Comparison of The Standard Dietary Reference Values with The Current Energy and Macronutrients for Males and Females in England

Introduction

Deciding how much energy and macronutrients are sufficient to promote optimal health is a major challenge that people have faced for decades. The problem is compounded by myths and assumptions spread by people unaware of the actual nutritional requirements for different age groups and gender. To address the knowledge gap in the UK population, the Committee on Medical Aspects of Food and Nutrition Policy (COMA) published estimated energy and nutrients requirements for various groups within the UK population in 1991 (Public Health England, 2016). COMA established four types of Dietary reference values. The estimated average requirements (EARs) characterizes the average energy of macronutrients needed by a specific group of people whilst the Reference Nutrient Intakes (RNIs) refers to the amount of nutrients that fulfil the needs of (97.5% of the target group. Meanwhile, Lower Reference Nutrient Intakes (LRNIs) is the least amount of energy required to meet the needs of a specific group of people. COMA was later replaced by the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). SACN proceeded to update the Dietary Reference Values (DRV) established in 1991. Today, DRVs is widely used by the United Kingdom Department of Health as well as the European Food Safety Authority. The DRVs is a series of energy estimates informed by the findings of the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) regarding the optimal energy and macronutrients requirements for different age groups. The cross-sectional survey is continuous and is designed to gather detailed quantitative data about the food intake and the nutritional status of the UK population. Therefore, amid emerging dietary trends, the following is a critical review and comparison of the standard DRVs with the current energy and macronutrients for males and females between 19 and 64 years of age.

Discussion

A closer look at the total energy intake by both men and women is below the recommended DRVs. Essentially, the average daily energy intake for men is 2091 Kcal and women 1632 Kcal is below the required 2500 Kcal for men and 2000 Kcal for women. These figures are below the EARs for both men and women in the UK and continue to decline steadily. Assuming that the dietary intake figures shown above are accurate, the implication is that energy expenditure levels have declined significantly in comparison to the declining dietary energy intake. Moreover, despite the declining daily energy intake, the UK population is experiencing a steady rise in obesity. Over the past ten years, the average body weight of UK adults has increased by more than two kilograms. Coincidentally, the average daily calorie intake has fallen by 4% coupled with a significant decline in sugar consumption by nearly 8%. In addition, people in the UK have become increasingly conscious of the food they consume outside their home. Since 2001, UK adults are consuming less whilst outside as evidenced by a decline from 310 calories to 220 in 2012 (British Nutrition Foundation, 2018). In comparison to data collected in the early 1970s, Britons are consuming way less than their counterparts in the early 70s and 80s.

Buttriss and Lanham-New (2018) concurs that the rise in obesity is attributed to a steady decline in physical activity as more people adopt a sedentary lifestyle. On average, Britons walk and cycle less today. Today, UK adults walk an average of 180 miles a year, which is a sharp decline from 255 miles in 1976. Moreover, Britons only cycle an average of 42 miles every year in comparison to 51 miles in 1976. Furthermore, over 40% of UK adults spending less than ten minutes walking to work as they are highly dependent on the vast transport infrastructure in the UK. Additionally, the invention of labour saving devices that allow people to work remotely from home have significantly limited opportunities for UK adults to engage in meaningful physical activity. Therefore, declining physical inactivity or energy expenditure rather than a decline in daily energy intake is the causative factor of rising obesity within the UK population. These findings highlight the importance of engaging in active physical exercise as the energy intake declines because there is a possibility of failing to meet the micronutrients needs. The easiest and the most convenient strategy of increasing physical activity level is incorporating more activities into daily routines such as cycling or walking to work instead of boarding a vehicle.

The findings also suggest that the UK population is impacted by the emerging dietary and health trends promoting a reduction in daily calories in take. Over the past ten years, the wellness industry has expanded rapidly as more people are obsessed with a low carbohydrate diet. After years of creating awareness about the health risks of being overweight or obese, the UK population has embraced healthy eating habits by reducing carbohydrates in their diets. Moreover, years of demonizing carbohydrates as being unhealthy and being the primary group of foods causing weight gain has given high-carb diets a bad reputation (SACN, 2012). As a result, diets such as Paleo, Keto, and Atkins are growing in popularity among UK adults trying to lose weight. All these diets have one common factor, emphasize on a low-carb diet. Today, people trying to lose weight are consuming less pasta, bread and grains.

