Analyze the diet - Food intake assessment

Based on the information you have provided, your daily energy requirement is estimated to be 1,936 kcal. This energy requirement is the level of calorie intake from food that will balance the calories your body burns, thus maintaining your weight. For weight loss, you should consume fewer calories and be more active. If you need to gain weight, consume more calories than your body requires.
Period of Analysis: 04/09/2011 - 06/09/2011
Energy (kcal) Carbohydrate (g) Protein (g) Total Fat (g) Saturated Fat (g) Cholesterol (mg) Calcium (mg) Dietary Fibre (g) Sodium (mg) Average intake per day 1,451 188.4 46.0 57.5 28.2 157.0 504.9 13.8 2,781.2 Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) 1,936 290.4 60.6 64.5 21.5 193.6 1,000.0 19.4 1,291.5 % of recommendation met 75 65 76 89 131 81 50 71 215
View graph of actual nutritional intake compared against RDA Energy 75% Carbohydrate 65% Protein 76% Total Fat 89% Saturated Fat 131% Cholesterol 81% Calcium 51% Dietary Fibre 71% Sodium 215% 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 % RDA Met
Table showing the % of total calories of diet versus recommendation
% of total energy intake Your diet Recommendation Total Carbohydrates 52% 55 - 65% Total Protein 13% 10 - 15% Total Fat 36% 25 - 30%
Nutrition messages based on results Saturated Fat Your intake of saturated fat was higher that the recommended amount. An excess of saturated fat can raise your blood cholesterol, subsequently increasing your risk of heart disease. The main sources of fat in our diet are also the sources of saturated fat! These include coconut-milk based foods, blended oil (usually used in commercial cooking), flavoured rice (e.g. chicken rice, nasi lemak, nasi briyani) and creamer/whitener/condensed and evaporated milk in beverages. Cutting down or limiting such sources of fat will also help to reduce saturated fat intake. Sodium Your sodium intake was greater than the recommended amounts. Sodium acts like a sponge, holding water in our body. Excess sodium increases the blood volume, which then raises the pressure in our blood vessels. Hypertension or high blood pressure increases the risk of stroke and heart attacks. The main source of sodium in our diet comes from salt (sodium chloride) and sauces added during cooking or at the table. To cut down on sodium intake, gradually reduce the use of salt and sauces when preparing or cooking food so that your taste buds have the chance to adjust. Try flavouring foods with natural seasonings like lemon juice or herbs and spices. Choose fresh food over processed foods over processed foods and enjoy the natural taste of foods. When eating out, ask for less sauces or gravy in dishes. Calcium You were not getting enough calcium in your diet. Without adequate calcium, you may be at risk of developing osteoporosis, a condition where your bones become weak and brittle. If left untreated, osteoporosis can worsen until a fracture (crack or break in the bone) occurs. Increase your calcium intake from a variety of sources. Consume calcium-enriched breads and biscuits, green leafy vegetables, calcium-fortified juices, high-calcium soya bean milk, ikan bilis, sardines (with bones), tofu, as well as milk and other dairy products. Vitamin D helps our body absorb calcium. Your body can make this vitamin after sunlight hits your skin. You can easily obtain enough by getting at least 30-60 minutes of sunlight a day. Aside from eating wisely, remember to make exercise a part of your life. Exercise helps to burn fat, tone your muscles, improve your stamina, relax and sleep better, as well as keep you alert and study better! Exercise at least 20 to 60 minutes, 3 to 5 times a week, until you sweat and breathe deeply without getting breathless. Choose an exercise that you enjoy, and try a variety so that you don’t get bored. Keep your exercise routine simple, fun and interesting. When shopping for food, look out for products with the Healthier Choice Symbol. These products are lower in total fat, saturated fat, sodium and/or dietary fibre content compared to other products in the same category.

Analyze the diet - Healthy Diet Pyramid

Food Group	Number of Servings /Day	Example of 1 Serving
Rice and Alternatives	5-7	2 slices bread (60g) ½ bowl* rice (100g) ½ bowl noodles or beehoon (100g) 4 plain biscuits (40g) 1 thosai (60g) 2 small chapatis (60g) 1 large potato (180g) 1 ½ cup plain cornflakes (40g)
Fruit	2	1 small apple, orange, pear or mango (130g) 1 wedge pineapple, papaya or watermelon (130g) 10 grapes or longans (50g) 1 medium banana ¼ cup*** dried fruit (40g) 1 glass pure fruit juice (250ml)
Vegetables	2	¾ mug** cooked leafy or non-leafy vegetables (100g) ¼ round plate+ cooked vegetables 150g raw leafy vegetables 100g raw non-leafy vegetables
Meat and Alternatives	2-3	1 palm-sized piece fish, lean meat or skinless poultry (90g) 2 small blocks soft beancurd (170g) ¾ cup cooked pulses (e.g. lentils, peas, beans) (120g) 5 medium prawns (90g) 3 eggs (150g)++ 2 glasses milk (500 ml) 2 slices of cheese (40g)

* rice bowl ** 250ml mug *** 250ml cup +10 inch plate
++ While 3 eggs are equivalent in protein content to other items listed under the meat and alternatives group, egg yolks are high in cholesterol. Thus, eat no more than 4 egg yolks per week.

For Day 1, I obviously didn't have enough servings for each of the categories, except for fats, oil, sugar and salt, since I consumed a lot of unhealthy food like hamburger, cake and potato chips. Even though those food are rather nice to eat, they are really bad for your body, so I should cut down on those food. I feel like most of the food I consumed on Day 1 do not fit into any of the categories besides fats, oil, sugar and salt.

For Day 2, the cocktail sausages consumed for breakfast should give around 1-2 servings of meat and alternatives. A variety of fruits eaten throughout the day gives me 3 servings of fruits and the veggies for dinner make up 2 servings of vegetables, which is good! :) As for rice and alternatives, I only had 2 servings, so perhaps I could have my breakfast of cocktail sausages together with bread or cornflakes.

For Day 3, I think it is rather big improvement from the previous 2 days. For the vegetable dumpling, it was home cooked by my grandmother and she put a lot of veggies in so I think that should fulfill the 2 servings of vegetables. The 2 slices of watermelon also fit into the 2 serving of fruits nicely :) The beef ramen from a restaurant gives me around 3 serving of rice and alternatives as well as 1 serving of meat and alternatives.