Education Journal Analysis: Macronutrients Assignment

HLTH 330

Journal Analysis Macronutrients Example

Nourishing the body is very important. After tracking my food and fluid for three days, I now have an increased understanding of how I am taking care of my body.

Looking at the Macronutrient Distribution Report, I see that my percentages fall within the Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR). The recommendation for carbohydrates is 45-65%; mine is at 53%. For total fat intake, 20-35%; mine is at 31%. For protein, 10-35%; mine is at 17%. This shows that I am consuming theses nutrients in the proper ratio to each other, but does not mean that I am meeting the gram Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for each of these as we shall see.

My total carbohydrate recommendation DRI is 265-383 gm/d. I only consumed an average of 232 gm/d. This means I did not meet the DRI recommendation for total carbohydrate intake. If I continue at this intake level, I could feel increased fatigue and possibly cause my body to break down lean protein tissue in order to meet my energy needs. My fiber intake also did not meet the DRI recommendation. I only consumed 22 gm of the 25 gm recommendation. Not getting enough fiber can cause increased constipation, lack of exercising the gut, and promote the risk of getting diverticulosis when older. To improve both total carbohydrate and fiber intakes, I can add more grains such as whole wheat bread/roll, increase my intake of oatmeal, increase my serving of brown rice at dinner, and adding one more serving of fruit and two more servings of vegetables in the day.

As for sugar intake, I consumed on average 109 gm/d. I did consume 2 dessert items in these 3 days and had a few added sugars - brown sugar and honey. According to the My Pyramid Report, my Empty/Discretionary Calorie intake was above 100%. Looking at the Intake Spreadsheet Report, the milkshake by far provided the highest amount of sugar at 77 gm. I do not consume milkshakes on a daily basis, maybe once every two weeks. If I keep my milkshakes and other desserts in moderation, my sugar intake should be okay.

For total fat intake, I was within the DRI recommendation. I consumed 61 gm (52-92 gm recommended), thus I am within the recommended range. I also met the DRI recommendation for saturated fat and cholesterol intakes. For saturated fat, it is recommended I consume less than 26 gm/d; I only consumed 21.9 gm/d. For cholesterol, a DRI is no longer provided (the former recommendation is less than 300 mg/d). I only consumed 170 mg/d. I do not plan to make any changes to these nutrients.

For linolenic (omega-3) and linoleic (omega-6) fatty acids, I did not do so well. I was under the DRI for both of theses. For linolenic, I consumed only 0.3 gm of the 1.1 gm recommendation. For linoleic, I consumed only 3.1 gm of the 12.0 gm recommendation. When these are low, I may encounter a reduced production of certain hormones or a difficulty in blood clot formation. Omega-3 is also known to promote heart health. To improve my intake of omega-3, I plan to add more fish, walnuts and canola oil to my diet. To improve my intake of omega-6, I plan to add avocados, continue to use mayonnaise in my tuna salad, and increase my intakes of whole grains and corn.

Looking at protein, there are two DRI recommendations. Based upon body weight, I am above the DRI. I consumed 75 gm, whereas 45 gm is recommended (157.2% DRI). However, based upon the caloric percentage recommendation, I am within the recommended range. I consumed 74 gm of the 58-204 gm recommendation. I believe this means my protein intake is just fine. I am above my minimum need for body maintenance of tissues and functioning, but I am not too high based on the caloric amount allowed from protein. I do not plan to make any changes to my protein intake, but fluctuating up or down would be acceptable.

Overall, I feel I have a good start at meeting my macronutrients needs. And with the improvements identified for total carb, fiber, sugar, omega-3, and omega-6 intakes, I know I will be nourishing my body even better.

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HLTH 330

HLTH 330

Journal Analysis: Macronutrients Assignment Instructions

Overview

Brief Description: Summary Report

The purpose of this assignment to examine and analyze food records for the macronutrient content (carbohydrate, fat, protein, and subcategories) as they relate to adequacy, deficiency and health benefits. This fulfills Learning Outcomes 1 and 4.

