What’s Your Favourite Food?

So, what’s your favourite food?

Hands up How many people follow a healthy diet?

Hands up How many people enjoy snack foods, convenience foods and fast foods?

Hands up if you’d class your favourite food as a healthy food?

Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs)

An unhealthy diet is one of the four preventable primary risk factors for NCDs.

“University student populations are widely reported to engage in unhealthy lifestyle, including unhealthy eating behaviors such as high consumption of snack foods, convenience foods and fast foods.”

Non communicable diseases (NCDs) continue to be the leading cause of chronic illness. An unhealthy diet is one of the four preventable primary risk factors for NCDs. Low fibre intake and excessive fat intake are reported as risk factors for overweight and obesity, which in turn are intermediate risk factors for NCDs. Fast foods and convenience foods are often low in nutritional value although energy dense. Furthermore, higher consumption of convenience and fast foods has been associated with a lower intake of fruit and vegetable.

Five portions of fruit and vegetables each day

“Students meeting the current fruit and vegetable consumption guidelines is low as 3.27%”

World Health Organisation and United Kingdom guidelines recommend a minimum consumption of five portions of fruit and vegetables each day. Average daily consumption by university students has been found to range from 2.2 to 3.8 portions per day. The prevalence of students meeting current fruit and vegetable consumption guidelines is low ranging from 3.27% to 34.7%.

I’ve just put one side of the issues, the above information was collected in 2005.

I personally don’t know if things have improved, I do hope so.

Recently Public Health England (PHE) published a report stating smoking rates are decreasing, diabetes, obesity, dementia and mental health issues are on the rise. The rise in obesity is set to continue say PHE. Lifestyles, personal commitments and money all contribute to a condition which has constraints beyond our control. Diabetes is also on the rise one factor may be a poor diet.