In the context of present-day developments, people frequently underestimate the importance of adhering to a balanced diet and eat junk and fast food without any concerns about the energy balance and macronutrient quantity and quality. However, nutrition appears to be an integral part of a healthy lifestyle, which guarantees the appropriate living conditions. Thus, this issue should be drawn attention in order to avoid negative consequences in the future. Therefore, the purpose of this essay is to conduct an energy and macronutrient analysis on the basis of the personal three-day food intake report.
Energy Balance
According to the personal intake recommendations, which include all the individual features of my organism, I am advised to eat 3100 calories a day on average or approximately from 2800 to 3400 calories a day. In fact, during the days when my food intake was reported, I consumed approximately 2200 calories a day or from 1900 to 2400 calories. Although this indicator is lower than the recommended norm, it may be concluded that there are no reasons to worry (Moretto et al., 2017). During the days, I was not active and stayed at home for the whole day. However, in case of considerable sports activities, it is essential to adhere to the advised number of calories in order to maintain the current weight and not to lose muscle mass.
Macronutrient Quantity
It is important to eat various and healthy food in order to consume all the macronutrients in a recommended dose. This is helpful for maintaining the appropriate health condition and organism systems operation without any problems (Tielemans et al., 2016). As for me, the report demonstrates that I have consumed an appropriate amount of fat. However, there is a deficiency of carbohydrate consumption, as the intake was 45% lower than it is advised. This presents a problem for the organism, as it influences the level of sugar in blood. Therefore, the underconsumption of this macronutrient may lead to hypoglycemia (Tielemans et al., 2016). In addition, protein overconsumption should be noted as well, as it is significantly over the recommended limit. In fact, on average, I eat a double norm a day, which is not beneficial for the organism (Tielemans et al., 2016). This habit is highly likely to lead to heart disease and affect kidney function.
Macronutrient Quality
The protein overconsumption may be explained by the adherence to Whey Protein Powder Isolate, which contains considerable amount of this macronutrient. Other major sources of protein are different kinds of meat, such as chicken, beef, and others. Their intake should be limited to some extent in order to prevent negative consequences in the future. The carbohydrate deficiency appears to be the result of underconsumption of nuts, legumes, vegetables, and fruit. A balanced diet should include a variety of these products.
Micronutrient Analysis: Vitamin D
All the vitamins are vital for the proper operation of an organism, and their lack is highly likely to lead to serious negative consequences and diseases. After reviewing my three-day diet report, it is evident that there is a deficiency of vitamin D in my ration. Due to this fact, in case this issue is not addressed urgently, I may encounter health problems in the nearest future. For this reason, the aim of this essay is to describe the functions and roles of this element, health concerns associated with it, and propose sufficient dietary changes.
Functions and Roles
First of all, it should be marked that vitamin D is responsible for the solidity of bones. It contributes to absorbing Calcium and phosphates in the intestinal canal, which are essential for avoiding hypocalcemic tetany (Goltzman, 2018). Consequently, this vitamin provides adequate growth and development of bones (Goltzman, 2018). In addition, it appears an integral component for maintaining muscular tone, improves the immune system, and participates in blood pressure regulation (Reid, 2016). It is also important for thyroid gland operation and supplies adequate blood coagulability.
Health Concerns
As it is apparent from the previous paragraph, vitamin D participates in the regulation of organism operation, which are vital for survival. Therefore, its deficiency may lead to a range of health problems. Goltzman highlights:
- “Decreased 1,25(OH)2D may also cause decreased vascular invasion associated with reduced chondroclast and osteoclast activity and thereby contribute to growth plate abnormalities. Reduced 1,25(OH)2D-mediated intestinal and renal calcium transport can reduce calcium availability, increase parathyroid hormone secretion and phosphaturia, and impair mineral availability for normal matrix mineralization, resulting in reduced growth plate mineralization and osteomalacia” (2018, para. 1). It should be marked that this list is not full, as there is a huge variety of problems associated with vitamin D deficiency.
