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Dietary Requirements 9
Other Beneficial Components normal because of their likely disease prevention
in Food later in life.
Phytochemicals Probiotics
Phytochemicals are compounds that occur Probiotics are bacteria in food that colonize the
naturally in plants (phyto means ‘plant’ in intestine and provide health benefits. Beneficial
Greek) and that have biological significance but bacteria in the intestine help the intestine to
are not established as essential nutrients. They function optimally and may help to prevent
include antioxidants, which are the brightly diarrhoea in children. Examples of beneficial
coloured pigments in plant foods – that is in bacteria are bifidobacteria and lactobacilli that are
fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, nuts, cocoa found in live yogurt.
beans and foods made from cereals. Tea and
coffee also contain them. They are called a Dietary Requirements
variety of names such as flavonoids, flavanols
and isoflavones. Some of the commonly known In general, the amount of energy and each nutrient
phytochemicals are: that children need to stay healthy increases as they
grow. In the UK energy and nutrient requirements
●● lycopene in tomatoes have been set for different age groups of children in
1991 by the Committee on Medical Aspects of
●● quercetin in apples, onions, grapes and berries Food Policy (COMA). COMA was the forerunner
of the current Scientific Advisory Committee on
●● anthocyanins in berries. Nutrition (SACN) (www. sacn.gov.uk) (Department
of Health 1991).
There are thousands of these chemicals in plant foods,
and research indicating that they may be protective The relevant units used for dietary requirements
against various cancers and cardiovascular disease are as follows:
has only been published in the last 30 or so years.
Their mode of action in cancer prevention is by: ●● Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) – the average
daily amount of a nutrient that is considered to
●● increasing the body’s ability to break down be enough to meet the requirements of 97 per
carcinogens cent of the population of each age group of
children. This means only 3 in 100 children
●● acting as an antioxidant to mop up free radicals would require an amount higher than this. It is
before they damage cells in the body used as the daily recommendation for protein,
vitamins and minerals.
●● enhancing the immune system
●● Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) is the
●● altering hormones which are associated with the daily mean/average requirement for each age
onset of cancer. group and would only be enough for 50 per cent
of a population. It is used for energy requirements.
They help prevent cardiovascular disease by:
These recommended values vary somewhat from
●● decreasing blood cholesterol country to country.
●● altering the profile of fats in the blood RNIs for protein have been set for different age
groups of children but an individual protein
●● reducing the oxidation of fat present in arterial requirement can be calculated more specifically for
walls. individual infants and young children depending
on their body weight (Table 1.1.4).
They have not been shown to be of critical
importance for the day-to-day health of children,
but during childhood it is important for children to
learn to like the foods that contain them and to
learn that eating fruit and vegetables at all meals is