Moreover, these diets have highlighted the perceived value of proteins and healthy fats as the primary drivers of good health. Today, protein consumption by UK adults has increased significantly since the mid-1990s and remains higher than the daily dietary requirements. The average protein consumption by UK adults is almost twice the recommended DRVs for individuals above 19 years. Despite a growing number of UK adults shifting to veganism and vegetarianism, the consumption of meat proteins is still considerably high. In 2018, UK adults purchase more fish and red meat as compared to vegetables. Moreover, the food service industry has increased the portion of proteins delivered to consumers since 2008.

On the other hand, the consumption of healthy fats has gained traction in recent years although more needs to be done regarding saturated fats. The main sources of saturated fats for the UK population include animal meat and dairy products. The UK government through the department of health asserts that fats should be less than 35% of the daily calorie intake. In this context, trans fats should not exceed 2% whilst saturated fats should by not more than 11% (Geissler, 2016). In addition, it is advisable to replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats. Unfortunately, the UK population is only meeting the overall fat and trans fat recommendation whilst violating saturated fat recommendations. The trend has led to adverse health impacts such as increased blood cholesterol levels as well as increased risk of type 2 diabetes, some cancers, stroke, and heart disease.

With regard to dietary fibres, the UK population is consuming almost half of the recommended daily energy intake. 20.7 g/day for men and 17.4 g/day for women is below the recommended 30g/day (British Nutrition Foundation, 2016). The UK population is consuming high daily portions of highly processed grains as well as food lacking fibre such as sugars. Almost half of the food consumed by the UK adult population is ultra-processed as it is made in factories with additives and ingredients that bear little resemblance to the vegetables, fruit, or meat used to make fresh meals at home. The trend is observed by experts as a consequence of the evolution of food technology that has replaced farm fresh produce with factory manufactured, ready-to-eat foods. Today, fresh farm produced has been replaced by sugary cereals and salty snacks with low fibre content. Also, sweetened soft drinks and industrially made desserts and bread are increasingly common. Unknown to the consumers, these foods are digested quickly and fail to keep a person full for long. As a result, consistent intake of sugars and processed grains leads to constant blood sugar spikes and contribute to overeating, which inevitably leads to weight gain.

Conclusion

The dietary trends within the UK population have drastically changed since the early 1990s when COMA, which was later replaced by SACN, developed the four types of DRVs for different groups of people. Retrospectively, Britons or rather UK citizens used to consume more calories in the 1970s and 1980s as compared to their modern counterparts. The high daily calorie intake was necessary because the 70s and 80s generation was more physically active. In comparison, the adult population in the UK today consumes less calorie, yet obesity is on the rise. The shifting health trends are attributed to a sedentary lifestyle which is encouraged by advanced modes of transportation, which limit the amount of time people spend walking and cycling. Moreover, the invention of labour saving devices that allow people to work remotely from home. Additionally, the increasing awareness of the benefits of a low-carb diet has led to a decline in the consumption of carbohydrates by a growing percentage of the UK population. People trying to lose weight are advised to lower their intake of carbohydrates as well as consume foods high in healthy fats. Currently, the UK adult population fulfills the overall fats and trans fat recommendation, but saturated fats are still a challenge to reduce. The trend has led to adverse health impacts such as increased blood cholesterol levels as well as increased risk of type 2 diabetes, some cancers, stroke, and heart disease. These findings suggest that the fat recommendations are still appropriate, although the UK population is still unable to reduce daily intake of saturated fats. Emphasizing a shift to plant-based proteins can help to address the health risks posed by a diet high in saturated fats. Beside the increasing consumption of saturated fats present in animal products, the UK adult populations is consuming ultra-processed foods that have low fibre content and high sugar content. The highly processed foods bare little resemble to resemblance to the vegetables, fruit, or meat used to make fresh meals at home. As a result, the UK adult population is a high risk of heart disease, some cancers, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and obesity.

References

• British Nutrition Foundation. (2016). Nutritional Requirements . London: British Nutrition Foundation.
• British Nutrition Foundation. (2018). Cardiovascular Disease: diet, nutrition and emerging risk factors. London: John Wiley & Sons.
• Buttriss, J., & Lanham-New, S. (2018). Public health nutrition. Chichester : John Wiley & Sons.
• Department of Health. (1991). Dietary Reference Values: A Guide. London: Department of Health.
• Geissler, C. (2016). Human nutrition. London: Churchill Livingstone.
• Griffith, R., Lluberas, R., & Lührmann, M. (2013). Gluttony in England? Long-term change in diet. Manchester: The Institute for Fiscal Studies.
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• SACN. (2012). Dietary reference values for energy. London: The Stationery Office.