THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF NUTRITION

Cover image of the brochure

EAT MORE GREENS AND PROTEINS

All adults, male and female, need to increase intake of green leafy vegetables and proteins like meats, eggs and milk products in their diet.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Drink more milk and eat milk products like curd paneer, lassi and rabri
  • Eat more protein-rich food like fish, chicken, eggs, millets and pulses
  • Eat more greens and leafy vegetables, as well as folate-rich foods like eggs, nuts, legumes, and milk products. Pregnant women need to eat 350 extra calories each day.
  • Add a large variety of foods in your diet
  • Pregnant women must take supplements, like calcium and folic acid, without fail

FIGHT ANEMIA AND BE MORE PRODUCTIVE

Anemia means your blood is not pumping enough oxygen into your body – this will result in weakness, tiredness and an inability to perform well at work.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Eat more iron-rich foods like fish, red meat, beans, rajma and dried fruits
  • Your body absorbs iron better from non-vegetarian food
  • Add foods that have Vitamin C like lemon, orange and amla, as Vitamin C helps absorb iron better
  • Children and lactating mothers must take iron and folic-acid supplements prescribed by the doctor daily for 180 days
  • Avoid drinking too much tea and coffee

EAT MORE FORTIFIED FOODS

Most Indians are born with certain vitamin and mineral deficiencies such as Vitamin A (affects eyesight) and Vitamin D (affects bone health). These deficiencies can exist in adult men and women but in children they lead to many growth problems.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Look for the FSSAI fortification logo (the +F sign) to know that the food you are buying is fortified with vitamins and minerals
  • Milk is the best way to absorb Vitamin A and D
  • Drink at least one glass of fortified milk every day
  • Eat only iodized salt
  • Buy fortified staples available in the market such as rice, wheat and cooking oil

WASH YOUR HANDS BEFORE EATING

Hygiene and sanitation go hand in hand with good nutrition; just by developing simple clean habits at work and home you can make sure that you and your family remains safe and healthy.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Wash hands using soap, not just water
  • Boil the tap water at home to make sure it’s safe to drink
  • Drinking water should be kept separate and covered at all times
  • Teach menstrual and toilet hygiene to children early
  • Follow the same hygiene habits at the workplace – take the time to wash hands before your lunch break

ASK FOR HEALTHY FOOD OPTIONS AT WORK

Since we spend an equal amount of waking hours at work and home, having good nutritional support at the workplace is of paramount importance. The easiest way to create a healthy food environment in the workplace is to operationalize a Nutrition Kiosk.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Make sure the office keeps fortified milk and salt
  • Replace fried snacks like samosa and bread pakora with fruit, salads or nourishing foods like nuts, seeds, and whole wheat
  • The office canteen lunch should be a balanced meal with protein, fibre, fat according to the daily dietary requirements
  • Pregnant and lactating women should have access to foods they need such as animal proteins and iron-rich foods
  • Encourage your workplace to prepare nutritious and tasty recipes from Masterchef Sadaf Hussain’s IMPAct4Nutrition Book

TAKE CARE OF YOUR FAMILY’S NUTRITION NEEDS 

Nutritional balance is not just important for pregnant or lactating women, or children. Men, women and children all need to eat well to avoid diseases and disabilities during different phases of life.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Follow a good diet regimen that includes fibre, protein, greens and milk products – your plate should have different colours like red, green, orange, yellow from dals, meats, and vegetables.
  • Eat more fibre (grains and fruit) for extra energy. Grains like oats (daliya) are also good for milk supply for lactating mothers
  • Lactating mothers must continue eating an extra 350 calories per day till breastfeeding – extra nutrition is needed to produce enough milk for your infant
  • Any supplements prescribed by the doctor such as iron, folic acid, Vitamin C and B12 to be taken regularly
  • Eat fruit and salads as snacks at work, and drink enough fluids

GIVE SEMI-SOLID FOODS TO INFANTS

While your child can have breast milk for up to 2 years, World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that you must start introducing semi-solid foods into your baby’s diet after 6 months.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Add food to breast milk after 6 months. This is not optional even if breastfeeding is continued up until the baby is 2 years of age
  • Start with one food at a time and give very small portions (half a cup) given thrice a day
  • Introduce the baby to wide variety of food like mashed fruit, soft porridge, boiled mixed veg, egg and chicken
  • Make your dals thick by adding eggs, mashed vegetables, chicken or fish
  • Don’t force your baby to eat anything, especially if they are repeatedly throwing the food out

BE ALERT ABOUT INFANT DIARRHOEA

There were over 100,000 diarrhoea-related deaths of children below 5 years of age in India in 2016 so infant diarrhoea has to be carefully managed to avoid serious harm to the child.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Give sufficient oral rehydration (ORS) during diarrhoea along with zinc supplement to replace nutrient loss during diarrhoea
  • Coconut water, homemade lemonade (nimbu paani), thin moong dal can be given to infants over 6 months in small doses, apart from clean drinking water, to avoid dehydration
  • Hygienic preparation of infant feeds will help fight diarrhoea
  • Your child may be getting recurring diarrhoea due to lactose intolerance – in such cases the doctor will give an alternate diet plan for a short while to reset the gut, after which milk can be reintroduced slowly as per the doctor’s advice
  • If diarrhoea persists for more than 5 days, consult your doctor

STICK TO YOUR CHILD’S VACCINATION SCHEDULE

Each child must follow the prescribed routine of supplements, immunization shots and deworming by the doctor to keep life-threatening diseases and growth disorders away.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Vaccination schedule of children needs to be followed in a timely manner and cannot be stopped in the middle – no vaccine is to be skipped
  • Regular deworming will keep diarrhoea and anemia at bay
  • Children older than 9 months to be given biannual Vitamin A supplement
  • After 12 months, your child needs to take deworming syrup every six months up to the age of 60 months
  • Breastfed babies cope with vaccines better and are less feverish after shots, so breastfeeding should be continued, along with solid foods, up to 2 years

KEEP A LOG TO MONITOR YOUR CHILD’S GROWTH

To make sure your child is growing well, keep a diary of your baby’s weight and height. Steps can be taken at the right time when such a clear and objective measurement of your child’s growth is in front of you.

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO

  • Watch for warning signs: A child should gain weight every month
  • If your child is losing weight rapidly, alert the doctor
  • Energy boosting foods such as eggs and nuts to be given to growing children and adolescents
  • Milk and milk products are essential in the growing years
  • Poor nutrition will result in poor growth so a wide variety of foods, like green leafy vegetables, eggs, pulses, fruit and meats should be given to the child