Chapter 7: Healthy Eating in Australia

Question 1

Australian Dietary Guidelines aims

Answer 1

• Promote health and wellbeing
• ↓ the risk of developing diet-related conditions (e.g. high BP)
• ↓ the risk of developing chronic diseases (e.g. CVD)

NOTE: When mentioning ‘diet-related diseases,’ you must provide an example such as obesity.

Question 2

5 Australian Dietary Guidelines

Answer 2

• G1 – achieve and maintain a healthy weight, be physically active and choose amounts of nutritious food and drinks to meet your energy needs
• G2 – have a variety of foods from the five groups every day
• G3 – limit intake of foods containing saturated fat, added salt, added sugars and alcohol
• G4 – encourage, support and promote breastfeeding
• G5 – care for your food; prepare and store it safely

NOTE: Must memorise the exact wording of each.

Question 3

Strengths and weaknesses of the Australian Dietary Guidelines

Answer 3

• Strengths
  
  • Comprehensive and detailed guide of the food groups that should be consumed
  • Accompanied by the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating which provides a visual guide that is easy to understand
• Weaknesses
  
  • Can be difficult to understand for someone with low literacy levels
  • Guidelines do not cater for different cultural eating patterns
  • Difficult and time consuming to calculate serving sizes and analyse dietary intake

Question 4

Nutrition Australia

Answer 4

• Non-profit, non-government organisation (NGO) that promotes healthy eating in Australia
• Provides scientifically based nutrition information
• Aims to promote the health and wellbeing of all Australians
• Tend to focus on vulnerable, minority groups

Question 5

Nutrition Australia initiatives

Answer 5

• Free recipes and fact sheets on their website
  
  • Easy recipes enable people to prepare healthy meals
  • Fact sheets provide evidence-based nutrition info related to diff topics e.g. nutrition, physical activity, etc.
• National Nutrition Week
  
  • New theme each year (e.g. Tryfor5 which encouraged the consumption of 5 serves of vegetables daily)
  • Activities relating to theme are hosted in early childhood services, schools, workplaces, etc.
• Healthy Eating Pyramid
  
  • Developed in accordance with the ADGs
  • Top – healthy fats
  • Middle – dairy, lean meat, poultry, fish, nuts
  • Bottom – vegetables, legumes, fruits, grains
  • Additional messages: enjoy herbs and spices, limit salt and sugar, choose water over sugary drinks
• Healthy Eating Advisory Service
  
  • Advice regarding healthy food and drink options delivered by experienced nutritionists and dietitians
  • For early childhood services, schools, workplaces, hospitals, sport and recreation centres & tertiary education facilities
• Healthy Lunchbox Week
  
  • Online recipes, lunchbox swaps, virtual lunchbox builder
  • Aims to promote healthy eating among children by inspiring parents to create healthy lunchboxes
• Fruit and Vegetable Consortium
  
  • Works toward improving the supply and consumption of fruits and vegetables

Question 6

Factors that influence food choices and dietary intake

Answer 6

• Sociocultural – income, culture, family and peers, attitudes and beliefs, education (knowledge and skills)
• Personal – personal taste preferences, meal patterns
• Biological – age, stress levels
• Environmental – food availability and security

Question 7

Sociocultural challenges in bringing about change in dietary intake

Sociocultural

Answer 7

• Income
  
  • Unhealthy foods tend to be more affordable
  • Low income can therefore prevent one from consuming a nutrient-dense diet
• Family and peers
  
  • Dietary habits develop early (children are observant, thus, it’s important for parents to be good role models)
• Culture
  
  • Food plays an important role in many cultures
  • Some food traditions are more healthy than others e.g. many Asian cultures consume lots of vegetables
• Attitudes and beliefs
  
  • Some people feel strongly about where and how their food was sourced (e.g. organic, ethical, Australian-made)
  • Some do not want or feel the need to change their diet
• Education (knowledge and skills)
  
  • Knowledge is important to enable healthy choices
  • People with lower levels of education tend to eat larger amounts of unhealthy, energy-dense food

Question 8

Behavioural challenges in bringing about change in dietary intake

Answer 8

• Personal taste preferences
  
  • Many make food choices simply based on taste
  • People may know what they should be eating, but still choose to eat what they like or are used to
• Meal patterns
  
  • It is a common, unhealthy practice to skip breakfast (can result in ↑ snacking and ↓ intake of nutrients)

Question 9

Biological challenges in bringing about change in dietary intake

Answer 9

• Stress levels
  
  • Long term stress is associated cortisol release
  • This increases appetite and the motivation to eat
  • Makes people more likely to overindulge, specifically in foods that are high in fat or sugar
• Ageing
  
  • We tend to eat less & make diff food choices as we age
  • Physiological changes associated w/ ageing (e.g. dental problems) make some foods too difficult to eat, contributing to a lower food intake

Question 10

Environmental challenges in bringing about change in dietary intake

Environmental

Answer 10

• Food availability and security
  
  • Can limit choice of food
  • E.g. if schools do not offer healthy options, students are more likely to develop unhealthy habits

Question 11

Challenges in addressing influences to bring about dietary change

Answer 11

• Involvement of all stakeholders
  
  • Dietary change necessitates a coordinated plan (involving individuals, families, health professionals, etc.)
• Tailored approach
  
  • A ‘one-size-fits- all’ model cannot be successfully applied to a wider population
• Helping the unmotivated
  
  • It is difficult to motivate people who are disinclined to engage in healthy behaviours
• Focus on the environment
  
  • Environment may promote unhealthy practices
  • E.g. modern food environments are characterised by the abundance of energy-dense foods
• Affordability of interventions
  
  • Campaigns should incorporate practical solutions that are affordable for all stakeholders
• Targeting change in children’s dietary intake
  
  • Interventions are required early in life