NUTRITIONAL NEEDS

DIETARY REFERENCE VALUES

• (DRVs) were made in 1991 to establish a standard recommendation as to how much of each nutrient is required by each individual.
• People differ from each other in the amounts of energy and nutrients they need.
• Drv's give figures for nutrients which are enough or more than enough to cover the needs of almost every healthy person in the country.

INFANTS & YOUNG CHILDREN

• A range of food should be given so that they have a wide variety of nutrients
• Energy can be supplied by some complex carbs e.g wholemeal bread.
• Don't include too much NSP as this fills children up and they won't be able to eat anything else with their nutrients.
• Avoid too much food high in fat or fried foods.

-Choose low fat dairy products after the age of 2 years, semi- skimmed milk can be given as long as energy is given from the rest of the diet.
-avoid too many sugary foods, as this will contribute to obesity or tooth decay.

WEANING

• Poor diet in childhood can lead to health problems in later life.
• A healthy diet will help children avoid becoming over weight or obese.
• Include the use of naturally brightly coloured foods in meals and snacks.
• Practical guidelines ; - introduce new foods gradually , establish regular eating times , aim for five small meals a day, food should be sieved or puréed.

TEENAGERS

• Teenagers have all increased requirement for energy (especially if taking part in sport). Males need more energy as they have a larger body size and are usually more muscular than females, therefor need more energy to supply this to them.

-Calcium- roughly 45% of the adult skeleton is formed during adolescence, therefore lots of calcium & phosphorus rich foods need to be consumed for the correct formation of both bones and teeth. Vitamin D will help absorb calcium.
-Iron- increased iron intake due to the blood volume expanding through growth. Iron is especially important for girls when menstruation starts to help prevent anaemia .
-Protein- require protein for rapid growth and repairing damaged tissues.
-Vit C- assists absorption of iron

PREGNANCY

• Pregnant women should have a nutritionally sound diet so that they produce a healthy baby and are able to sustain their own health throughout the pregnancy.
• Poor eating habits of mothers affect foetal growth and development, which in turn affects the well being and growth of the child into adulthood.
• Smoking whilst being pregnant will reduce the flow of nutrients to the foetus.
• Any alcohol consumed during pregnancy will interfere with the nutrient absorption of the mother and also passes into the unborn baby's bloodstream.

DRVs FOR PREGNANCY

• Protein: a little additional protein will be required for the development of the foetus's body cells. Too much can contribute to weight gain.
• Carbohydrates: in the last three months of pregnancy, the body has a greater requirement for energy, this is a time of rapid growth and development for the baby. However, it is important at this stage not to eat too many energy foods as weight gain may occur because if reduced exercise at this stage of pregnancy.
• Iron: the mother must have enough iron during pregnancy to supply her own body and to provide the growing baby with a store of iron for the first 4 months after birth.

THE ELDERLY

• As people grow older , they will need less energy, they will also be less active.
• Their basal metabolic rate will fall as there is less lean tissue mass in the body.
• More elderly people are overweight than underweight due to the lack of exercise.
• Obesity can be a problem, which will increase the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure, or extra weight puts undue strain on joints.
• Deteriorating teeth can cause difficulty with chewing.
• Arthritis can cause problems with food shopping and preparation.
• Also having a limited budget may influence the food choice.
• An elderly person who is living alone may lack the motivation to prepare balanced diet, which may lead to snacking prepared foods which are high in both fat and sugar.

ELDERLY

• A range of nutrients need to be eaten.
• Th elderly should be encouraged to eat foods which are rich in iron so that they have less of a risk developing anaemia (eg meat, eggs and breakfast cereals).
• Eating several sources of calcium will keep bones healthy and will reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis (eg milk, cheese and bread).
• If the elderly are stuck in the house all the time (house bound), they will lack exposure to the sunlight meaning that they may have a deficiency in vitamin D. This will lead to poor absorption of calcium which ,a end up leading to osteomalacia.
• The elderly require an increased demand of NSP rich foods, due to the decline in activity which may lead to constipation.
• Some elderly people have trouble chewing their food, therefore some of the elderly like to purée their food as this makes it easier for them to eat.

