A balanced diet for women

A balanced diet for women

Confused about how to follow a healthy, balanced diet? You're not alone! Our nutritional therapist explains the best times to eat carbs, protein and fat, what your portion size should be and how to nourish yourself for optimum health...

Women have different daily nutritional requirements to men, and below our nutritionist has offered guidance and recipe ideas for women seeking a balanced diet for good health - but what exactly is meant by a 'balanced diet'?

the   sets out to define different types of foods we should be eating and in what proportions. These include some simple rules to follow like getting a minimum of five fruit and veg a day, including whole-grains and choosing more fish, poultry, beans and pulses and less red meat while opting for low-fat, low-sugar dairy foods. But that's not the whole story - how much should you be eating and is there a best time to eat protein, carbs or fats? Read on for our guide to healthy eating around the clock.

Reference Intakes (RI) – the new term for Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs)

Nutritional needs vary depending on your sex, size, age and activity levels so use this chart as a general guide only. The chart shows the Reference Intakes (RI) or daily amounts recommended for an average person to achieve a healthy, balanced diet for maintaining rather than losing or gaining weight.

The RIs for fat, saturates, sugars and salt are all maximum amounts, while those for carbs and protein are figures you should aim to meet each day. There is no RI for fibre, although health experts suggest we have 30g a day. 

 Reference intakes (RI)

 

                       MEN        woman

Energy (kcal) 2500 2000
Protein (g) 55 50
Carbohydrates (g) 300 260
Sugar (g) 120 90
Fat (g) 95 70
Saturates (g) 30 20
Salt (g) 6 6

Perfect Portionsportion 

Numbers and figures are all very well but how does this relate to you? Personalise your portions with our handy guide to finding the right serving size:

Breakfast

Kick-start your metabolism by including protein at breakfast, choose from eggs, salmon, lean ham or dairy. We burn more calories digesting protein rather than carbs so, by making your breakfast a protein one, you'll be revving up your metabolism and because protein keeps you fuller for longer, you'll eat fewer calories the rest of the day.

A protein breakfast needn't take any longer to prepare - top your morning toast with a scrambled egg, a slice of smoked salmon or some lean ham and when you do have a little more time enjoy an omelette or frittata.

Whatever you do don't skip breakfast as this sets your blood sugar off on a roller coaster, which means you'll end up choosing the wrong foods later in the day. Remember breakfast makes an important contribution towards your daily intake and it plays a key role in maintaining a healthy weight.

 

Mid-morning snack

Many people find eating little and often helps them manage their blood sugar levels - this doesn't mean they eat more but instead spread their day's intake evenly throughout the day. Make every snack count with nourishing options that supply both the 'pick me up' you need while topping up your five-a-day.

LunchOpen cottage cheese & pepper sandwich 

Make lunch a mix of lean protein and starchy carbs. Carb-rich foods supply energy and without them you're more likely to suffer that classic mid-afternoon slump. The key is to choose carbs that produce a steady rise in blood sugar, which means passing on the sugary 'white' foods and going for high fibre whole-grains which help you manage those afternoon munchies.

Healthy Eating Plan

Healthy Eating Plan

A healthy eating plan gives your body the nutrients it needs every day while staying within your daily calorie goal for weight loss. A healthy eating plan also will lower your risk for heart disease and other health conditions.
A healthy eating plan:
Emphasizes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fat-free or low-fat dairy products
Includes lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, eggs, and nuts
Limits saturated and trans fats, sodium, and added sugars
Controls portion sizes

Calories

To lose weight, most people need to reduce the number of calories they get from food and beverages (energy IN) and increase their physical activity (energy OUT).
For a weight loss of 1–1 ½ pounds per week, daily intake should be reduced by 500 to 750 calories. In general:
Eating plans that contain 1,200–1,500 calories each day will help most women lose weight safely.
Eating plans that contain 1,500–1,800 calories each day are suitable for men and for women who weigh more or who exercise regularly.
Very low calorie diets of fewer than 800 calories per day should not be used unless you are being monitored by your doctor.

Effective Health Education Defining Health Education

Effective Health Education

Defining Health Education

he formulation of a concrete, comprehensive definition of health education and its multi-faceted variances has been noted as a problematic area for educators. Nevertheless, a number of models have been proposed throughout the years, including Hornsey’s 1982 fourfold framework which lists the major role of health education as encompassing four separate components

medical components;

educational components;

developmental components; and

socio-political components

In this framework, the medical component of health education involves the dissemination of medical information and preventative measures in the context of health and well-being. The educational component of health education includes various participatory methods, including discussion, group interaction and group support. Likewise, the developmental component focuses on the development of skills that enable citizens to look after themselves while the socio-political component examines the various social-economic and political determinants of health such as social demographics, behavioral change and availability of resources and materials. Regardless of the model used, effective health education requires the integration and utilization of a wide range of factors. 

