* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Download Healthy diet for Good Health
Survey
Document related concepts
Obesity and the environment wikipedia , lookup
Ketogenic diet wikipedia , lookup
Calorie restriction wikipedia , lookup
Food politics wikipedia , lookup
Gluten-free diet wikipedia , lookup
Vegetarianism wikipedia , lookup
Low-carbohydrate diet wikipedia , lookup
Raw feeding wikipedia , lookup
Diet-induced obesity model wikipedia , lookup
Food choice wikipedia , lookup
Saturated fat and cardiovascular disease wikipedia , lookup
Childhood obesity in Australia wikipedia , lookup
Transcript
Healthy diet for Good Health Diet and nutrition are important factors in the promotion and maintenance of good health in the entire life course. Increase in body weight and blood lipids are in fact end results of prolonged faulty dietary habits including excess consumption of refined cereals, high cholesterol foods, saturated fatty acids (SFAs), sugar and fried foods. Improper dietary practices can also trigger underline genetic tendencies towards development of these disease conditions. By adopting a diet of protective foods like fruits and vegetables and less of sugar and oil consumption one can reduce the risk of non communicable diseases. (NCD) Ithas been rightly quoted that “You are what you eat”, today with therapid changes in the diet and lifestyle, we are facing an increase in diet-relatedchronic conditions like obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, osteoporosisetc. In many homes today one often gets to see the full square meal beenreplaced by a one snack meal pattern, which often may include a junk food. Eg:pizza or burger. The increase in the availability of ready to eat foods (wafer,kurkure) or instant foods(noodles, pasta, soups) has replaced the fresh foodsin our daily diet, leading to decrease intake of the protective foods (freshfruits and vegetables). A proper diet as we know is essential from the very early stages of life forgrowth, development and maintenance of an active life. A good diet is merelya combination of foods, which supply the materials vital to the body for itswell being. However, a lack of consumption of these nutrients or foods in theright proportion leads to accumulation of toxins in the body, resulting in chronicdisease conditions. Itis very important to understand the different nutrients we get from food andtheir role in our body. The food that we eat provides macronutrients (carbohydrates,protein and fats) and several micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) which whensupplied in the right amounts support and sustain life and activity. All thefoods in our daily meals can be divided into basic food groups. The food pyramidhelps us understand these food groups in a better manner. All cereals grains and millets like wheat, rice, chapati, bread, rawa, jowar, noodles etc. and pulses and legumes are at the base of the pyramid indicating that the proportion in which one needs to consume these foods. We get carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals from these foods. This group is the main food group giving energy to our body. The next level consists of vegetables and fruits give us vitamins and minerals, they are required for protecting our body against disease. The following level is of the protein rich foods like milk and its products, non-vegetarian foods like poultry, fish and mutton. The tip of the pyramid consists of foods giving us concentrated energy like sugar, fats, oils, fried foods, refined cereals like maida and alcohol, indicating that the amount of these foods be the least amount required by our body. Now it becomes easier to understand the concept of a balanced diet i.e. when one consumes a diet with sufficient quantities of food from the food groups present in the food pyramid, in the suggested proportion, ensuring that the daily nutrient requirement of the body is met, then such a diet is termed as a balanced diet. After understanding the balanced diet, let us now briefly look at the important nutrients we get from the food we eat in our daily diet. Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates are the principal sources of energy for the body. They include wheat, jowar, bajra, ragi (nachani), rice, pohe, semolina (rawa) , rajgeera, potato, sweet potato, banana, mango, chickoo etc. One gram of carbohydrate provides four calories. Carbohydrates are of two types – Simple and Complex. Simple carbohydrates like sugar produce energy quickly. If taken in excess, they get converted to fat adding undesirable weight. Therefore, foods such as soft drinks, sweets, chocolates and cakes should be avoided. Complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, beans, vegetables and fruits are less likely to add unwanted weight as they contain of fibre and water, They are more filling and much less likely to be eaten in fattening excess. In addition, unlike simple carbohydrates, they provide vitamins, minerals and in many cases proteins. The diet should contain large amount of complex carbohydrates. The daily diet should contain about 55-65 percent of carbohydrates. Proteins: Protein is an indispensable part of the diet, involved in the body’s vital functions such as growth, maintenance and repair of cells for the production of enzymes and hormones and for energy. Important dietary sources of protein are milk, curd, buttermilk, meat, fish and poultry including eggs, dals and sprouts, nuts and oilseeds. Each gram of protein provides four calories. Every protein is made up of amino acids- smaller molecules known as building blocks of protein. Amino acids are of two typesessential and non-essential. Essential amino acids are those amino acids, which cannot be synthesized in the body, and their requirement has to be met through dietary intake. Non –essential amino acids are those which are synthesized in the body from the essential amino acids. Commonly proteins are known as complete proteins or incomplete proteins. Complete protein foods are those which contain all the essential amino acids in sufficient amounts and ratio to supply the body’s needs. Incomplete proteins on the other hand, are deficient in one or more of the essential amino acids. Animal source proteins such as milk and milk products, meat, fish and poultry are complete proteins. Animal foods are also a source of cholesterol in the diet hence it is important that we include low fat milk, low fat poultry and fish and try to restrict red meat in our diet. Vegetable source proteins such as pulses and legumes, cereal grainswheat, rice, jowar, bajra etc. are incomplete proteins. However a combination of a vegetable protein with an animal protein