Elementary Nutrition Course

The Elementary Nutrition Course aims to provide participants who work in food businesses preparing, producing and serving food with knowledge about basic nutrition and practical solutions about how to provide and promote nutritious and healthy choices.

Objectives

Welcome and course overview Course participants will be able to:

• Appreciate the needs and expectations of other course participants

• Identify what they hope to learn from the course

• Consider their role in improving the nation’s health

• Identify their current knowledge and understanding of nutrition

An Introduction To Nutrition

Candidates will be able to discuss generally

• The importance of good nutrition for health

• The effect of a poor diet on health

• Food and health in Scotland

• The importance of nutrition in the food industry

• The benefits of and their role in providing/promoting healthier choices

Basic Nutrion

Candidates will be able to describe briefly

• The role of Carbohydrate, Protein, Fat

• The role of vitamins and minerals

• The importance of an adequate fluid intake

• Common dietary sources of each of the main nutrients

• Energy balance and energy requirements

Eating For Health And Wellbeing

Candidates will be able to describe

• The principles of a healthy, sustainable diet

• Key healthy eating messages

• Scottish Dietary Guidelines

• The Eatwell Guide 4.

Healthier Practices

Candidates will be able to

• Demonstrate how the Eatwell Guide can be used as a guide to healthier practices

• Identify healthier food preparation and cooking methods

• Suggest healthier/alternative ingredients

• Describe how to increase fruit and vegetables, fibre and oily fish content

• Identify how to reduce fat, salt and sugar content

• Explain how to preserve and maximise the nutrient content of foods

• Consider product reformulation throughout the food chain

• Debate ways to promote, market and display healthier choices

Menu Planning And Recipe Development

Candidates will be able to

• Consider and explain the principles of menu planning

List and describe the factors to consider when planning menus

• Influences on food choice

• Nutritional requirements

• Dietary requirements

• Consider ways that menus/recipes can be modified

• Use the Eatwell Guide to review a recipe

• Be aware of the relevant policies, regulations and requirements

• Demonstrate and use their knowledge to plan and/or modify a menu and/or recipe

Allergies And Intolerances

Candidates will be able to

• Debate the role of food in allergies, intolerances and coeliac disease and the importance of providing accurate allergen information

• Explain the difference between a food allergy and food intolerance and coeliac disease

• Identify the main food allergies and intolerances and their symptoms

• List the 14 major allergens

• Outline how to comply with food allergen labelling legislation

• Identify contamination risk and how to prevent it

• Discuss how to provide and/or relay information effectively

Food/Nutrional Labelling And Analysis

Candidates will be able to:

• Identify briefly relevant food legislation and regulations

• (Determine what information is required by law on food packaging

Explain generally what nutrition information should be provided

• mandatory back-of-pack nutrition declarations

• nutrition and health claims

• front-of-pack nutrition information

• Discuss the importance of allergen labelling

Consider the ways to calculate and provide nutrition information

• Nutrient and calorie analysis

• Software available (e.g. MenuCal)

• Documentation