Designing Health Education

Research has demonstrated that effective health education design begins with the identification of various important psychosocial determinants that govern health behavior in individuals and populations. These behavior models can range from the theory of planned behavior – which equates behavioral intentions, social norms, and perceived behavioral controls with predictions in a subject’s behavior – to the social cognitive theory – which suggests that people learn by watching other people’s actions

One means of designing effective health education is the modification of materials using an understanding of these psychosocial principles, thereby providing the best conditions for which a student can learn. Indeed, one study done by Whittingham et al. in 2007 demonstrated that certain cognitive psychological theories could be adapted for improving knowledge transfer and comprehension; their modified materials regarding alcohol abuse resulted in significantly higher knowledge uptake by the study participants, as compared to those participants using the non-modified materials.(5) Some of the principles they used could be readily adapted for other workers involved in the generation of health education materials, including:

Text coherence – designing information in such a way that information logically follows from one passage to the next, as well as from one topic to the next;

Illustrations – presenting information in a visual manner has been shown to increase comprehension and recall;

Pop-out effects – drawing attention to specific information by displaying the important information differently than the rest of the text, i.e., through the use of color, shapes, font, size, etc.

Used in conjunction, these techniques noticeably improve the efficacy of health education materials.

It is vital to recognize that the best material for content uptake varies widely between readers. In other words, learning about the target demographic and customizing the presentation of information to best suit this demographic is a crucial step towards effective health education; generic information may greatly benefit one group, but do little to nothing for another group. A 1999 study by Kreuter et al. provided proof for this principle. In it, tailored messages created by clinicians, behavioral scientists and weight loss experts crafted specific weight loss messages to address individual differences among the study participants; compared to the non-tailored generic weight-loss brochures, the tailored information was not only seen as having a significantly greater attractiveness in general, but also yielded more positive self-assessment thoughts, positive behavioral intentions and greater long-term behavioral changes.

Furthermore, efforts should be made to work with local organizations and local community members. These local partnerships have been shown to facilitate overall communication, minimize logistical issues, and legitimize the educational efforts. The empowering of local people with knowledge beyond the span of the educational program is vital as well.

Lastly, attention must be given to the cultural contexts of the target demographic. An example stems from Thailand in the early 1990s, where Peace Corps volunteers attempted to educate villagers about the importance of condoms in the reduction and prevention of HIV/AIDs transmission. “In the old days volunteers used bananas in the demonstration but switched to wooden replicas when they discovered that some participants went home and actually put condoms on bananas thinking it had some sort of power to keep them safe.”

In Papua New Guinea, however, researchers used both wooden replicas and bananas in their condom demonstrations. In this situation, the researched concluded that: “We found that bananas worked better than wooden penis models, because the women were less embarrassed handling them.” This startling difference in situation between health workers and villagers draws attention to the necessity of health educators to thoroughly examine the people, culture, methods, materials and society that they wish to impact.

Health Education Code of Ethics

Health Education Code of Ethics

The Health Education Code of Ethics has been a work in progress since approximately 1976, begun by the Society of Public Health Education (SOPHE). Various Public Health and Health Education organizations such as the American Association of Health Education (AAHE), the Coalition of National Health Education Organizations (CNHEO), SOPHE, and others collaborated year after year to devise a unified standard of ethics that health educators would be held accountable to professionally. In 1995, the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. (NCHEC) proposed a profession-wide standard at the conference: Health Education Profession in the Twenty-First Century: Setting the Stage. Post-conference, an ethics task force was developed with the purpose of solidifying and unifying proposed ethical standards. The document was eventually unanimously approved and ratified by all involved organizations in November 1999 and has since then been used as the standard for practicing health educators.

"The Code of Ethics that has evolved from this long and arduous process is not seen as a completed project. Rather, it is envisioned as a living document that will continue to evolve as the practice of Health Education changes to meet the challenges of the new millennium.

Health Education Code of Ethics Full Text

PREAMBLE The Health Education profession is dedicated to excellence in the practice of promoting individual, family, organizational, and community health. The Code of Ethics provides a framework of shared values within which Health Education is practiced. The responsibility of each Health Educator is to aspire to the highest possible standards of conduct and to encourage the ethical behavior of all those with whom they work.

Article I:

 Responsibility to the Public A Health Educator’s ultimate responsibility is to educate people for the purpose of promoting, maintaining, and improving individual, family, and community health. When a conflict of issues arises among individuals, groups, organizations, agencies, or institutions, health educators must consider all issues and give priority to those that promote wellness and quality of living through principles of self-determination and freedom of choice for the individual.

