Varied & Balanced Diet (AQA GCSE Food Preparation & Nutrition)

Making informed choices for a varied & balanced diet

• To achieve a balanced diet, each person must consume a variety of different food types to gain all the different required nutrients

• No single food contains all the nutrients required by the human body

• Governments produce guidance on the current recommendations for eating healthily and achieving a balanced diet

• In the UK this is called the Eatwell Guide

  • It is recommended that:

    • Five portions of fruit and vegetables are eaten daily

    • Wholegrain and high-fibre foods are chosen

    • Unsaturated oils are chosen and small quantities consumed

    • Low-fat and low-sugar dairy options are chosen

    • More beans and pulses should be eaten

    • Two portions of sustainably sourced fish should be eaten

    • Less red and processed meat is consumed

    • Foods high in sugar, salt and fat should be consumed infrequently

    • Six to eight glasses of water (or equivalents such as tea) should be drunk every day

Meal planning

• When planning meals it is important to take into consideration:

  • portion size

  • cost of food

Portion size

• This will be dependent on the person/people eating the meals and their dietary requirements, lifestyle, physical activities and age

• Large portion sizes encourage people to overeat and this can lead to weight gain and obesity

• Too small portion sizes may lead to underfeeding people, this is particularly concerning for young children where nutrient deficiencies could be harmful

• Guidelines given on food packets should be followed when cooking food

• Roughly a portion of cooked vegetables the size of your fist should be eaten and meat the size of your palm

Cost of food

• When planning meals, the cost of food needs to be accounted for

• This will be different for individuals and families depending on their income, financial situation and budgets

• Healthier foods, like fresh fruits and vegetables and lean cuts of meat, tend to be more expensive

• The person planning meals (and the person paying for the food) needs to take into consideration whether it is cheaper to buy individual ingredients to prepare a meal from scratch or whether buying a ready-made meal is more cost-effective

• Ingredients can be sourced from a range of shops and local markets to keep costs low, price-comparison websites can also be used

• Many ingredients can be purchased to be used in numerous recipes e.g. a roast chicken may be used for a roast dinner, the leftovers used for sandwich fillings and the bones used to make a stock for soups and gravies

• It is important to plan meals so less food is wasted which can impact the cost of food