With so much confusing and conflicting nutrition information online, eating healthy can feel like an impossible task. Thankfully, Compleo offers one-on-one nutrition appointments with registered dietitians who can help you learn and apply nutrition principles specific to your body and needs.
The dietitians at Compleo follow this framework when assessing the healthfulness of our patients’ diets.
- Are you eating enough?
- Are you eating balanced meals and snacks?
- Are you eating a variety of foods?
- Are you including nutrient-dense foods in your diet?
Are you eating enough? This refers to the principle of adequacy, specifically adequacy in the volume of food and calories. Calories are the unit of measure for energy. When we consume too few calories (aka too little energy), our health suffers, even if weight loss is not occurring. It is also ideal to spread out our caloric intake evenly throughout the entire day.
Are you eating balanced meals and snacks? Balance is an important concept in nutrition. While assessing this principle, dietitians will assess the diet for the ratios of macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats, protein, and water) present, and make recommendations for change based on your unique body, health conditions, and lifestyle.
Are you eating a variety of foods? Variety is an important principle to ensure someone is meeting all of their micronutrient (vitamin and minerals) needs. If someone is eating the same foods every day, they are getting the same vitamins/ minerals every day, but also missing out on the same vitamins/ minerals every day.
Are you including nutrient-dense foods in your diet? Nutrient density is the concept that addresses the amount and the variety of nutrients present in each bite of food. High nutrient density means that each bite of a particular food is packed with a large amount and/or a large variety of macronutrients, vitamins, and minerals.
Written by: Courtney Anderson, MS, RD, LD, CLC