Balanced Diet

Diet is the food on which an individual lives. A balanced diet may be defined as the one which contains all the essential nutrients like carbohydrates, fats, proteins, minerals and vitamins in the correct proportion for the normal growth and development of the body. A balanced diet is related to the state of one's age, health and occupation. A food exchange chart will be useful in planning a balanced diet. In this exchange system, foods of specific servings are decided and standardized in terms of energy which is measured in (kcal). The corresponding carbohydrate, protein and fat content of the food is given in grams. Table7 lists the food exchange system. Table8 is a copy of the balanced vegetarian diet as recommended by ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research). Table9 is a substitution diet for non vegetarian.

Table 7. The food exchange system

Sl. No.	Exchange list	Serving size/or raw weight in (g)	Carbo- hydrate (g)	Protein (g)	Fat (g)	Energy (k.cal)
1.	Vegetable Green Leaf Other	½ Cup ½ Cup	6 6-10	Nil Nil	* Nil	30-40 50-60
2.	Fruit	Varies	10	Nil	Nil	40
3.	Cereal	25	19-21	2-3	-	85
4.	Legumes and Pulses	25	15	6	*	95
5.	Milk and Meat	½ Cup 75	6 Nil	3.5 7.5	4.0 6.0	65 85
6.	Fat and Sugar	10 10	Nil 10	Nil Nil	10.0 Nil	90 40

 

Table 8. Balanced diet as recommended by ICMR for vegetarians (The quantities are given in grams)

Adult Men				Adult Women			Children		Boys	Girls
Food item	Sedentary	Moderate Work	Heavy Work	Sedentary	Moderate Work	Heavy Work	1 - 3 yrs	4 - 6 yrs	10 - 12 yrs	10  - 12 yrs
Cereals	460	520	670	410	440	575	175	270	420	380
Pulses	40	50	60	40	45	50	35	35	45	45
Leafy vegetables	40	40	40	100	100	50	40	50	50	50
Other vegetables	60	70	80	40	40	100	20	30	50	50
Root and Tubers	50	60	80	50	50	60	10	20	30	30
Milk	150	200	250	100	150	200	300	250	250	250
oil and Fat	40	45	65	20	25	40	15	25	40	35
Sugar and Jaggery	30	35	55	20	20	40	30	40	45	45

Table 9. Suggested substitution diet for non-vegetarians

Food item which can be deleted from non-vegetarian diets	Substitution that can be suggested for deleted item or items
50% of pulses (20 - 30 g)	1. One egg or 30 g of meat or fish 2. Additional 5 g of fat or oil
100% pulses (40 - 60 g)	1. Two eggs or 50 g of meat or fish.     One egg or 30 g meat 2. 10 g of fat or oil

Malnutrition

Malnutrition results from imbalance between the body's needs and the intake of nutrients which can lead to syndromes of deficiency, dependency, toxicity or obesity. Malnutrition includes undernutrition in which nutrients are undersupplied and overnutrition, in which nutrients are oversupplied.

Types of malnutrition

a) Undernutrition can result from inadequate intake, malabsorption, abnormal systematic loss of nutrients due to diarrhoea, bleeding, renal failure, infection, or addiction to drugs. When there is malnutrition due to lack of a specific nutrient it can lead to diseases which are related to specific deficiencies. The deficiency diseases are of three types:

(i) Protein deficiency diseases Kwashiorkar, Marasmus

(ii) Mineral deficiency diseases Goitre, Anaemia

(iii) Vitamin deficiency diseases Scurvy, Beri-beri, Rickets etc.

Kwashiorkar

Marasmus

b) Overnutrition can result from overeating, insufficient exercise and excessive intake of specific food components like fats (cholesterol) and vitamins A and D. Overeating leads to a disease called obesity. The person becomes overweight and bulky due to the excessive accumulation of fat in the body. Obesity can lead to hypertension and heart attack. Excessive consumption of cholesterol leads to a disease called arteriosclerosis (deposition of cholesterol on the arterial walls). All these diseases can be fatal.