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Nutrition

The dietary guidelines for Australians (2003)

In the option strand, Contemporary food issues: Nutrition, you will learn about:

nutritional considerations for specific groups
the role of the individual, community groups, the food industry, government organisations and private agencies in promoting health.

This tutorial focuses on the dietary guidelines for Australians. To complete the activities in this tutorial you will need a copy of the guidelines and the supporting material. They are available free from the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing on toll free1800 020 103 or email: phd.publications@health.gov.au.

Outcomes
This material addresses aspects of the following syllabus outcome:
H3.2 The student independently investigates contemporary food issues.

Source: Board of Studies NSW, Stage 6 Food Technology Syllabus, Preliminary and HSC Courses (1999)

The revision of the Dietary Guidelines for Australians was completed in 2003 by food and nutrition experts, on behalf of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing.

The Dietary Guidelines highlight the groups of foods and lifestyle patterns that promote good nutrition and health. No guideline is more important than another. Each guideline deals with a key health issue and is like a piece of a puzzle.

Nutrition needs differ at different stages of life and these are reflected in the Dietary Guidelines. For the newborn, there is no better than breast milk. Older children need a balance of foods to ensure good growth and development. The scales are tilted differently for adults who often need to balance eating and physical activity to prevent weight gain. For both children and adults, some principles remain the same - the need to ensure that food is handled well and safe to eat and to enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods. Extract from: NHMRC (2003) Dietary guidelines for Australians, p. 2.

Click here to view the Dietary guidelines for Australian adults.

Click here to view the Dietary guidelines for children and adolescents in Australia.

Activity 1: Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods

Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods appears as a section in both sets of guidelines.

Why is it important that we base our diet on many foods?
Which unique group of nutrients do the following foods provide?
- whole grain cereals
- fruits and vegetables
- dairy foods
- red meats
- fish
- nuts and vegetable oils.
The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating lists the five core groups of foods needed every day. Study the chart as well as the table of serves. Using the grid below record your daily food intake. You will need to check what constitutes a serve to calculate the number of serves of each group of foods.

Food	Drink
Breakfast
Morning tea
Lunch
Afternoon tea
Dinner
Supper

Number of serves

Food group	Breads, cereals, rice, pasta, noodles	Vegetables, legumes	Fruit	Milk, yoghurt, cheese	Meat and meat alternatives	Extras
Serves

Which groups of foods do you eat too much of?

Which groups of foods do you eat too little of?

Activity 2: Preventing excess weight gain

Preventing excess weight gain has been highlighted in the revised version of the guidelines.

1.	Why are Australians getting fatter?
2.	How can we prevent excess weight gain?
3.	How does being overweight affect our health?

Activity 3: Care for your food and prepare and store it safely

Correct handling and storage of foods will limit the chance of becoming sick from eating unsafe food.

1.	How does food become unsafe?
2.	What are the healthy tips we should follow to ensure our food is safe to eat?
3.	When eating out which foods should we be careful of consuming?

Activity 4: Encourage and support breastfeeding

Both guidelines for adults and children include: Encourage and support breastfeeding.

1.	Why is breast milk so special?
2.	How long should infants be breastfed?
3.	How does breastfeeding work?