with smoked salmon. Yes, lots of eggs!

But if you’re not an ovum type of guy or gal, fuel up on organic porridge with a drizzle of honey and sprinkle your favourite berries on top.

And if this doesn’t float your boat you can always put together a nice wholemeal wrap with a meat and salad of your choice inside. Delicious and cheap as chips, but far healthier.

Anyway, the savings you can make on gorging badly prepared, overpriced food leaves more change in your pocket to splurge on the important things in life. Like shoes.

But stocking up on the good stuff at home isn’t going to last you the distance, especially if you’re going long haul.

So go prepared. Before you’re strapped in make sure you’re snacked up. My favourite choice is usually just a simple homemade wrap I make fresh with chicken, spinach, tomatoes, and some fruit, pears, apples and a clutch of hazel nuts.

Taking these few simple steps will not just make your air meals tastier – and cheaper – it’ll make you feel a whole lot better too.

Most air fare is packed with additives, salt and saturated fat. Scientific tests have shown that eating sugary food in the air can leave us feeling very grumpy and bloated, and nobody wants to arrive at their dream holiday destination feeling like humpty dumpty!

So take the healthier road less travelled: replace the overpriced gunk with a healthy packed lunch and arrive feeling alive and healthy, not depressed and hefty.

*For more of Laura’s health and nutrition tips, visit: http://Www.elitelivingnutrition.com