FSSAI launched the ‘Eat Right India Movement’ to improve public health in India and to combat negative nutritional trends to fight lifestyle diseases. While it might be difficult to specify the exact elements that make up an essential nutritional diet, it is easier to understand what is not considered a nutritional diet. If a healthy diet is defined as one that has beneficial effects on the health and helps to combat diseases then a nutritionally poor diet may be considered one where there is a poor intake of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and nuts. Also diets that contain a higher intake of fats, salts and sweets, processed foods, trans fats, sweetened beverages, etc. are considered nutritionally poor and would not add any health benefits.
FSSAI’s Eat Right India Movement therefore focuses on empowering citizens to make the right food choices.Consuming foods that have good nutrition is one of the most effective ways to combat lifestyle diseases like diabetes, heart problems, including obesity. Both plant and animal foods help to provide nourishment which is essential for good health. FSSAI also encourages food businesses to help consumers to make better food choices by providing nutritional information on food labels and also by reformulating their products to provide better nutrition.
Most countries have official dietary guidelines including India about the nutrient requirements and recommended dietary allowances (RDA). These guidelines are set and revised periodically by the Indian Council of Medical Research and used to direct policy for a healthy population. In the Indian scenario several considerations are taken into account before making the RDA like the burden of malnutrition, the various dietary habits that exists here, the predominantly home-based cereal-pulse vegetarian diet which has a low bioavailability of several nutrients and also lower consumption of packaged fortified foods. Besides these nutrient requirements also depend on age, gender, body weight and physiological and metabolic status of the individual. Individuals can make their food choices depending on their requirement but most nutritional diets include some of the following factors.
Dietary Fat
There are several consumers that do not understand what exactly fat is and several consider all fat to be associated with disease. No doubt, it has been established that trans and saturated fat are the ‘bad’ fats especially for cardiovascular health. Trans fats are generally manmade, hydrogenated fats that give rise to low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and reduce high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Trans fats could also damage arteries and increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease if consumption is on the higher side. Most trans fats are present in Vanaspati, bakery shortenings, margarine and re-heated oils, so it is advisable to avoid these. In prepared foods, trans fats are found in bakery products and fried foods so it is a good idea to minimize their consumption.
Fats also include saturated fats, which come from red meat and dairy products and these also increase harmful LDL, but at the same time they also increase HDL, so a moderate intake of saturated fat is not likely to risk health. However, it is the monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that are actually considered good for health and these are found in vegetable oils, seeds, nuts, whole grains, and fish. Eating too much oils and fats like saturated and industrially-produced trans-fat, can increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. Using unsaturated vegetable oils like soya, sunflower or corn oil is better for health rather than animal fats or oils high in saturated fats.
To remain healthy total fat intake should not exceed 30% of a person’s overall energy including both visible and invisible fat sources. One can include 3-4 teaspoon of fats/oils a day (from all sources, i.e. vegetable oil/ghee/butter etc.), and nuts like almond, walnuts and pistachios. Cholesterol intake should be limited to 200 – 300mg/day and so avoiding high cholesterol foods such as butter and red meats will reduce the risk of diseases.
Carbohydrates
While processing is required to manufacture certain foods,the disadvantages are that processing also removes fibre, some good fats, and even vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. Therefore, processed grains such as white flour or white rice are considered to be nutritionally poor as compared to whole-grains. It is good to avoid highly processed grains as they could lead to increase in triglycerides and decrease in protective HDL. There is a good amount of evidence to indicate that eating whole grains or cereals high in fibre, rather than refined grains, reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes. According to FSSAI 50-60% of a day’s total calories should come from carbohydrates which equals to 5-6 servings of cereals, preferably from complex carbohydrates like whole wheat chapati, brown rice, millets; bajra (pearl millet), ragi (finger millet) jowar (great millet) etc.
Proteins
Consuming proteins derived from beans, nuts, seeds, and decreasing easily digested carbohydrates are helpful in reducing the risk of heart disease. Cutting back on animal protein along with carbohydrates will prevent heart disease risk to some extent. It is recommended that 10-15% of a day’s total calories should come from proteins. Vegetarian sources include pulses and legumes, like soya, pulses, whole grams (channa, rajma, green gram, etc.), milk, and low-fat dairy productsNon-vegetarian sources include egg, fish, meat, poultry. Daily diet must include two servings of protein rich foods in the daily diet. If choosing non-vegetarian sources it is preferable to select lean meats or chicken and fish.
Vegetables and Fruits
Eating an abundance of vegetables and fruits has proven to be good for health. Eating plenty of vegetables and fruit will provide all plenty of vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, plant protein and antioxidants. People with diets rich in vegetables and fruits have a significantly lower risk of obesity, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and certain types of cancer. A balanced diet should also provide dietary fibre and micronutrients including antioxidants for positive health. The total dietary fibre in daily diet should be 25 – 40 g/day. To achieve this one should consume at least 4-5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.
Beverages
The best beverage is water as it has no calories and no additives and so ensure you drink a lot of water. Tea and coffee which are also consumed extensively are safe as compared to sugar-sweetened drinks, sodas, fruit drinks, juices, sports drinks and alcoholic drinks. Daily consumption of sugary beverages has been associated with weight gain and increased risk of type II diabetes as also heart disease.
Reduce High Fat Sugar, Salt
The FSSAI has advised for a reduction in the fat, sugar and salt especially in processed foods. High intake of sugar may be associated with an increased risk of obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and some types of cancer. For a healthy diet, sugars should represent less than 10% of your total energy intake. Foods such as cakes, pastries, confectionery and sweets often have high amounts of fat, sugar, or salt, prepared with refined cereals and thus should be consumed in restricted amounts.
There are studies that have brought out that reduction in salt in home-cooked foods might not have as much impact on health as reformulating processed foods so they contain less salt. Keeping salt intake to less than 5h per day helps prevent hypertension and reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke in the adult population.Limiting the amount of salt and high-sodium condiments like soy sauce and fish sauce when cooking and preparing foods also helps reduce salt intake.
Fat intake can be reduced by lowering the intake of fried foods, use of butter, spreads and salad dressings. Rather than frying foods it is better to bake, grill, or broil them. Restrict your intake of bakery foods or processed foods.
FSSAI Tips to achieve balanced diets
- Eat variety of foods to ensure a balanced diet.
- Include differently coloured, seasonal vegetables and fruits in your diet.
- Eat foods made with whole grains like whole wheat bread, millets, and brown rice.
- Include low fat dairy products in the diet.
- Ensure moderate use of edible oils and animal foods, limit the use of ghee/ butter and avoid Vanaspati/margarine/shortenings.
- Limit the consumption of processed grains including foods made with white flour (Maida) etc.
- Minimize the use of processed foods rich in fats, sugar and salt (avoid trans fats).
- Avoid overeating to prevent overweight and obesity.
- Drink plenty of water and take beverages in moderation.
- Exercise regularly and be physically active to maintain ideal body weight.
- Ensure the use of safe and clean foods.
Sources:
https://eatrightindia.gov.in/EatRightIndia/index
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3471136/
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08870446.2017.1316849
Prof.Dr.Mahendra Pal says
Very good information on healthy and nutritious foods that can keep free from disease.