Draft Australian Dietary Guidelines (PDF, 3MB) - Eat For Health

Dietary patterns consistent with the Guidelines improve healthRecent reviews of the evidence on food and health confirm that dietary patterns consistent withthe Guidelines are positively associated with indicators of health and wellbeing.Two systematic reviews found that higher dietary quality was consistently associated with a 10–20% reduction in morbidity. For example, there is evidence of a probable association betweenconsumption of a Mediterranean dietary pattern and reduced mortality (Grade B, Section 20.1 inEvidence Report [14]) [15-17]. Previous studies have also indicated inverse associations betweenplant-based diets and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, particularly among older adults [18-20]. The effects of dietary quality tended to be greater for men than women, with commondeterminants being age, education and socioeconomic status [21, 22].There is likely to be great variation in the interpretation and implementation of dietary guidelines.Nevertheless, when a wide range of eating patterns was assessed for compliance with differentguidelines using a variety of qualitative tools, the assessment suggested an association betweenadherence to national dietary guidelines and recommendations, and reduced morbidity andmortality (Grade C, Section 20.3 in Evidence Report [14]) [21, 22].More recent evidence from Western societies confirms that dietary patterns consistent withcurrent guidelines recommending relatively high amounts of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, poultry,fish, and reduced fat milk, yoghurt and cheese products may be associated with superiornutritional status, quality of life and survival in older adults [23, 24]. Robust modelling of dietarypatterns in accordance with dietary guidelines has demonstrated achievable reductions inpredicted cardiovascular and cancer disease mortality in the population, particularly with increasedconsumption of fruit and vegetables [25].In relation to obesity, actual dietary recommendations and measures of compliance and weightoutcomes vary greatly in published studies. Overall energy intake is the key dietary factor affectingweight status (see Chapter 4).1.2 Social determinants of food choices andhealthLife expectancy and health status are relatively high overall in Australia [12, 26]. Nonetheless,there are differences in the health and wellbeing between Australians, including in rates of deathand disease, life expectancy, self-perceived health, health behaviours, health risk factors, and use ofhealth services [27-29].The causes of health inequities are largely outside the health system and relate to the inequitabledistribution of social, economic and cultural resources and opportunities [27-29]. Employment,DRAFT Australian Dietary Guidelines- December 2011 8