Ms. Sara, a 40-year-old
housewife, approached you for a nutritional assessment. She is 5
feet 5 inches tall and weighs 180 pounds (lb).
As per the above data The BMI of Sara is
-30 (A BMI of 30 and more is considered as
obesity)
As per
Sara's communication about her changed habbits since last month the
following nutritional problems can be identified:-
- Reduced physical
activity- As evidenced by her loss of interest in physical
activity or exercise
- Changed eating
habbits- Sara is now more into eating snacks and junk food
hense adding on the extra calories without any nutritional
values.
- Sedentary life
style- Sara has confessed about leading a rather sedentary
life by avoiding her usual social activities and watching more
Tv
- Malnutrition- As
Sara rarely prepares complete meal and eating Restaurant food that
has high amount of total fat, cholesterol and sodium and low fibre
reduces its overall nutritional quality making her prone to
malnutrition.
Recommendations to solve the
problems
Changing to healthy food
habbits-
- Reducing calorie
intake-Cutting down on processed food and carbohyrates and
replacing it with healthy snack like fresh fruits, sprouts,
vegetable salad and nuts.
- Eating food which keeps
full for longer duration- food like nuts, fruits and
vegetable provides small calorie in large portion. Protein rich
food offers healthy option over carbohydrates and keeps full for a
longer duration hense reducing binge eating habbit.
- Choose frome healty food
groups- Plant source food are healthy option for weight
loss fruit vegetable beans lentils etc are excellent source of
protein. Animal based food Sara should opt for lean cut meats. Eat
minimally processed foods like whole grains.
- Healthy cooking
habbits- Limit salt,sugar and oil in food preparation,
Choose healthy oil (Olive oil) for cooking. Avoid sugary beverages,
high carbohydrate and full fat food products fo weight
management.
- Eating Small proportion of
food - eating smaller portions of healthy food can reduce
the feeling of hunger and avoid overeating.
- Physical activity and
exercise- Everyday at least 1 hour of moderate to vigorous
exercise every day should be done to reduce weight and burn extra
calorie.
- Reducing screen
time- Watching television promotes sedentary lifestyle and
promote unhealthy eating habbits reduce the screen time to 1-2 hrs
a day.
- Preparing food at
home- Home cooked food are healthier and are are much less
in calorie, fat salt and sugar as cumpared to restaurant foods.
Home cooked food also provide more balanced diet an prevent risk of
malnutrition.
- Engaging in social
activities- keeping involved in activities with family and
friends helps in preventing obesity by keeping one active and gives
less free time to think of unhealthy snacking.