Comprehensive Analysis of Dietary Scenarios: Health and Wellness

This essay analyzes three distinct dietary scenarios, highlighting the potential health consequences associated with each. The first scenario focuses on Michael, whose excessive consumption of sugars and saturated fats, combined with a sedentary lifestyle, puts him at risk of metabolic diseases. Recommendations include reducing fast food intake, increasing consumption of whole grains and vegetables, and engaging in mild physical activity. The second scenario examines Stephanie, whose underweight condition and anemia pose risks to her fertility and potential pregnancy. Recommendations include increasing her body weight through healthy fats and proteins, and boosting her iron, cobalamin, and folic acid intake. The third scenario features Imran, whose lack of physical activity and avoidance of sunlight increase his risk of obesity, metabolic disorders, and osteoporosis. Recommendations include increasing calcium and vitamin D intake, engaging in resistance training, and spending more time outdoors. The essay concludes that a balanced diet and lifestyle, incorporating sufficient exercise and nutritious foods, are essential for preventing major health complications and promoting overall well-being.

Running head: ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note:

1ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
Introduction
The following paragraphs of the essay, aim to shed light on the key dietary issues
presented by the given scenarios, followed by consequences of consuming and imbalanced diet
and recommendations concerning required dietary improvements.
Discussion
Dietary Scenario 1
Consequences
It can be observed that Michael’s consumption of carbohydrates derived from sugars as
well as saturated fats are in excessive amounts as compared to the recommended guidelines by
the British Nutrition Foundation (Recommended 5% sugars, 11% Saturated Fats) (Scarborough
et al. 2016). Michael engages in negligible levels of exercise and excessively consumes fast
food, further putting him at an increased risk for harmful trans fat consumption and positive
energy balance as evident in his high Body Mass Index of 31 kg/m2. Lack of adherence to a
exercise and a diet containing high amounts of saturated fats, trans fats and sugars will lead to
excessive calorie consumption and Michael’s future susceptibility of metabolic diseases such as
diabetes mellitus and fatty streak accumulation leading to cardiovascular disorders such as
atherosclerosis (Majeed 2015).
Recommendations
Michael must cut down on his consumption of fast food and sugary processed foods to
reduce excessive calorie and saturated fat consumption. He must also opt for consuming low fat

2ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
dairy products like skimmed milk or yogurt since it will reduce his fat consumption, instead of
processed products as it is observed that most of his sugar consumption is obtained from milk
sugar (Montagnese et al. 2015). To further reduce excessive calorie consumption, improve his
metabolism and enhance his stamina and immunological abilities, Michael must also engage
himself in mild physical activities with his wife, in the form of walking or yoga (Forrest et al.
2016). It is recommended that he increases his consumption of whole grains and green leafy
vegetables, which will not only provide him with satiety, fiber and vitamins, but will also
provide him with antioxidants to reduce oxidative stress cause due to high fat consumption
(Gopinath et al. 2014).
Dietary Scenario 2
Consequences
Stephanie has an extremely low body mass index of 13.7, making her underweight,
despite possessing a normal waist to hip ratio. A low body weight or inadequate calorie
consumption results in decreasing metabolic rate and a reduced production of estrogen, further
reducing healthy ovulation and possibilities of fertilization in Stephanie. Even after conception, a
low body weight may also increase Stephanie’s chances of producing a premature or low birth
weight baby (Ko et al. 2014). If left untreated, Stephanie’s anemic status may further aggravate
once pregnant, further reducing her red blood cell count and required oxygen supply to the fetus,
increasing her susceptibility of having post partum depression and delivering a premature baby
or a baby with anemia and delays in achieving developmental milestones (Cantor 2015).

3ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
Recommendations
For healthy conception and delivery of a healthy baby, Stephanie must increase her body
weight by at least 10 to 12 kilograms, which can be done through incorporation of whole grains
and healthy fat sources such as almonds, walnuts and fatty fish. She must also increase her intake
of proteins and calcium through incorporation of lean meats like eggs, fish and chicken and dairy
sources such as milk and yogurt, which are needed for healthy tissue and bone development of
the baby, should she get pregnant. She must increase her iron, cobalamin and folic acid intake by
including food such as dried fruits like dates, spinach leaves, almonds, seeds, whole grains and
fortified cereals, milk products, beans, organ meats and lentils which will reduce her anemia and
the baby’s chances of acquiring anemia and neural tube disorders such as spina bifida. She must
also increase her Vitamin C consumption through incorporation of citrus fruits and guavas for
increased iron absorption.
Dietary Scenario 3
Consequences
Imran’s levels of physical activity or exercise is grossly negligible, which will increase
his chances of obesity, excessive calorie consumption and production of anabolic hormones such
as insulin, leading to adipose tissue accumulation and increased susceptibility to metabolic
disorders such as diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases and impaired immunity, further
resulting in high inflammation, high oxidative stress and susceptibility to cancer (Watson 2015).
Imran’s avoidance of going outside also reduces his Vitamin D status further decreasing his
calcium absorption and bone mineral density, further increasing his future susceptibility of
osteoporosis (Cashman et al. 2016).

4ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
Recommendations
To improve his bone strength, Imran must increase his calcium consumption through
incorporation of dairy sources, broccoli, soy and almonds. Vitamin D improves calcium
absorption, and hence Imran must go out for increased intake from sunlight along with
consumption of foods such as egg yolks, mushroom, fortified butters and cereals and juices and
organ meats like beef liver (Cashman 2015). To further improve his bone flexibility, strength and
reduce weight, he must engage in resistant training such as mild weight exercises, stretching, tai-
chi and yoga. Incorporating these dietary and exercise changes will reduce his weight, improve
his strength, stamina flexibility and reduce his susceptibility of fractures due to falls (Hinton,
Nigh and Thyfault 2015).
Conclusion
Hence, upon observation of the above dietary scenarios, it can concluding that by
incorporating sufficient levels of exercise and nutritious foods, a balanced diet and lifestyle will
help one to prevent major disorders and complications and live a life of health and happiness.

5ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
Reference
Cantor, A.G., Bougatsos, C., Dana, T., Blazina, I. and McDonagh, M., 2015. Routine iron
supplementation and screening for iron deficiency anemia in pregnancy: a systematic review for
the US Preventive Services Task Force. Annals of internal medicine, 162(8), pp.566-576.
Cashman, K.D., 2015. Vitamin D: dietary requirements and food fortification as a means of
helping achieve adequate vitamin D status. The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular
biology, 148, pp.19-26.
Cashman, K.D., Dowling, K.G., Škrabáková, Z., Gonzalez-Gross, M., Valtueña, J., De Henauw,
S., Moreno, L., Damsgaard, C.T., Michaelsen, K.F., Mølgaard, C. and Jorde, R., 2016. Vitamin
D deficiency in Europe: pandemic?, 2. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 103(4),
pp.1033-1044.
Forrest, L.N., Smith, A.R., Fussner, L.M., Dodd, D.R. and Clerkin, E.M., 2016. Using implicit
attitudes of exercise importance to predict explicit exercise dependence symptoms and exercise
behaviors. Psychology of sport and exercise, 22, pp.91-97.
Gopinath, B., Russell, J., Flood, V.M., Burlutsky, G. and Mitchell, P., 2014. Adherence to
dietary guidelines positively affects quality of life and functional status of older adults. Journal
of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 114(2), pp.220-229.
Hinton, P.S., Nigh, P. and Thyfault, J., 2015. Effectiveness of resistance training or jumping-
exercise to increase bone mineral density in men with low bone mass: A 12-month randomized,
clinical trial. Bone, 79, pp.203-212.

6ANALYSIS OF DIETARY SCENARIOS
Ko, T.J., Tsai, L.Y., Chu, L.C., Yeh, S.J., Leung, C., Chen, C.Y., Chou, H.C., Tsao, P.N., Chen,
P.C. and Hsieh, W.S., 2014. Parental smoking during pregnancy and its association with low
birth weight, small for gestational age, and preterm birth offspring: a birth cohort
study. Pediatrics & neonatology, 55(1), pp.20-27.
Majeed, F., 2015. Association of BMI with diet and physical activity of female medical students
at the University of Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Journal of Taibah University Medical
Sciences, 10(2), pp.188-196.
Montagnese, C., Santarpia, L., Buonifacio, M., Nardelli, A., Caldara, A.R., Silvestri, E.,
Contaldo, F. and Pasanisi, F., 2015. European food-based dietary guidelines: a comparison and
update. Nutrition, 31(7-8), pp.908-915.
Scarborough, P., Kaur, A., Cobiac, L., Owens, P., Parlesak, A., Sweeney, K. and Rayner, M.,
2016. Eatwell Guide: modelling the dietary and cost implications of incorporating new sugar and
fibre guidelines. BMJ open, 6(12), p.e013182.
Watson, N., Ji, X., Yasuhara, T., Kaneko, Y., Tajiri, N. and Borlongan, C.V., 2015. No pain, no
gain: lack of exercise obstructs neurogenesis. Cell transplantation, 24(4), pp.591-597.