Nutrition during the lifecycle: the prevention of chronic disease in adulthood

In adulthood the overconsumption of food leads to overweight and obesity, then metabolic decline, which may in turn lead to diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Thus consuming foods that are less likely to lead to overweight is an important aim. It means going back to the basics and making sure foods that deliver essential nutrients are included in the diet and then working with the balance of energy (calories) left on other foods and drinks.

Recall that in Chapter 6 the concepts of energy and nutrient density were discussed. Long-term observational studies have shown a positive association in most cases between dietary energy density and weight gain [1]. The concepts of energy and nutrient density address the need to consume multiple nutrients but at the same time stay within energy needs [2, 3]. It is also about managing the nutrition budget, similar to spending moneyonessentialitems and not incurring financial problems