A balanced diet contains different types of foods in such quantities and proportions that the need for calories, minerals, vitamins and other nutrients is adequately met and a small provision is made for extra nutrients to, withstand short duration of inadequacies. So we can say that a balanced diet deals with the following three aspects.
1) It should include a variety of food items.
2) It should meet the nutrient needs based on the recommended dietary allowances (RDAS).
3) It should provide a "little extra" for those times when you do not meet your nutrient needs adequately.
Following are important points in the use of the daily food guide in planning a meal
1) Select foods from each of the three food groups like energy giving foods, body building foods, protective/regulatory foods
2) Choose at least the minimum number of servings from each of the food groups described above
3) Make choices within each group. Please remember that foods in each group are similar, but not identical in food value.
4) Try to include at least one food from body building foods in each meal.
5) Use fresh vegetables and fruits, which are in season to ensure high quality at reasonable cost.
Please remember, you can add more foods from all groups to the minimum servings suggested, to make the meals satisfying. As there are a large number of foods in each group. So you can choose foods which you like from each group and meet your nutritional needs. In a tropical country like India, we have a large variety of vegetables and fruits available in each season. You can choose any leafy vegetable, for they are all good sources of the pigment beta-carotene. You must include sufficient amount of food from each group. The particular food you choose and the way you season it, is a matter of your choice.
One of the questions that may worry you is, will nutritious food be more costly than what you eat at present? Or can you afford nutritious food? The answer is an emphatic No for the first question and Yes for the second. Cost is not related to nutritive value of foods. It is dependent on availability and season; not on its nutrient content.
The foods, which have a great variation in prices are vegetables and fruits. You know that those which are in season cost the least. What you should know is that at the peak of the season, each vegetable and fruit has the highest nutrient content, flavor and taste. There has been extensive research in this aspect and it has been proved that the nutrient content and yield of any plant food, whether it is spinach, beans, oranges or mangoes, is highest at the peak of the season. When you buy seasonal foods you buy the best in terms of quality and nutrients at a reasonable price. Another point to note is that inexpensive fruits such as amla and guava are excellent sources of vitamin C, but apples and grapes, which are costly, are poor sources of this vitamin.
You can meet the needs of different members of your family by using the food guide. For example, the teenagers in your family can take more servings of body building foods to meet the protein requirements for growth and more servings from energy giving food to meet the high energy requirements of body building.
One last word of caution. Be moderate in the amount of food you take from any group, even if you like it very much; otherwise you may not be able to include enough amounts of food from all food groups.
Besides using the food guide to plan meals, you can use it to evaluate your present diet and modify if necessary. You can also use it to check the diet plans of institutions for nutritional adequacy. There are two aspects you need to consider when you evaluate diets or diet plans with the help of the daily food guide. First, you must check if each of the food groups is included in the diet plan. Secondly, you must note if the minimum number of servings from each group is included or not. You should evaluate the diet plan with the help of a good nutritionist. They can suggest changes to improve it.