or two complementary vegetable protein (a cereal + a pulse) can provide proteins of good quality (complete proteins). E.g. Paratha with curds, dal and rice, idli etc. Our daily diet should contain about 15-20 percent of proteins. Fat: Fats are concentrated sources of energy and provide twice the energy that carbohydrates and proteins furnish. We get fats from cooking oil, ghee, butter etc. One gram provides nine calories. They are needed for several functions and are sources of essential fatty acids. They provide fat-soluble vitamins and are necessary for their absorption. The body stores all the extra calories in the form of fat. The calories obtained from fat are harder to burn off than the same amount of calories from carbohydrates. Animal fats such as butter and ghee as also vegetable fats like vanaspati, coconut oils are high in saturated fatty acids which are implicated in heart disease as it increases the cholesterol level. The recommendation for saturated fat is <7% of the total energy. Therefore, their intake should be minimized. Vegetable oils like soyabean, mustard, groundnut have a higher amount of unsaturated fatty acids and are preferable to saturated fats. The daily dietary intake of fat should be about 25-30% of the entire day’s calorie requirement. Trans fatty acidsare produced during the hydrogenation process used to increase the shelf life of food. Most trans fatty acids intake comes from partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, these need to be limited as they raise the LDL cholesterol. No more than 1% of calories (approximately 1-3 gm/day) should come from trans – fatty acids Cholesterol: Cholesterol, a word we come across very often in relation to heart diseases, is essential to the human body for the manufacture of hormones and as an important component of cell membranes. Cholesterol is present in all the animal foods and is synthesized in our body by the liver independent of the dietary intake. Hence, when you restrict the dietary cholesterol the human body will produce the require amount of cholesterol for its functioning. An intake of <300 mg per day to a more strict < 200 mg per day is recommended. The dietary sources of cholesterol include egg yolk, mutton, beef, ham and high fat dairy products such as whole milk, butter, cream, cheese and therefore need be restricted in the daily diet. Non vegetarian foods like egg white, boiled, roasted or baked chicken without skin and fish can be consumed more liberally in the diet. Fibre: Dietary fibres are plant constituents that are resistant to digestion in the human digestive tract. They consist of cellulose, hemicellulose, pectin, mucilages, gums and lignin. There are two types of fibres- insoluble fibres and soluble fibres. Insoluble fibre includes cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, and soluble includes pectins, gums and mucilages. High intake levels of dietary fibre are associated with significantly lower prevalence of CHD and stroke. Fibre has several functions in the body: - • Insoluble fibres give bulk to the diet and move the food more quickly through the gastrointestinal tract. • Fibre delays the absorption of carbohydrates and fats. • Soluble fibres bind to water and increase the viscosity of the intestinal content, they bind cholesterol and increase excretion of bile acids. • Fibre is also useful in decreasing the risk of metabolic disorders such as diabetes and also diverticulitis and colon cancer. • Fibre protects vitamins from being destroyed during cooking. Dietary sources of fibre are whole grain cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables. On processing fibre is removed, hence refined and processed food should be avoided. The use of white bread, naan, roomali roti, noodles, pasta and other refined flour (maida) products should be avoided. The minimum recommended intake is about 25- 30 grams of fibre per day, out of which approximately 6-10 grams should come from the soluble fibre in the diet. This dietary intake can be achieved by including whole cereals and sprouted legumes regularly in the diet, five or more serving of fruits or vegetables per day. Micronutrients : There are a variety of micronutrients like Vitamin A, B, C, D, E, K, folic acid which we get from cereals, vegetables and fruits and minerals like calcium, iron, zinc, selenium etc. from milk and its products, vegetables and fruits, which are required by our body for its functioning. Few of the vitamins and minerals like vitamin A, C, E and minerals like selenium, chromium have got antioxidant properties, which prevent the oxidation of PUFAs in the cell membrane. Dietary source of vitamins and minerals are fresh fruits and all vegetables, low fat milk and milk products, and whole grain cereals and pulses. Salt: Salt or sodium chloride gives a distinct taste to the food. Sodium keeps the body fluids in balance Excess salt taken in the diet is retained and is likely to precipitate hypertension. In general a sodium restriction of <2400 mg per day is recommended, patients with very high blood pressure may have to restrict the intake of high sodium containing foods such as pickles, chutney, sauces and ketchup’s, papads, chips and salted biscuits, cheese, canned foods, readymade soup packets, dried salted fish. The reduction of salt intake is best achieved by cutting down the use of added salt in the diet. Once we are aware of the different nutrients in our daily diet and its role in the body following a balanced diet becomes easy. The rule of thumb would be to eat food in moderation and not to overdo on any particular food. Your plate should be multi coloured with a variety of foods from different food groups in our diet. A few dietary recommendations to be considered for cardiovascular risk reduction are as follows: 1. Balance the calorie intake and physical activity to achieve or maintain a healthy body weight. 2. Consume a diet rich in vegetables and fruits. 3. Choose whole grain cereals and high fibre foods. 4. Limit the use of saturated fat, trans fats and cholesterol – a. Choose lean meats and vegetable alternatives to non vegetarian foods b. Select fat free (skim) or low fat dairy products. c. Minimize the intake of partially hydrogenated fats 5. Minimize the intake of beverage and foods with added sugars. 6. Choose and prepare food with little or no salt. 7. Make use of alternative cooking methods like steaming, roasting, baking instead of frying. (Can choose steamed idlis instead of fried wadas). 8. When eating outside of home it is helpful if one make a list of foods he is permitted to eat and enjoys what he is permitted to eat rather than crib aboutwhat one cannot. 9. Consume alcohol in moderation.