4-healthy Eating And Balanced Diets Flashcards
What is a balanced diet
A healthy, balanced diet is one that contains all the nutrients in the correct proportions
Healthy eating guidelines
-eat a variety of foods (choose foods from each food group each day)
-increase intake of:
•iron-rich foods
•calcium-rich foods
•fibre-rich foods
-reduce intake of:
•fats (especially saturated fat)
•salt
•sugar
How to increase calcium
Choose from •lean red meat •offal •dark green vegetables •wholegrain cereals •wholemeal bread •sardines
How to increase calcium
Choose from: •dairy foods •eggs •tinned fish •green vegetables
How to increase dietary fibre
Choose from •fruit •vegetables •whole cereals •brown rice •modifying recipes to include sources of dietary fibre
How to reduce fat
- choose low-fat spreads (butter+marg)
- use spreads sparingly on bread
- choose lean meats and remove excess fat when cooking food
- eat more pulse vegetables,fish, poultry
- choose low-fat dairy products
- choose low-fat methods of cooking(e.g grilling, boiling)
- avoid eating fried food everyday
- drain all fried food
- reduce intake of unhealthy snacks
How to reduce intake of sugar
- unsweetened fruit juices
- low-sugar breakfast cereals
- do not overuse sugar to sweeten food when cooking
- reduce intake of biscuits, cakes, chocolate, candyfloss, sweets
- replace sugary snacks with vegetables
What is a serving?
The recommended portion of food we should eat
Examples of modern dietary problems
- cancer
- coronary heart disease
- digestive problems
- high blood pressure
- obesity
- skin problems
Balanced diet for babies
•breastfeed a baby for the first six months
-breastmilk has the perfect balance of nutrients
-promotes mother-child bonding
-the mother can pass along immunity to the baby against specific illnesses
•infant formula milk is an alternative to breast milk
•avoid skimmed milk
•weaning should take place between four and six months
•do not add salt, sugar or spices to the foods
•never give a baby tea or coffee
•babies are born with a six month supply of iron and after that iron-rich and vitamin C rich foods must be introduced
•after a year a baby can eat most foods as long as it is cut into small pieces
Balanced diet for children
- proteins are needed to support growth and repair
- starchy carbohydrate provides energy
- fibre-rich foods prevent constipation
- calcium-rich foods give strong bones and teeth
- iron and vitamin C protect against disease
Always
- give children frequent, regular meals and snacks: to discourage faddy eating
- serve small portions
- arrange food attractively so it looks tasty to eat
- develop good eating habits
- restrict salty and fatty foods
Balanced diet for adolescents
- protein needed for growth
- calcium and vitamin D are needed for developing strong bones and teeth
- iron-rich foods are important for teenage girls b/c menstruation results in iron loss which can lead to anaemia
- Vit C increases absorption of iron
- starchy carbohydrates essential for active teenagers
- vegetables, sales, fresh fruit and lots of water promotes healthy skin
What to avoid:
- empty kilocalorie foods
- fast foods on a daily basis
- too many sweets or chocolate
- fatty or greasy foods
Encourage:
- regular meals
- healthy snacks (yoghurt and fruit)
- breakfast before going to school
- fruit juices and water instead of tea or coffee
Balanced diet for adults
- proteins are needed for growth, repair of body cells, hormones, enzymes, antibodies
- eating polyunsaturated fats instead of saturated fats
- carbs provide energy
- high-fibre foods prevent bowel problems
- vitamin B aids release of energy
- vitamin C helps the absorption of iron
- calcium and vitamin D
- iron prevents anaemia
What to avoid
- high-fat/sugar foods
- salty foods
- low fibre foods
- fried foods
Balanced diet for a pregnant mother
- proteins for the growth of the developing baby
- fats necessary to help the baby develop a healthy nervous system
- carbohydrates provide extra energy that is needed
- vitamin B prevents nueral tube defects
- iron-rich&vitamin-C rich foods help prevent anaemia in the baby and mother
- water prevents dehydration
- reducing salt intake prevents high blood pressure
Foods to avoid:
- unpasteurised dairy products
- soft-cooked eggs
- spicy and fatty foods
- coffee and strong tea
Balanced diets for the elderly
- proteins to repair cells
- unsaturated fats and carbs for energy
- dietary fibre prevents constipation
- fruit and vegetables are good sources of vit A, C, fibre and folic acid
- calcium and vit D are very important as elderly bones are more fragile also to Previn osteoporosis
- iron and vit C prevent anaemia
- water prevents dehydration (thirst decreases with age)
- vit B needed for healthy nerves
Choose:
- fortified foods
- small portions of easy to digest foods
- low-energy foods (elderly people need less energy)
- unsaturated fats and omega3 fats from oily fish help people w/ arthritis
Foods to reduce:
- saturated fats and salt should be cut down to reduce risk of heart attack or stroke
- fried, rich or spicy foods(hard to digest)
Foods to avoid:
-foods that are difficult to chew
