2000 words
This assessment asks you to consider a practical case where you have a client who is currently happy with their weight but wants to follow a vegan diet. How will you approach this to ensure your client does so in a healthy way? (Please note your client is you!). The specific aim is therefore to design and carry out an assessment to evaluate the current energy balance status of a vegan client using methods taught on this and on previous modules.
Writing up the Report
The report should be written using the following guidelines –
Please ensure your work is anonymous and the name of the client is confidential.
2000 words
Introduction;
Describe the reasons for nutrition assessment including the importance of measuring body composition, energy intake, energy expenditure and energy balance.
Aim;
Nutritional assessment of a healthy person (you) who wants to follow a vegan diet.
Methods;
Give a detailed and concise description of the methods you used and if necessary the instructions provided to the client.
Results;
Present your findings from the body composition, energy expenditure, and energy intake measurements using text and tables as necessary.
Raw data can be put in an appendix.
Discussion
Points to consider:
Did the body composition assessment provide useful information?
Was the diet appropriate, what changes to the food intake would you make if your client is to continue following a vegan diet?
Did you measure BMR or RMR or total energy expenditure?
Is your participant in energy balance, what are the long term implications for this?
Does your participant need to be referred to another health professional e.g. a GP or a physio
How could your assessment be improved for greater accuracy?
Conclusion;
Summarise your findings and put them in into the vegan context, what was the overall outcome?
References;
Association for Nutrition (2020) http://www.associationfornutrition.org/. Accessed 8 Jan 2020.
British Dietetic Association (2019) Plant based Diets. https://www.bda.uk.com/food-health/food-facts.html. Accessed 17.1.20
Elia M, Ljungqvist O, Stratton RJ, Lanham-New S (2012) Clinical Nutrition. Wiley Blackwell: London.
FAO/WHO/UNU (1985). Energy and Protein Requirements. WHO
Gibson RS (2005) Principles of Nutritional Assessment, OUP: Oxford.
Weir, J.B. d. V. (1949). New methods for calculating metabolic rate with special references to protein metabolism. Journal of Physiology 109, 1-9.
Instructions if you are measuring BMR or energy expenditure;
Prepare the participant by ensuring they are in thermoneutral conditions, rested and are familiar with the mouthpiece. After approx. 5 mins of acclimatisation to the mouthpiece, the measurement may begin.
Analyse the contents of the Douglas bag using the Servomex Gas Analysers to measure O2 and CO2 content. And the Harvard Dry gas meter to measure the volume of air the Douglas bag contains.
At the end of the measurements, the data can be used to determine energy expenditure using the following equation by Weir (1949).
21 – r CF
BMR (kJ/min) = V * * *20
100 t
Where:
V = Volume of expired air (l) CF = correction factor (to account for temperature and pressure)
r = O2 content of expired air (%) 20 = energy equivalence of O2 (kJ/l)
21 = O2 in inspired air (%) t = time (min)
If calculating BMR state which specific equation (Schofield, Mifflin St Jeor or Oxford)
