The author of the article is a dietitian Martyna Przybyłko
Dietary catering – what for?
In today’s busy world, there is not enough time for anything. Our diet also suffers from it. Rushing to work, we often skip breakfast, eat irregularly, often junk food. Catering companies flooded the market in response to the prevailing situation. Reading the offer, we notice only advantages – delivery to home or work, time saved, in addition dietary dishes, beneficial to health. However, is dietary catering so flawless?
Caloric content of the diet
You can find in the offers of companies dealing with dietary catering offer for diets from 1000 to even 2500 kcal. Only which one should you choose? Unfortunately, we have to make such a choice ourselves, because most companies do not calculate the individual calorific value of the diet. This can be fatal, because without paying attention to the essence of how many kcal we should consume during the day, our choice is often dictated by other factors, such as price. The lower the calorific value of the diet, the less products used to prepare the meal, and thus the cheaper package. However, when our daily requirement is 2000 kcal, by reaching for an offer that provides only 1000 kcal, we can lead to deficiencies of nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and consequently to the destruction of the body.
In such a situation, how can you calculate the caloric requirement yourself? I propose to use the following formula:
PPM (women) = 655,1 + (9,563 x weight [kg]) + (1,85 x height [cm]) – (4,676 x [age])
PPM (men) = 66,5 + (13,75 x body weight [kg]) + (5,003 x height [cm]) – (6,775 x [age])
The obtained result should be multiplied by the PAL coefficient defining physical activity:
1,4 – 1,69 – low physical activity;
1,70 – 1,99 – moderate physical activity;
2,00 – 2,40 – high physical activity;
Of course, there are also catering companies on the market that allow you to calculate the caloric demand. The problem is then the narrow scope of the offer. For example, a person who needs 1700 kcal can choose only a 1500 kcal or 2000 kcal package.
Macronutrients
Most catering diets are characterized by the dominance of the selected nutrient. A rational diet assumes the consumption of protein at the level of 14 – 16% of energy, fat 30%, while carbohydrates should supplement the energy demand. When analyzing sample menus from catering, it turns out that the diet defined as basic is in fact high-protein. The proportion of protein in the diet reaches up to 25%, but there is no tragedy with long-term use, it can damage the kidneys and liver. Another company in its offer serves dishes that provide carbohydrates at the level of up to 70%. In addition, a large proportion of them are simple sugars in the form of a fruit cocktail for lunch and cakes for afternoon tea. Is it dietary? Simple sugars when consumed in excessive amounts are deposited in the body in the form of adipose tissue, and this is certainly not the effect we expect.
Heating up
For busy people, the time of preparing meals is very important, which in the case of dietary catering is extremely short. It is enough to put the dish in the microwave and after a few minutes you can eat. However, this is not the best way to warm up a meal. It has been shown that the microwave destroys organic structures, including proteins. As a consequence, the nutritional value of the consumed meal drops significantly.
Delivery of meals
Some companies available on the market only reach the customer three times a week. For the weekend, we get kits for three days in advance. Maybe a better solution is to prepare at least weekend meals from freshly bought products?
Price
The package cost varies from 250 – 450 PLN per week. The purchase of meals for the whole family is then unprofitable. However, in the case of people living alone, such a price offer may be tempting. In addition, a big plus is the fact that you do not have to waste excess food, and the dishes served are varied.
Despite the aforementioned disadvantages, I believe that dietary catering available on the market is a good alternative for people who eat unhealthy fast food due to lack of time. Of course, catering is not equal to catering, so let’s pay attention to what the company offers us. If we plan to buy a package, let’s start with a weekly one, not for the entire year, so that in case of doubt, we can change the decision.
The photos were taken by Małgorzata Leliwa