Article II:

 Responsibility to the Profession Health Educators are responsible for their professional behavior, for the reputation of their profession, and for promoting ethical conduct among their colleagues.

Article III:

 Responsibility to Employers Health Educators recognize the boundaries of their professional competence and are accountable for their professional activities and actions.

Article IV: 

Responsibility in the Delivery of Health Education Health Educators promote integrity in the delivery of health education. They respect the rights, dignity, confidentiality, and worth of all people by adapting strategies and methods to the needs of diverse populations and communities.

Article V:

 Responsibility in Research and Evaluation Health Educators contribute to the health of the population and to the profession through research and evaluation activities. When planning and conducting research or evaluation, health educators do so in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations, organizational and institutional policies, and professional standards.

Article VI:

 Responsibility in Professional Preparation Those involved in the preparation and training of Health Educators have an obligation to accord learners the same respect and treatment given other groups by providing quality education that benefits the profession and the public.

All versions of the document are available on the Coalition of National Health Education's 

 The National Health Education Code of Ethics is the property of the Coalition of National Health Education.

Healthy tips for girls best five

Healthy tips for girls best five

Being healthy means many different things for teen girls. Building good habits of diet and exercise is important, and so is having good hygiene. Being healthy also means having a positive mental attitude, and making safe decisions about your body and behaviors. Be healthy to feel confident, look great, and take care of your body!

1.Building Healthy Habits

Choose healthy foods. Your food is your fuel for your body and brain, so pick good fuel! Minimize eating food with lots of sugar, salt, and fat – stay away from fast food, fried food, junk food from the snack aisle like potato chips, canned and processed food, and pastries. Amp up your intake of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat and fat-free dairy, and low-fat protein like fish, chicken, nuts, beans, peas, and lentils.Choose healthy snacks like fruit, a handful of nuts, some celery, or a piece of low-fat cheese.

If you don’t know how to start to eat healthy, talk to your doctor or a nutritionist. They can help you create a plan that gets you all your needed vitamins, minerals, and calories. You can also check out online resources like this one for some guidance.

2.Have good eating habits

. Other than what you eat, how you eat can help you stay healthy and fit.

Don’t skip breakfast, which provides your body with its first fuel of the day and helps you concentrate. Good breakfast foods include fruit, eggs, low-fat milk, cream of wheat, oatmeal, or whole grain toast.

Pack your lunch for school so you can create a healthy meal for yourself.

Be involved in shopping and meal planning at home. You can even help the rest of your family to eat healthy!

Your doctor can tell you if you are in a healthy weight range or not. If your doctor advises you to lose weight, control your portion size, i.e. how much you eat at one time.Use a smaller plate or bowl, keep a food journal so you can track your servings, and fill most of your plate with fruits and vegetables.

Be sure to get enough calories! The average teen girl should eat 1,600 to 1,800 calories a day if you’re not very active and 2,200 to 2,400 calories a day if you’re physically active.

Avoid fad and crash diets. You will easily regain any weight you lose, and these are not good for your body. Always talk to your doctor before dieting, or if you have concerns about your weight.

3.Maintain a healthy weight. 

Rather than worrying about your weight, think about your Body Mass Index, or BMI. This calculation judges whether you’re a healthy weight for your age and height. You can use this calculator to find out your BMI.

A healthy teen BMI falls between the 5th and 85th percentiles – under 5th is underweight, 85th-95th is overweight, and over 95th percentile is considered obese. Check your percentile here.

4.Drink at least 7 glasses of water every day. 

Keeping your body hydrated will help regulate your metabolism and purify your body. Drink at least 7 glasses of water a day to stay hydrated.

Carry a water bottle with you and sip on water throughout the day. Be sure to drink water whenever you’re thirsty.

Drink more water if it’s hot out or you’re being active.

Your pee should be light yellow in color.

Boost your water’s flavor with slices of lemon, lime, or fresh fruit!

5.Sleep 8-10 hours every night.

 Getting enough sleep improves your attention, focus, and mood. You might not be getting enough sleep if it’s hard to get up in the morning, you fall asleep in class, you can’t concentrate well, or you feel moody or depressed.  Try to get more sleep by: Setting a regular bedtime for yourself.

Exercising regularly (but not within 3 hours of bedtime so it doesn’t keep you up).

Avoiding caffeine after 4pm.

Relaxing before bed with a warm bath or reading.

Not napping too much during the day.

Avoiding all-nighters, which throw off your sleep schedule.

Having good sleep hygiene: keep your lights low at bedtime to signal to your brain it’s time to sleep, keep your room cool and dark overnight, and wake up with bright lights.

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