Nutrition analysis verB

a. How many grams of fat can you consume in a day and not exceed 30 percent of your calories from fat? Use the CNPP recommendation for your daily calorie recommendation to calculate your answer. How did you do in this area for the day you recorded?

On the “standard” daily calorie intake of 2,200 recommended for very active young women, the upper limit for fat intake is 73 grams (660 calories). If I was to be sedentary man or an active woman, I would roughly have to meet the same requirement, which is not to take in more than 73 grams of fat in a day

b. How many grams of saturated fat can you consume in a day and not exceed 10 percent of calories from saturated fat? How did you do in this area for the day you recorded?

I need to consume only ten percent of calories from saturated fat, meaning, I may not exceed more than 300 mg of saturated fats in day. Saturated fats such as cholesterol, and trans fat which is not only bad for my diet but will also clog up my aorta(major heart vein).

c. For the day you recorded your intake if you ate a serving of a high-fat food, for example, lasagna, how could you avoid exceeding the recommended fat intake for the day?

During the event that I eat food containing high amounts of fat, to be able to balance the amount of fat intake, I eat food that contain less fat and eat foods that were boiled, broiled or grilled. In doing so, I end up taking in less fat and still eating a lot. Because even if we avoid frying food it will still most likely contain fat, so I will at least minimize the amount of fat included in everything else I eat.

d. If you could substitute a serving of lower fat lasagna for the higher fat choice, what effect would this have on your other food choices and on your calorie and nutrient intakes for that day?

Replacing the lasagna, which contains a large amount of fat with lasagna that contains a lot less, will definitely make it a lot easier for someone to compensate concerning the other food options that I may have. Instead of having to choose low calorie and fat containing food, which may turn out to be bland, I can opt to eat regular food options that can not only fill my stomach but also fill my calorie requirement for the day.

e. Considering regular lasagna, which ingredients most likely contribute most to the total fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol in the higher fat lasagna selection?

Perhaps lasagna could be included in one’s diet once a week, like on Sundays or special holidays. Making lasagna, with all its calories and fats, a part of one’s daily diet is not only irrational but is also risky when it comes to one’s health.

f. How could you change those ingredients to reflect a reduction in fat content?

I can reduce the fat content of lasagna by placing whole-wheat lasagna instead of the regular pasta, decreasing the amount of virgin olive oil that is placed in it, placing less butter, and also using ground chicken rather than ground beef.

g. How did the day’s recorded total for calories and vitamins compare with your recommended amounts? Did the day’s meals meet or exceed your need for energy? Describe how your actual intake varied from the CNPP recommendation.

Happily, I was able to exceed the needed amounts for calories and vitamins for the day. As for the vitamins, I was happy to see that I exceeded it because it means that I am eating a healthy diet. Although for the calorie intake, it scares me a bit because eating a calorie pack food without expending it properly will result to added body fats.

h. Did your meals present too little of any of the vitamins and minerals listed in the CNPP materials? Which ones?

Actually, my vitamin intake for the day exceeded what was expected from me greatly. I was able to take in more than what was required from me according to CNPP, which means none of them where under-represented.

i. What changes in your choices among those foods would have improved the energy or vitamin or mineral totals for the day?

Improvement when taken in a standard meaning would actually mean to increase, but in my case, to improve my diet I would have to decrease my energy intake and simply maintain my vitamin and mineral intake for the day.

j. Did your choices provide enough folate to meet your requirement?

I am glad to say that I actually met the required amount of folate that I had to take in within one day. In fact I was able to take in twice the required amount of 400 micrograms and was able to take in 784.5 micrograms.

k. What are the sources of niacin in your day’s meals?

Niacin is not really that abundant in standard food. Niacin can actually be found in whole refined grains. When mills refine grain they are required by law to add folic acid, NIACIN, iron and riboflavin. So therefore eating refined grains at least once a day may add to my Niacin intake.

l. What about Vitamin C? What percentage of your daily need of Vitamin C did your meals provide? Which individual foods were the main contributors? To what food groups do they belong?

I was able to take in a total of 126.78% vitamin C within one day. Vitamin C or Ascorbic Acid is abundant in Citrus filled drinks and meals such as lemons, oranges and lime, all of which are in the Fruits part of the Food Pyramid. Also aside from normal food intake, it is easy to receive vitamin C by simply buying it in a local drugstore.

m. How did your total energy intake compare with your energy recommendation? Is this consistent with your nutritional goals?

In my food intake, I was able to take 6604 kcal worth energy, which is three times more the recommended 2339 kcal goal for a day. It is very impressive to see that I was able to take in that much energy. However, it is also true that if I am not able to expend that energy within a day, it turns to body fat which is terrible to have.

n. Which of your foods are “vitamin bargains”? Those would be foods which are vitamin-dense, providing the most vitamins for the fewest calories.

Fruits and vegetables of course give me the most amounts of vitamins without having to increase my total number of calories significantly. In fact it can be noted that the best source of vitamins are vegetables because they don’t contain fructose like fruits do, but they contain a minimal amount of starch which makes up a good low calorie diet.

o. Breakfast cereals are a great source of vitamins. What characteristic of these foods makes them so rich in vitamins?

Breakfast cereals are made from plants specifically corn, wheat, and grains. Corn in itself is full of vitamins and wheat and grains may contain some vitamins as well. In addition, the fact that when we eat cereals it always comes with full cream or filled milk, which adds a significant amount of vitamins in a persons diet.

p. What can you say about your recorded food intake and the vitamins and minerals that you obtained from the foods you ate that day?

I can say that I actually exceed the requirements that are set for a balanced diet. Although this is not such a good thing because too much of certain food groups may cause complications to my health.

References

Dietary guidelines and the Guide to the Food Pyramid. West Virginia University, December 22, 2007, from http://www.wvu.edu/~exten/infores/pubs/fypubs/WLG_132_Food_Pyramid.pdf

Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, USDHHS, USDA, December 22,2007. from

Kantor, L.S. December 22, 2007, from http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/aer772/aer772a.pdf

Lawrence J. Appel, M.D., M.P.H., Benjamin Caballero, M.D., Ph.D., and Fergus M. Clydesdale, Ph.D. Dietary Guidelines for Americans. December 22, 2007, from www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines

National Institute of Mental Health. (1990). Clinical training in serious mental illness (DHHS Publication No. ADM 90-1679). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.