Essential Qualities to Consider Before Consuming any Food
Food is a general word anyone can attempt to define. Just like I know what food is, I believe anyone can say what food is in their own term.
Therefore, to define food, I will say that food is any safe and nutritious substance people eat or drink in order to maintain life and growth. It is any substance consumed that is not a drug. Food is eaten every day and contributes highly to the health of any individual. To be healthy and sound at work or in school, one must take in adequate food substance.
Even though the qualities and significance of foods and food products may be analyzed from a different perspective, this article points out the qualities essential to every consumer.
The two major qualities consumers should be mindful of while purchasing any food product from the street, grocery, food establishment and/or before eating any food prepared by oneself are:
i. Nutritional quality of the food.
ii. Safety or wholesomeness of the food.
Nutritional quality: The nutritional quality of food addresses what the food contains or what it is made of. That is, the nutrients or the number of nutrients (for example vitamin, protein, minerals, carbohydrate, and calorie) the food contains. Because of diseases and allergens, it is essential to have knowledge of the nutritional content of a food before consuming, due to its impact on the body. For pre-packed foods, food labels are primary tools that enable consumers to understand the nutritional content of the food in order to make informed decisions before ingestion. It is intended to make it easier for consumers to make quick and informed food choices that contribute to a healthy diet. Considering the nutritional quality of food before consumption is a way of ensuring that one gets all the nutrient the body needs to work best.
Safety and wholesomeness of the food: This is the state of a food being entirely whole, undiminished and in perfect condition. It addresses how wholesome and safe the food is. "Is the food fit for consumption?" is the question to always bear in mind while purchasing or consuming any food product. For instance, the level of wholesomeness of pre-packed foods can be ascertained by carefully checking how well the food is packaged and sealed without leakages; the expiry date (best before dates or use by) to ensure the food is still fit for consumption and the condition of storage. Thanks to innovations in packaging that made intelligent packaging technology possible as it is known to monitor and communicate the status of a food product to manufacturers, retailers, and consumers, thereby facilitating decision making and warn against possible problems of the food. This technology is yet not available in the developing countries and thus for the time being consumers should dependently make decisions based on visual observations. One of the challenges faced by consumers is patience to carefully evaluate a product before purchasing but a deliberate effort will go a long way to keep one safe at all time.
For street foods and food from food service establishments (mama put, Buka or restaurant), level of wholesomeness and safety of the food should be considered based on the cleanliness of the preparation environment, the extent of hygiene practiced by the handlers or vendors and the condition of storage and presentation of the food. Safe and wholesome foods reduce the risk of diseases/sicknesses and maintain the health of an individual.
Conclusion: Unsafe or contaminated food is detrimental to one's health. It can lead to food poisoning or foodborne illnesses. Many people don't think about food safety until they or their loved ones get sick after eating a contaminated food. A good number of people think that food poisoning just ends in stooling and probably vomiting but the consequences are more than what they think. Some may lead to death while untreated mild occurrences may cause chronic diseases. Also, it is unsafe for someone to eat any food that contains nutrients, substances or components detrimental to one's health, thus, giving attention to nutrition and the proper use of labeling becomes essential.
Recommendation: It is recommended that consumers carefully choose what they eat because food, directly and indirectly, affects the health, growth, and development of every individual. Safe and nutritious food can prevent unnecessary sicknesses and promote individual wellness.
Dare to eat Safe Food and Stay Safe!
#Safefood is for me and you
#SafeFoodForAll
Chinaza S. Arinzechukwu
(Food Scientist).
Therefore, to define food, I will say that food is any safe and nutritious substance people eat or drink in order to maintain life and growth. It is any substance consumed that is not a drug. Food is eaten every day and contributes highly to the health of any individual. To be healthy and sound at work or in school, one must take in adequate food substance.
Even though the qualities and significance of foods and food products may be analyzed from a different perspective, this article points out the qualities essential to every consumer.
The two major qualities consumers should be mindful of while purchasing any food product from the street, grocery, food establishment and/or before eating any food prepared by oneself are:
i. Nutritional quality of the food.
ii. Safety or wholesomeness of the food.
Nutritional quality: The nutritional quality of food addresses what the food contains or what it is made of. That is, the nutrients or the number of nutrients (for example vitamin, protein, minerals, carbohydrate, and calorie) the food contains. Because of diseases and allergens, it is essential to have knowledge of the nutritional content of a food before consuming, due to its impact on the body. For pre-packed foods, food labels are primary tools that enable consumers to understand the nutritional content of the food in order to make informed decisions before ingestion. It is intended to make it easier for consumers to make quick and informed food choices that contribute to a healthy diet. Considering the nutritional quality of food before consumption is a way of ensuring that one gets all the nutrient the body needs to work best.
Safety and wholesomeness of the food: This is the state of a food being entirely whole, undiminished and in perfect condition. It addresses how wholesome and safe the food is. "Is the food fit for consumption?" is the question to always bear in mind while purchasing or consuming any food product. For instance, the level of wholesomeness of pre-packed foods can be ascertained by carefully checking how well the food is packaged and sealed without leakages; the expiry date (best before dates or use by) to ensure the food is still fit for consumption and the condition of storage. Thanks to innovations in packaging that made intelligent packaging technology possible as it is known to monitor and communicate the status of a food product to manufacturers, retailers, and consumers, thereby facilitating decision making and warn against possible problems of the food. This technology is yet not available in the developing countries and thus for the time being consumers should dependently make decisions based on visual observations. One of the challenges faced by consumers is patience to carefully evaluate a product before purchasing but a deliberate effort will go a long way to keep one safe at all time.
For street foods and food from food service establishments (mama put, Buka or restaurant), level of wholesomeness and safety of the food should be considered based on the cleanliness of the preparation environment, the extent of hygiene practiced by the handlers or vendors and the condition of storage and presentation of the food. Safe and wholesome foods reduce the risk of diseases/sicknesses and maintain the health of an individual.
Conclusion: Unsafe or contaminated food is detrimental to one's health. It can lead to food poisoning or foodborne illnesses. Many people don't think about food safety until they or their loved ones get sick after eating a contaminated food. A good number of people think that food poisoning just ends in stooling and probably vomiting but the consequences are more than what they think. Some may lead to death while untreated mild occurrences may cause chronic diseases. Also, it is unsafe for someone to eat any food that contains nutrients, substances or components detrimental to one's health, thus, giving attention to nutrition and the proper use of labeling becomes essential.
Recommendation: It is recommended that consumers carefully choose what they eat because food, directly and indirectly, affects the health, growth, and development of every individual. Safe and nutritious food can prevent unnecessary sicknesses and promote individual wellness.
Dare to eat Safe Food and Stay Safe!
#Safefood is for me and you
#SafeFoodForAll
Chinaza S. Arinzechukwu
(Food Scientist).
Actually this information is very vital and neccesary. Thanks for keeping us abreast about what we eat, how we eat and where we eat. Food safety matters a lot. You're a good food nutritionist that is sensitive to one of the major components that enhances our body system. Thank you for the enlightenment. Keep it up
ReplyDeleteThank you very much Kel.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFood safety should be one of the things we need to constantly check before consumption of any food to avoid going through the hurdles of food contamination and sicknesses which we would have prevented by being watchful. Thank you so much for enlightening us again on the importance of food safety. I look forward to your next post
ReplyDeleteOh. Thank you Dear Adaeze. Just keep in touch.
DeleteThis is very important. I moved recently and I have been very skeptical about eating out. Sometimes I just drink water because I'm not sure of where to eat.
ReplyDeleteI am an advocate for this any day. I love what you are doing
Wow. That's great. Thank you very much
Delete