Guidelines Dietary - Eat For Health

Food groupFirst quintile(mostdisadvantaged)SecondquintileThirdquintileFourthquintileFifth quintile(leastdisadvantaged)Alcohol (g) 13.4 13.3 14.3 14.6 13.8Vitamin A (µg) 1280 1299 1236 1218 1329Thiamin (mg) 1.81 1.74 1.81 1.83 1.80Riboflavin (mg) 2.27 2.18 2.24 2.25 2.22Niacin (mg) 45.8 45.9 45.6 45.5 45.9Folate (μg) 289 286 299 272 292Vitamin C (mg) 132 131 130 135 142Calcium (mg) 907 888 900 926 945Phosphorus (mg) 1626 1631 1630 1654 1673Magnesium (mg) 353 356 354 361 366Iron (mg) 15.1 15.0 15.3 15.4 15.6Zinc (mg) 12.9 13.07 12.8 13.0 13.3Potassium (mg) 3541 3495 3507 3528 3551Because inadequate nutritional status is part of the ‘vicious cycle’ of malnutrition and infection, higher prevalenceof undernutrition in lower socioeconomic groups further contributes to the incidence, severity and case fatality ofchildhood illnesses 884 and incidence of chronic disease in later life.A3Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoplesDiet-related health outcomesAboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia suffer significant health inequities compared with thebroader community. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people typically die at much younger ages and are morelikely to experience ill health, disability and reduced quality of life. 988 Poor nutrition is a major risk factor for many ofthe diseases with higher prevalence among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups and it has been estimatedthat 19% of the national Indigenous burden of disease is attributable to poor diet. 992Socioeconomic disadvantage underlies many of these health statistics. 993 Compared with non-IndigenousAustralians, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples report lower incomes, higher rates of unemployment,lower educational attainment, more overcrowded and inadequate housing, 994 higher rates of incarceration andlimited access to transport. 24 Disrupted family and community cohesion, social marginalisation, stress, lack ofcontrol over circumstances, and discrimination and racism are also apparent. 28,993Overweight and obesity are common. 28,311 Measured anthropometric data for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanderpeoples are unavailable, however less reliable self-reported data indicated that more than half of Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over were overweight or obese. 995Undernutrition among young children and relatively poor growth from around 6 months of age persists in someparts of Australia. 996-999Foetal alcohol syndrome is also still present in some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. 863,864Vitamin and mineral status has been measured infrequently in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. 28Multiple deficiencies have frequently been described in the same subject, suggesting the generally poor nutritionalstatus of such individuals, rather than a specific micronutrient problem. In particular, vitamin status (in relationto folate, ascorbic acid and beta-carotene) consistent with low intakes of fruit and vegetables has often beendescribed. 7,352 More recently iodine deficiency in an Aboriginal birth cohort in the Northern Territory 1000 and lowvitamin D status in a South Australian Aboriginal population 1001 have been found.AppendicesNational Health and Medical Research Council105