July 2013: Question 3
Question 3: The study identifies eating
at or from a restaurant as another factor for decreasing a nutrient rich
diet. Individuals who consumed a meal at
a restaurant/takeout at least two time per week were 50% less likely to meet
the Healthy People objectives for dietary intake and 20% less likely to meet
the physical activity-related objectives.
Consuming fast food at least three times per week as associated with a
25% less likelihood of meeting the objectives for fruit intake. What suggestions could you provide clients to
promote eating at home and preparing healthy, family meals? How would you
address the barriers of convenience, time restrictions, and taste (cooking
ability and preparing healthy meals, etc.)?
posted by Unknown @ 1:12 PM
17 comments
17 Comments:
I think that I would talk with the client and determine what it is that they enjoy eating. I would provide them with recipes that are quick and healthy that incorporate their favorite food items and they could make in their home. I would emphasize the importance of cooking and eating as a family. I think that this is so important but many families do not do this today due to our fast pace society. I would also inform them how they can determine and decide what goes into their meals at home but they are limited at a restaurant. For example they could saute vegetables at home in olive oil but a restaurant may choose to use butter. I would also suggest healthier menu items at the restaurants they frequent. There is nothing wrong with going out to eat on occasions so giving them the knowledge of healthier options on the menu may be beneficial.
To encourage cooking at home, I would suggest to individuals to make it a habit. Start by preparing meals at home once or twice more a week. If there are others living in the home, get them involved through choosing recipes and grocery shopping together, making it a themed meal (e.g., Thai or Indian for ethnic flair or all brown foods for unusual holidays like Groundhog Day), and preparing the food as a team. If lack of time for daily meal prep is an issue, I’d suggest setting aside a day each week or every other week to prepare several days’ worth of meals that can be frozen and used as needed.
As Lynetta stated, I agree that encouraging them to form a habit by starting small with a couple days a week at home would be a great start. I think most importantly is to give reasonable goals. If someone is eating out 3, 4, 5 times/week, telling them to stop and prepare home-made recipes will probably not go anywhere. BUT, if you suggest eating out one less time a week, that could be a start. Offering simple ideas that don't involve extensive recipes would make them feel like that is something he/she could actually do. Also, giving ideas that could be prepared on the weekend and frozen or refrigerated ahead of time so they can just throw in the oven or microwave on a work night could aid in time constraints. Casserole recipes that incorporate all food groups and can be prepped ahead of time could appeal to this type of audience and last for a few days with leftovers! As the individual improves (hopefully) their dining out habits, we could work on how to make an effective grocery list and plan meals ahead of time so that the proper ingredients/supplies are in the house and the best times to prepare to avoid being in a jam with no meals.
To promote eating and home vs. eating out I would develop an education piece that compared the nutritional value of a meal out compared to the same meal prepared at home. For example, I might compare the nutritional value of a burger from McDonald's to a burger prepared in a typical household. I would then use visuals to show how much sodium and fat is in each meal. Hopefully this would get the point across that when dining out there is little control over how your food is prepared. I would also add some research to back up the importance of family meals.
To address barriers such a convenience and time constraints I would address planning. I would educate the client on different meal and snack ideas that are good for that "on-the-go" lifestyle to give them ideas of what they could prepare.
Finding out the barriers to eating at home would be the first thing I would do, and make suggestions accordingly. It could be that the client doesn't even know how to cook, so any suggestions I would make would have to be very client-specific. I would emphasize that eating at home can be just as fast as going out to eat, and it can be cheaper in the long run. I would make suggestions of healthier choices for the restaurants they do choose and recommend them trying to make couple more meals at home.
There were many good comments mentioned, I liked Kaitlin's visual comparisons, Lynetta's themed meals, emphasizing the importance for the family as a unit to eat together and ideas of freezing and preparing meals on the weekend for quick and easy meals
Sarah S said...
I would remind my clients that eating at home together is not only healthier but also promotes family bonding and unity. It is one of the best ways to stay in touch with each other and know what is going in each others' lives. I would also mention that preparing meals at home is much more cost-effective than eating out. In order to overcome the barriers mentioned, I would try to provide my clients with easy, quick recipes that are nutrient-dense. I would also provide them with helpful links online where they can learn how to prepare ingredients if they had questions about them.
Sarah S said...
I like Beth's idea of explaining how to make healthier choices at restaurants. As she said, there is nothing wrong with eating out for special occassions, but giving people tools to make better selections would be extremely helpful.
I think this depends person to person on what they like to eat when they go to restaurants, and finding fast alternatives they can eat at home. For example, if someone likes Asian food or takeout, I am seeing a lot of box kits at the supermarket where you just buy vegetables to add to the ready-made noodles, meat and sauce. This doesn't require too much time or skill, and there are healthy box options with lower sodium/fat. You could see if this is something they are willing to substitute once a week for the fast food they like. Baby steps I think are important for someone who is used to a certain lifestyle. There are so many options now that it is getting easier for those who have less culinary inclination. The other thing you could do is educate them on making healthier choices when they do eat out, since nutrition information is becoming more widely available at restaurants.
I agree with Emily, I think that eating out many times takes just as long if not longer than making the meal at home. Just the other day I was sitting in a long line at the drive through for about 30 minutes just to get an ice cream, let alone a whole meal. If you eat at a sit-down place, it can be a two-hour process. Most meals you can make at home in less than an hour. And of course it is more expensive too.
I would first learn if the client was able to cook or not. If so, providing fast, easy recipes that included fruit would be my first solution. If the client stated that they could not cook, I would then provide simple lessons on how to cook basic foods and and simple ingredients to make the foods healthy and flavorful. I would also suggest better decision making at restaurants. Some of these suggestions would be sharing a meal, ordering smaller portions, are choosing a meal that was contained more fruits or vegetables.
I would first promote how much money a family can save by cooking at home. I would provide them with some statistics. The advantages to family meal time around the dinner table would also be discussed. Crock pot meals would be suggested if a time constraint is brought up. If they are worried about their ability to cook, I would suggest cooking classes and reassure them that everyone has to start somewhere. Practice makes perfect!
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I would first try to figure out the barriers they face to eating at home and go from there. As far as convenience and time restrictions goes I would give them quick recipes to do at home and also introduce them to the crock pot. If a barrier was an inability to cook then I would help educated them on basic cooking skills and provide them with easy recipes to try.
However, sometimes families do go out to eat or grab something fast and we will not be able to eliminate that completely. I would educate them on how to make healthier selections when they do go out and how to include more fruits and vegetables. It is more realistic for them to make healthier choices than give up fast food entirely.
Kaitlin made a good point about the use of visual aids. Seeing the difference in calories or serving sizes adds the "shock factor" that may stick better. I think it is important that we make a big impression on the general public and clients. Most people are at least somewhat of a visual learner,so it could work great for most Americans.
I like that Emily addressed looking at barriers first before making any recommendations. In order to make the most out of the time with clients it's important to gather the most information and make changes where possible.
I think Lynetta's idea was great about using food preparation time as a time to bond with your family. Children may be more willing to try something new if they helped pick it out or prepare it. I also agree with many others that it is important to find out the reason's for eating out. This way you can work towards education that is best suited for the client.
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