DIET AND MEAL PLANNING

                      Meal planning :

definition :

          Meal planning is planning what you are going to serve for a certain amount of time, could be a week, could be a day, could be a month. You are organizing the ingredients and recipes. 

Objectives could be 

- To make a cheap meal

- To make a nutritious meal 

- To make a meal suitable for all of the family 

- To make a meal that has each of the 4 main food groups in it (Bread&Cereals, Fruit&Veges, Milk&Dairy Products, Lean Meat& Alternatives (Chicken, eggs etc)) 

- To make meals in advance that can be frozen

Diet and meal planning are the important aspects for the nutritionist and homemaker to maintain variety...

While making diet plan,choices,priorities and likes/dislikes of a person to be considered for sure.Choices of food are influenced by 

• one's health aspects
• social life
• cultural background
• religious beliefs
• geographical location
• availability of a particular food item
• age factor.

As talking about food choices,infants show a natural ability to select foods needed by their body.This is lost as the child grows up.Developing good eating habits benefit a person in the long run.

SOME GUIDELINES FOR GOOD MEAL PLANNING:

Some guideline that maybe followed in meal&diet planning are :

1. Make selection from all food groups in the recommended quantities.
2. Everyday food must be covering all the food groups and must be providing minimum recommended servings from all these.
3. Variety must be provided by swapping different foods to provide both nourishment and change in flavor.
4. Milk group must be included in each meal(one food atleast)
5. Ample foods(especially leafy ones) must be included.
6. Cereals group should not exceed 75% of the total energy requirements.
7. Sugar and fat should not exceed 20% of the total calories requirement.
8. Sugar and fat should be minimum or negligible(like below 5%)
9. Atleast 3 of the 6 food groups must be included in each meal.
10. Besides these,one meal serving should be from protein-rich group(a good source of meal must be included)

Meal planning & economic values and special occasions :

• A good meal plan must avoid unwanted,unappetizing and unsatisfying meals.
• A good meal plan must save both time and money.
• Plan must be in a low budget and less money consuming so that a sufficient and nutritionally balanced diet.
• Seasonal availability of food must also be considered.

Meal planning & different food priorities :

Though basic needs of people is the same but yet there is a great difference in the diet of people from person to person.People have different tastes and need different quantities and ratios of nutrients w.r.t age health and other factors. Like ;

• more milk is needed for the children
• small children need less food as compared to the adults
• weight watchers need the same basic foods with necessary modifications such as use of low fat ingredients
• Geriatrics(elderly people) , bcz of digestive disorders and teeth problems,may require light and soft foods.

"Meal planning", both,a science and an art :

Good meal planning is both a science and an art.

-Inclusion of nourishing foods in the diet is a part of science

-combining of of needed nutritious foods into meals that are attractive and appealing and satisfying is an art.

-The color of the food must be appealing

-Food must be of good taste and of choice

-Food must be safe

-Variety should be there in the diet

-Religious and social customs must be considered.

-Meal planning for working women must take into consideration the time required for preparing the meal and energy requirements.

-Family budget must be considered

Meal planning,while considering family budget :

Meal planning must be done considering family budget.Plan must be prepared so that it should be of benefit for the family and not a burden.

It is often suggested that,

• 20% of the budget should be allocated to the cereals
• 20% for the fruits and vegetables
• 25% for the meat,fist,eggs,poultry,legumes and pulses(proteins)
• 20% for the milk and its products(dairy)
• &  15% for the fats and sweets.

exchange lists :

Exchange lists are available that help to substitute one food item with another with similar composition and nutritional benefits.

Therefore,any food from the given exchange list can be substituted or exchanged for any other similar food in that list.