ADULTS

• The nutritional requirement for an adult depends on their age, gender, lifestyle and occupation.
• Body growth will decline in adulthood.
• Adults require a good diet to make sure that the body is about to maintain and repair itself and also to keep it healthy.
• Along with a specific adults body size, how much exercise will also have to be taken into consideration to see how much energy and nutrient requirement there will be.
• Women tend to need less food than men, however the will need a greater amount of iron n the body due to the monthly menstruation.
• When it comes to pregnancy women will have different requirements during the pregnancy and also after the baby has been born.

ADULTS

• Adults will need to change how much energy foods that are consuming depending on how much activity they do, this is because if too much energy foods are consumed then it will eventually lead to weight gain.
• When it comes to the protein and most of the vitamins and minerals requirement, it is pretty much unchanged.
• Energy, calcium and phosphorus requirements are all lower for both the men and the female compared to adolescents.
• Adults should reduce the intake of saturated fat, however increase the amount of of total complex carbohydrates. These will provide the energy required for active adults.

LACTATING WOMEN (BREAST FEEDING)

• Breast milk contains antibodies as well as other protective substances, which will protect the child and encourage growth and the development of the infants tissues and organs.
• The baby will be less likely to become overweight because they are able to decide when they are full.
• There is almost no chance of the baby being allergic to the breast milk.
• There will be more resistance to infection such as diarrhoea.
• It's a possibility that babies who are breast fed are less likely to develop asthma.
• Breast feeding may help the mother loose the excess fat she has gained during her pregnancy.
• Medical research has shown that women who breast feed have a lower chance of developing breast cancer.

CONVALESCENTS

• Anyone who is recovering from an illness, operation or and accident are convalescents.
• People may need to adjust their diet if they are a convalescent due to their body being weaker, having a poor appetite or poor digestion.
• Food needs to compensate for the loss of nutrients when they are recovering (calcium is lost from a bone fracture).
• Spicy foods should be avoided.
• They should be given smaller portions as the appetite may be smaller.
• Food needs to be colourful and have a variety of texture to try and encourage their appetite.
• Food needs to be thoroughly cooked to make sure that food poisoning is avoided.

CONVALESCENTS

• Patients may require a lot of liquids, so that they can provide energy, vitamins and protein (eg soups and broths).
• Foods containing a lot of fat or sugar should be avoided as the convalescent will not be doing as much activity, therefore the energy won't be used up which could lead to obesity.
• Convalescents who have suffered from a Broken bone should have a good supply of calcium, which will help to heal the bone strongly.
• Protein intake needs to be high enough so that damaged cells and tissues can be repaired.
• If the patient is recovering from an operation or accident then protein intake needs to be sufficient for body repair and to replace any iron which was lost.
• Convalescents should eat plenty of NSP (fruit and veg as well as whole grain breakfast cereals) to prevent constipation.
• Any greasy foods should try to be avoided due to the fact that they may be difficult to digest.

VEGETARIANS

• People are vegetarians due to a number of different reasons including: religion, moral or personal taste just to name a few.
• Lacto-ovo vegetarians don't eat the flesh of meat, fish or poultry.
• Vegans don't eat any derived products, only plant products.
• As long as the vegetarian diet is well balanced the. It should be providing all the nutrients needed in the diet through life.

LACTO-OVO VEGETARIANS

• Need to limit their intake of of dairy products as these are too high in saturated fat, however they can use low fat products instead.
• Iron could be unavailable to get from plant sources, this is because of the presence of phytic acid so this will need to be reduced in the diet (eg wheat bran).
• Vitamin c should be eaten to help with the absorption of iron from foods.
• Complex carbs should be used as a source of energy.
• Vitamin b12 should be supplemented by fortified foods.

VEGANS

• Protein need to be eaten in large bulks if being taken from plant sources, however the richest sources can be found in soya beans , pulse and cereals.
• Foods should be spread throughout the day so that indigestion doesn't occur.
• It's important to get a lot of sunlight on the skin to get a sufficient amount of vitamin D.
• Vegans are able to get sufficient amounts of calcium from plant sources (tofu, green leafy veg and nuts).
• A high take of NSP will have a positive effect on health as more pulses and nuts etc are consumed.
• Vitamin b12 is only found in animal foods p, meaning that vegans may be at risk of developing a certain type of anaemia and may need to take tablets to prevent.