Will choose: five principles to help you know, choose food     

"The human body needs more than 40 nutrients and some other dietary ingredients to maintain health, which requires us to match them reasonably according to the nutritional value of different foods." Liu Ailing, a researcher at the Institute of Nutrition and Health of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and prevention, recommend to eat at least 12 kinds of cereal, potato, fruits and vegetables, fish, poultry, eggs and milk beans and nuts every day, at least 25 kinds of food per week.

Liu Ailing introduced, buy food should grasp the five principles:

One is to choose more fresh and natural food, buy less pickles, canned fruit, canned meat and other deep processing food;

The second is to choose more foods with high nutrient density, such as colorful fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, lean meat, aquatic products, whole grains, etc.; choose less "blank energy" foods that can only provide energy but lack other nutrients, such as candy, fried gluten, spicy strips, sugary drinks, etc;

Third, the local food resources in the season are preferred. The natural maturity period can maximize the retention of nutrients, freshness and better taste, and it can also reduce microbial pollution and energy consumption during transportation;

Fourth, the use of nutrition labels to choose low oil, salt, sugar pre-packaged food;

The fifth is to consider the cost, but not to hoard food, especially vegetables and fruits that are prone to corruption, to avoid waste. "When purchasing, we must firmly believe that expensive does not mean high nutritional value. Many high-quality and inexpensive foods have their own nutritional value. It is already very rich."

It should be noted that nuts contain high unsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E and other nutrients, but they are high in fat and should be eaten in moderation. The "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022)" recommend an average daily intake of about 10 grams, which is equivalent to a handful and a half of shelled sunflower seeds or 2 to 3 walnuts. Eating plain nuts is preferred.

Will see: food nutrition labels have a doorway

Food nutrition labeling is an effective channel for "communication" between food and consumers. Since 2013, the National Food SafetyStandardThe general principles of nutrition labeling of prepackaged food has been formally implemented in China, which requires that the content of energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate and sodium and their percentage of nutrient reference value should be marked on the label.

Yang Yuexin, president of the Chinese Nutrition Society, said that after nearly 10 years of implementation of the above-mentioned national standards, many consumers still only look at the price, date of production and place of origin when buying food, ignoring nutrition labels. But labels can help consumers understand the nutritional characteristics of food, and better compare and choose products that suit them.

So, when choosing prepackaged foods, what should nutrition labels look like? Fan Yongxiang, deputy director of the National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, said that special attention should be paid to the list of ingredients and nutritional ingredients.

"When looking at the ingredient list, it is recommended to remember a principle: according to the standard requirements, the ingredient list should be arranged in descending order of addition, and the top ones must be the main raw materials of this product." Fan Yongxiang said.

The nutrient composition table lists the specific content of nutrients in each food, and the nutrient reference value indicates the proportion of nutrients provided in this food to the daily nutrients required by the human body.

"For example, a 40-gram bag of potato chips can provide 13.3 grams of fat, which can provide 22% of the fat I need for the day. This is a warning that my fat intake is already high enough after eating this bag of potato chips to be more controlled when eating other foods." Fan Yongxiang explained.

In addition, experts suggest that we should also pay attention to the existence of "invisible sodium. In addition to salt, sodium pyrophosphate and sodium ascorbate used in processed foods can be a source of sodium intake. The dietary guidelines recommend that the average daily salt intake of adults should not exceed 5 grams, which translates to about 2000 milligrams of sodium.

Can cook: more whole grain, less oil and salt

According to the scientific research report on dietary guidelines for Chinese residents (2021), the intake of grain and miscellaneous legumes in China is on the decline, but it is still the main source of energy; the intake of other grains and miscellaneous beans is lower than that recommend in the dietary guidelines.

Chang Cuiqing, vice chairman of the Chinese Nutrition Society, said that whole grains contain nutrients such as B vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber, which play an important role in preventing obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. The more refined the grain, the more nutrients are lost. Excessive intake of refined rice noodles and white bread can lead to an increased risk of chronic diseases.

"Children from snacks and grains have better gastrointestinal function, are less likely to gain weight and are more physically fit. Some 'three high' patients need to control their blood sugar, blood lipids and weight through whole grain grains." China Agricultural University Department of nutrition and health associate professor Fan Zhihong said.

Dietary guidelines put forward, eat more whole grains, soybeans, vegetables, cooking less salt and less oil. How to put a good diet on the table, so delicious, healthy double?

Whole-grain miscellaneous beans are easy to taste hard because they retain the seed coat and have a tight texture. In response, Fan Zhihong said that if coarse cereals are refrigerated and soaked in advance, or coarse cereals are cooked for half an hour before white rice is added, coarse cereals rice and coarse cereals porridge with moderate hardness and thickness can be produced. You can also make pasta with whole wheat flour, multigrain flour and white flour, and add some crushed nuts and dried fruits to enrich the taste.

Vegetables to eat more, less salt can also do delicious. Fan Zhihong suggested that the cold dishes should not be pickled in advance, and seasoning should be added before serving to ensure that only a layer of salt is on the surface. Adding salt or only a small amount of soy sauce when cooking can also make the salty taste in the middle of the dish lighter without affecting the taste.

"Less salt is not to give up seasoning, you can use vinegar, lemon juice, curry powder, cumin, pepper and other spices instead of salt, not only can seasoning, but also increase the supply of antioxidants and trace elements." Fan Zhihong said.