Instructions

Details:

For this assessment, you are analyzing the average intakes of carbohydrate, fat and protein with identified subcategories:

· Carbohydrate, Total

· Sugar, Total

· Dietary Fiber, Total

· Fat, Total

· Saturated Fat

· Trans Fatty Acids

· Linolenic Fatty Acid (Omega-3)

· Linoleic Fatty Acid (Omega-6)

· Cholesterol

· Protein, Total [NOTE: There are two recommendations for Protein found on the Intake Compared to DRI Report. Please refer to the textbook to understand the purposes for and the differences between these recommendations.]

Enter iProfile and click on REPORTS.

Select the date range that includes your food record. The calendar on the LEFT is your Start Date. The calendar on the RIGHT is your End Date. NOTE: iProfile will only calculate days for which food is recorded. It does not matter how many days are selected in this date range, as long as it includes your 3-day record.

View the following Reports: (If you need to review how to read these reports, return to “Reading Reports in iProfile” that was completed at the beginning of the semester.)

· Intake Compared to DRI

· Macronutrient Distribution

· Intake Spreadsheet or Single Nutrient

· MyPlate

Writing your Summary:

· Write a 2-3 page analysis of your findings (double space preferred). As long as your writing is pertinent (i.e. your diet needs a lot of improvement, thus you needed more discussion) no points will be reduced for going over the 3 page limit.

· In general, this paper focuses on your macronutrient intake: carbohydrate, fat, protein, and identified subcategories. This includes evaluating whether or not you met the Average Macronutrient Distribution Recommendations (AMDR) as well as the individual Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) for each individual nutrient.

· Macronutrient Distribution Report: You will use this report to assess whether or not you met the Average Macronutrient Distribution Recommendations (AMDR). The AMDR is a unique evaluation as it looks at the ratio of calories consumed between total carbohydrates, total fat, and total protein. The AMDR does not look at the gram amount consumed; it simply displays the percentage distribution of where you calories came from.

· Intake Compared to DRI Report: This is the primary report used for this Summary. For this assignment, the goal is to meet the DRI. Depending upon the nutrient, the average intake will be within the recommended range or meet 100% of the DRI.

· If you met the DRI, simply state this in your paper and briefly discuss why or how you meet the DRI (i.e. what foods contributed to your intake of that specific nutrient).

· If you were below the DRI, briefly discuss the potential health risks and concerns of falling short. Next, make clear recommendations for improvement to eating patterns (see paragraph below).

· If you were over the DRI, briefly discuss the potential health risks and concerns of going above the DRI. Determine whether or not you are at risk for these. If need be, make clear recommendations for improvement to eating patterns (see paragraph below).

· When making recommendations for improvement to your eating patterns provide SPECIFIC FOOD EXAMPLES of things you will actually do (i.e. increase/decrease specific food items or number of servings of specific food items).

· Points are earned by accurately evaluating your intake against the DRI and demonstrating a thorough understanding of what can remain the same and/or what needs to change. NOTE: stating that your plan is to add a supplement will NOT be acceptable for this assignment, unless you have severe food allergies or explained food avoidances.

· NOTE: Viewing “not determinable” in a column means an established DRI is not established.

· For Sugar, please use the MyPlate Report - Empty Calorie Allotment as an aid in evaluating your intake.

· For Cholesterol, please refer to Chapter 5-Section 6: Meeting Lipid Needs to evaluate your intake.

Submitting your assignment: In the submission link in Module/Week 3, attach the following three (3) items:

· Your written summary

· Food Journal Summary (report form iProfile)

· Intake Compared to DRI (report from iProfile)

· NOTE: To submit the iProfile reports, please use the PDF option in iProfile (upper right-hand side above summary box) to create a PDF and upload this along with your written summary. If you are unable to create as a PDF, you may submit as an Excel document. Please do NOT submit as HTML or a link to your iProfile page - the instructor will not be able to access your personal information.

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