An approach to the development of food-based dietary guidelines for Ireland

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to analyse the different food and nutrient intakes of the adult Irish population from the lowest and highest quartiles of intake for total fat (%energy) dietary fibre (g/MJ) and fruit and vegetables (g/day). Data on Irish adults (n ¼ 715) from the Irish National Nutrition Survey conducted in 1989 were used for the analyses and showed that the average diet is low in dietary fibre, with fruit and vegetables being only half the recommended level of 400 g. Comparisons of people with low or high intakes (from lowest and highest quartiles) of total fat (%energy), dietary fibre (g/MJ) and fruit and vegetables (g/day) show patterns of food intake differing in both the percentage of consumers and in the mean intakes among consumers only. This analysis provides data which may be useful as a first step towards the development of food-based dietary guidelines for Ireland. In particular, the low intake of fruit and vegetables in the adult Irish population deserves special attention. Dietary guidelines: Food intakes: IrelandThe role of nutrition in public health in Ireland was first documented in 1984 with the publication of dietary guidelines on healthy eating to prevent cardiovascular disease and cancer (Food Advisory Committee, 1984). These initial guidelines were based on international scientific reports and were mainly quantitative, recommending, for example, that the diet should provide no more than 35 % of energy as fat. Considering the overall relationship between nutrition and health, together with the lack of availability of more recent data on Irish dietary intakes, qualitative food-based dietary guidelines were formulated for Ireland in 1995 (Nutrition Advisory Group, 1995). A summary of these recommendations, with reasons given in italics, is outlined as follows:(1) Eat a wide variety of foods to reduce risk of micronutrient inadequacy. (2) Balance energy intake with physical activity to avoid overweight and obesity and achieve the health benefits of physical activity. Further qualitative guidelines were formulated for specific sub-groups of the Irish population; for example, breastfeeding is recommended during the first months of life and an overall breast-feeding initiative of 50 % by the year 2000 has been set as a target for increasing rates of breast-feeding. Quantitative guidelines on macronutrient intakes were not established for Ireland due to the lack of adequate information on nutrient intakes or on the rate of dietary change in recent years. In addition, the difficulty many people have in interpreting numeric targets and in estimating the extent of proposed change was another factor that led the Nutrition Advisory Group (1995) to favour qualitative guidelines. However, when more detailed information on nutritional intakes in Ireland becomes available, the setting of such quantitative targets for macronutrient intakes will be reconsidered because of their usefulness in the evaluation of dietary intake data (Nutrition Advisory Group, 1995).

The gap between food-based dietary guidelines and usual food consumption in Belgium, 2004

“…FBDG were developed (2) and used internationally to express the principles of a balanced diet in terms of foods (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10) and to reduce the prevalence of obesity (11) and diet-related diseases. These guidelines are a more practical tool compared with the nutrient reference values, set at (inter-) national level (12,13) .…”

The nutrition transition in Spain: a European Mediterranean country

“…Energy and macronutrient intakes assessed in the Spanish household budget surveys have been compared with energy and macronutrient intakes assessed in some European national surveys (Becker, 1999;Flynn & Kearney, 1999;Haraldsdottir, 1999;Hermann-Kunz & Thamm, 1999;Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food, 1991;Turrini et al, 1999;Valsta, 1999;Volatier & Verger, 1999).…”

“…In this same figure we compare the macronutrient intake pattern of Spain with that from other European countries (Becker, 1999;Flynn & Kearney, 1999;Haraldsdottir, 1999;Hermann-Kunz & Thamm, 1999;Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food, 1991;Turrini et al, 1999;Valsta, 1999;Volatier & Verger, 1999;De Henauw & De Backer, 1999;Graca, 1999). Comparing the proportion of energy from carbohydrates, often viewed as one element of the traditional Mediterranean diet, Spanish households consume 42% of their energy from carbohydrates compared with only 38% in France and 48 -49% in Italy and Portugal.…”

Overall and within-food group diversity are associated with dietary quality in Belgium

“…Food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG) have been developed (1) and used internationally to express the principles of a balanced diet in terms of foods (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7) . In Belgium, a food triangle and a food pyramid have been developed by the regional health authorities that are responsible for health promotion (8,9) .…”