[Adjustment of the average diet offered by the Valencian Charity Association to the nutritional recommendation for the adult population].
For several reasons, in industrialized countries like ours, there is a growing number of people who require institutional or private help to survive. The Valencian Charity Association has been running a free dining hall for more than 300 people since 1906, which serves lunch (2 courses, bread, fruit, and a dairy product) and a sandwich dinner. The objective of this study is to evaluate the degree of adjustment of the diet offered to the nutritional needs of those who eat there. For this, we calculated the amounts of each of the foods included in a monthly menu, expressed in g or ml per person per day, and these are transformed into energy supply and nutritional supply, and these are then compared to the recommended ingestion of the Spanish population. The menus provided, considered to be the sole dietary intake of those eating there, provide proteins, thiamin, cyanocobalamine, retinol, and vitamin C in amounts that are similar or greater than those recommended for both sexes and all age groups, while the zinc, magnesium, pyridoxine, folates, and tocopherol quantities are less than 54% of the recommended ingestion for the groups with the greatest needs (adolescents or pregnant or lactating women). Supplementing the basic diet with a breakfast (glass of whole milk with sugar and Maria cookies), a yogurt, a portion of dried fruits, and a portion of fruit for dinner, would increase the supply of magnesium, folates, and vitamin E to levels that meet the requirements of the most needy, those of pregnant and lactating women, but the levels of pyridoxine would continue to be low, just like in other studies, and the recommended intake levels hereof appear unattainable even if this diet is supplemented with nutrients that can easily be accessed by this population group.
Farré Rovira
R
R
Facultat de Farmàcia, Universitat de València, Estudi General, España.
Frasquet Pons
I
I
Martínez Martínez
M I
MI
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004044:Dietary Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D005638:Fruit; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D011247:Pregnancy; D014675:Vegetables; D014815:Vitamins / Q000008:administration & dosage
D004044:Dietary Proteins; D014815:Vitamins; D001205:Ascorbic Acid