Dietary Changes
In case an organism receives an appropriate amount of ultraviolet light, the necessity for vitamin D is fulfilled completely. However, these days, people have to adhere to a more passive lifestyle without the ability to spend a great amount of time outside. In addition, the climate of Canada is not sunny during the whole year. Furthermore, there is a range of factors, which prevent vitamin D from synthetizing despite receiving a recommended amount of ultraviolet light (Saternus et al., 2019; (Bouillon, 2017). For this reason, it is essential to control the level of vitamin D via adhering to specific dietary guidelines (Bouillon, 2017). The major sources of vitamin D in food are fish of different kinds, especially salmon, sardines, and tuna, fish fat, caviar, and yolks of eggs (Bouillon, 2017). Despite the fact that dairy products are considered to be useful in fulfilling the vitamin D intake, in real practice, they contain insignificant amounts in them.
Micronutrient Analysis: Sodium
Although it is actively encouraged to eat a great number of vitamins, some of the elements should not be exceeded. The deficiency of different vitamins is highly likely to cause serious health condition deterioration and result in diseases. This thesis can also be applied for describing the consequences of overconsumption of elements. It is vital to adhere to a balance in consuming each vitamin and mineral. After observing the notes on my three-day food intake report, I found that I exceeded the norm of Sodium. This fact may result in multiple health problems unless this issue is addressed competently. Consequently, the purpose of this essay is to cover the functions of this element, health concerns related to its overconsumption, and elaborate sufficient dietary recommendations.
Functions and Roles
Sodium plays a crucial role in the organism operation, which is essential for the appropriate health state. The general amount of Sodium in an organism has an impact on the general amount of liquid in blood and in extracellular space (Musicus et al., 2020). Therefore, the major function of this element implies adequate water exchange. In addition, it significantly contributes to maintaining acid-base balance in an organism (Musicus et al., 2020). Sodium is also important for neurotransmission and supplying muscular deformation (Musicus et al., 2020). Thus, the considerable influences on the health condition of Sodium is undeniable.
Health Concerns of Sodium
It should be marked that the deficiency of Sodium associated with unbalanced nutrition appears to be extremely rare. It may be caused by excessive sweating in combination with a great amount of drink, which is free of Sodium, or as a result of vomiting and diarrhea (Brouillard et al., 2020). However, frequently, people overconsume this element while eating food, which leads to multiple health problems (Brouillard et al., 2020; (Musicus et al., 2020). The excess of Sodium intake puts additional pressure on kidney operation. In addition, water exchange between blood cells and tissues incurs significant barriers, which result in water thesaurismosis (Musicus et al., 2020; Newberry et al., 2018). Moreover, there is a high likelihood of blood pressure increase. (Newberry et al., 2018) Another consequence involves water and Kalium deficiency via urine, which causes additional difficulties for an organism.
Dietary Changes
Thus, the excess of Sodium presents a threat to an organism. In order to prevent the negative consequences of the overconsumption of this element, it is vital to adhere to specific dietary guidelines. The major sources of Sodium are salt, preserves, salty and smoked products, cheese, bread, meat, olives, and potato chips (Jackson et al., 2016). Therefore, a great amount of this element is contained in junk and fatty food. For this reason, it is essential to control salt consumption and add less amount of it in a meal while cooking (Jackson et al., 2016). In addition, it is recommended to strictly limit junk and fatty food intake and adhere to more healthy options (Jackson et al., 2016). The general amount of Sodium is similar both for men and women, and it should not exceed 6 g of salt or 2500 mg of Sodium.
Conclusion: Healthy Consumption
In conclusion, it is evident that my everyday diet and food choice should be reconsidered to a large extent. I should prefer more healthy food options and adhere to the recommended calorie intake. It is advisable to add various types of vegetables and fruit to each meal. Another option of adhering to carbohydrate norm is eating nuts and legumes. Furthermore, the protein consumption should be limited and controlled in order to avoid the negative impact on the organism operation.
Vitamin D is responsible for a range of vital functions and fulfill essential roles in organisms. Its deficiency is dangerous and may lead to serious diseases in the long run. However, in case a person receives an appropriate amount of ultraviolet light on a regular basis, the need is fulfilled. In other cases, it is recommended to eat fish, fish fat, caviar, and eggs.
The amount of Sodium intake should be limited in order to prevent its negative impact on the organism operation. Pursuing this aim, it is necessary to adhere to a healthy diet on a regular basis and afford junk, fatty, and salty food rarely. In addition, it is advisable to reduce salt consumption on a regular basis and add only a small amount while cooking. These measures will allow to maintain adequate health condition for a long time.
References
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