Current UK healthy eating and physical activity advice Flashcards
What chronic diseases are linked to diet?
o Excess weight gain & obesity o Diabetes o CVD o Cancer o Dental diseases o Osteoporosis
What should the median BMI be in the adult population?
The median BMI for the adult population should be 21-23 kg/m2, while individuals should maintain BMI in the range 18.5-24.9kg/m2
What is aflatoxin, what is it found in and what has it been linked to?
Aflatoxins are poisonous carcinogens that are produced by certain molds which grow in soil, decaying vegetation, hay, and grains
Found to grow on corn, peanuts, cottonseed, milk, walnuts, pistachios and Brazil nuts
Linked to cancer
What are the three main types of dietary recommendations made by public health agencies?
Three main types of dietary recommendations may be produced by public health agencies:
- dietary allowances (DRVs)
- dietary goals
- dietary guidelines
What are dietary allowances?
Dietary allowances are quantitative guidelines for different population subgroups for the essential macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients to prevent nutritional deficiencies.
What are dietary goals?
Dietary goals are quantitative national targets for selected macronutrients and micronutrients aimed at preventing long-term chronic disease e.g. coronary heart disease, stroke and cancer. They are usually aimed at the national population level rather than the individual level.
What are dietary guidelines?
Dietary guidelines are broad targets aimed at the individual to promote nutritional well-being. They were initially introduced for macronutrients but are now being used for micronutrients. Dietary guidelines can be expressed as quantitative targets (e.g. five servings of fruit and vegetables/day) or as qualitative guidelines (e.g. eat more fruit and vegetables)
What are dietary reference values?
DRVs are a series of estimates of the amount of energy and nutrients needed by different groups of healthy people in the UK population; they are not recommendations or goals for individuals.
Similar to dietary allowances
How do you calculate nutrition requirements using dietary reference values for a population?
In order to take account of the distribution of nutritional requirements within the population, COMA used four Dietary Reference Values (DRVs):
o Estimated Average Requirements (EARs)
o Reference Nutrient Intakes (RNIs)
o Lower Reference Nutrient Intakes (LRNIs)
o Safe Intake
Define estimated average requirements
EAR is an estimate of the average requirement of energy or a nutrient needed by a group of people i.e. approximately 50% of people will require less, and 50% will require more.
Define required nutrient intake
RNI is the amount of a nutrient that is enough to ensure that the needs of nearly all a group (97.5%) are being met i.e. the majority will need less.
Define lower reference nutrient intake
LRNI is the amount of a nutrient that is enough for only a small number of people in a group who have low requirements (2.5%) i.e. the majority need more.
Define safe intake
Safe intake is used where there is insufficient evidence to set an EAR, RNI or LRNI. The safe intake is the amount judged to be enough for almost everyone, but below a level that could have undesirable effects.
What affects individual nutrient requirements?
age gender level of physical activity health status - digestion and absorption issues nutrient losses - e.g. menstruation and iron lifestyle - smoking interactions between nutrients drug-nutrient interactions
What are the limitations of DRVs?
Data often derived from experimental data limited to certain groups (e.g. young men)
Limited info on certain groups e.g. children and elderly
Usually committees add a safety margin – this can vary between countries
For some nutrients, where little is known about requirements, a safe level is given
Requirements are a best guess!
Need to be updated every 10-15 y to include new evidence
What % of food energy should come from total fat?
35% of food energy
What % of food energy should come from saturated fat?
Reduce to no more than 11% of food energy (currently at 13.3%)
What % of food energy should come from CHOs?
Increase to more than 50% of food energy (currently at 48.1%)
What % of food energy should come from added sugars?
No more than 11% of food energy (currently at 12.7%)
How much should the average intake of dietary fibre be in adults and children?
Increase the average intake of dietary fibre to 18g per day (currently 13.8g per day).
Children’s intakes should be less
How much fruit and veg should be eaten every day (portions and in grams)?
Increase to at least 5 portions (400g) of a variety of fruit and vegetables per day (currently 2.8 portions per day)
How much alcohol should be drank by men and women every day (energy intake and units)?
Should not provide more than 5% of energy in the diet.
Women – should not regularly drink more than 2-3 units of alcohol/day
Men – should not regularly drink more than 3-4 units/day
How much salt is safe to be eaten every day by adults (+11) ?
Adults (+11) – no more than 6g salt a day (2.4g sodium)
How much salt is safe to be eaten every day by those aged 1-3?
1 to 3 years - 2 g salt a day (0.8g sodium)
How much salt is safe to be eaten every day by those aged 4-6?
4 to 6 years - 3g salt a day (1.2g sodium)
How much salt is safe to be eaten every day by those aged 7-10?
7 to 10 years - 5g salt a day (2g sodium)
What are the guidelines for physical activity in a week for those aged 19-64?
At least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity such as cycling or fast walking every week AND strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms)
75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity, such as running or a game of singles tennis every week AND strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).
A mix of moderate and vigorous aerobic activity every week. For example, two 30-minute runs plus 30 minutes of fast walking equates to 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity AND strength exercises on two or more days a week that work all the major muscles (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms).
What are advantages and disadvantages of pedometers?
o Cheap, easy to use
o Accuracy at different walking speeds?
o Inter-individual differences?
o Intra-individual differences less important if raising awareness, or assessing change in activity (intervention study).
What effect does moderate activity have on the risk of type 2 diabetes?
People who are at least moderately active have a 30% to 40% lower risk of type 2 diabetes
