Some people have a type or different types of health implications that stop them from consuming certain foods, some examples of different health factors are diabetes mellitus, lactose intolerance, irritable bowel syndrome, coeliac disease and food allergies. As some people need to avoid certain foods they will have a different diet than others, in order to still have a healthy diet it can be harder and more complicated, plus sometimes it can be more expensive. Diabetes mellitus is when your body does not produce enough insulin, your body is not correctly using it, or it is being produced n small quantities.
If you do not get this treated the most severe thing that can happen is death because the lack of glucose within your cells and organs. If you have diabetes you must see a registered dietician. If you do not keep a well-balanced diet when you have diabetes you can eventually suffer from serious conditions such as kidney failure, strokes, blindness and gangrene which can as a result cause you to your lower limbs amputated. There are two types of diabetes mellitus; the most dangerous is insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), it also has the name of type 1 diabetes.
The less dangerous form of diabetes mellitus is non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM); it also has the name of type 2 diabetes. NIDDM can be treated by diet and medicine or just a diet, whereas IDDM can only be treated by insulin injections. I have acquired this information from the book ‘Health and social care, BTEC national, level 3, book 1’. I recommend that you keep sugary foods on hand in case your blood pressure becomes low, also if you are a student tell your teachers of your condition so they are aware of your situation in case anything happens during class.
A negative influence is your friends if they eat a lot of foods high in sugar because it can cause you to want to also eat these foods which would be bad for your health as it can cause you to have high blood pressure. Coeliac disease is when you have an intolerance from gluten, gluten can be found in wheat and barley. The gluten causes the body’s immune system to create antibodies that attack the bowls lining, this affects the body’s ability to absorb the nutrients from the foods we consume. If we do not absorb the nutrients from our food we can get osteoporosis and anaemia, lus it can cause an increased risk of getting bowel cancer.
The symptoms of coeliac disease are diarrhoea, constipation, abdominal pain, inability to gain weight in your childhood, weight loss during adulthood and anaemia. Because people with coeliac disease need to avoid foods containing barley and wheat they would need to by gluten-free products that are more expensive and have a limited selection. I recommend that if you live with anyone they know what foods you need to avoid so they do not give you any of them, I suggest writing a list of the foods you cannot eat and the alternative ption, this is so that if it is not you doing the shopping the person knows what to buy instead.
There are a few negative influences that can affect you, such as the people around you, they can be eating foods containing gluten and do not have any alternative foods for you to eat. To avoid this you can tell the people in advance of your condition so they can buy foods that you are able to consume, that way you do not feel like an outsider and that you are different and causing them inconvenience. If a patient in an elderly care home had coeliac disease it is important for the workers to know so they are able o give them the diet they need and so they do not give them any foods containing gluten.
Iritable bowel syndrome, or IBS, is a condition where your bowl is easily distressed and can cause you to have abdominal pain, bloating, flatulence (gas), diarrhoea and/or constipation. There is no clear medical reason for irritable bowel syndrome as from observations and medical examinations the bowel has no abnormality to it. Some people are able to know what foods have caused them to have the symptoms of IBS; individuals concluded that when they take some antibiotics they have IBS symptoms.
There is no clear way to treat IBS, most people recommend that you change your diet and find out what foods cause it to become worse, this is so you can avoid them in some the future. I recommend that if you do have IBS you find out what foods you react to so you do not eat them in public or before going out because if you had any of the symptoms in public you can become embarrassed. If you are in a hospital and they give you food that causes you to have a reaction, it can be humiliating, but if you knew what foods or antibiotics to avoid you can tell them not to give you any to avoid the embarrassment.
Lactose is the natural sugar within milk and has been known to be a very common type of intolerance. Lactose intolerance is when your body does not produce lactase, which is an enzyme that breaks lactose into glucose and galactose then is absorbed during the digestion process. Lactose can be found in many types of foods, for example milk, cheese and ice cream, but if you cut out thee products from your diet then you can gain a calcium deficiency. That is why you would need to find a substitute.
If you have a severe condition of lactose intolerance then you may have trouble gaining weight and can suffer from aving diarrhoea. In some schools they have school lunches, if you consumed these lunches and they contained lactose it could cause you to have diarrhoea in school. To avoid this I recommend telling the staff of the school, specifically the lunch ladies, so they do not give you foods containing lactose. Some individuals have an allergy to certain foods.
A majority of people confuse a food allergy with a food intolerance, but a food allergy is more dangerous and serious. Allergic reactions can be lethal. Any type of foods can cause allergic reactions, but some foods are more common than other, for example hellfish, fish and nuts ae the most common things an adult is allergic to. But with children wheat, cow’s milk, soya and eggs are the most common allergens. There are six symptoms of an allergic reaction, a person is able to experience and develop from one to six of these symptoms within the time space of a few minutes or hours.
The six symptoms are a rash, swollen mouth, lips, tongue and/or throat, wheezing, red itchy eyes, itchy mouth and diarrhoea and/or vomiting. Some individual’s bodies develop a severe allergic reaction named anaphylactic shock. Anaphylactic shock is when you can ave symptoms throughout the whole body, it causes a rash (hives), swelling, unconsciousness, breathing problems and low blood pressure. It is a possible lethal allergic reaction that is very rare. You must be extremely careful about what you eat so you do not consume any substance you are allergic to.
If you have a severe allergy to any foods an Epipen would be prescribed to you the person must have this on hand at all times. The person with the allergy and someone or people close to them should be trained to use an Epipen encase they accidently consume a ubstance they are allergic to and go into anaphylactic shock. I suggest that to avoid accidently eating these foods tell a waitress if you are at a restaurant what you are allergic to so they do no give you any foods containing the substance.
If you went into anaphylactic shock in public without someone who knows that you are severely allergic to something, I suggest wearing a bracelet or necklace that has the information on it. On the necklace or bracelet write what you are allergic to and instructions on how to use an Epipen. It can also be helpful for when an ambulance comes so they have your basic information nd know the reason as to why you are in anaphylactic shock. It is ill-fated that some people are unable to feed independently, it could have happened because of an accident or due to a development of a condition they have.
Some people may not be able to eat food through the mouth and have to be fed through the vain or by a tube. There are many tools that could be used so the individual is able to eat independently if they have trouble doing so, for example non-slip Matts and wide-handled cutlery can be used. One other way for the individual to have some independence is to cut up their food into small pieces efore serving so it is easier for them to eat it without needing any help. In some cases it is impossible for a person to eat by themselves, they need help and support.
It is important that you create a relaxed environment when you are feeding them so they do not feel threatened or like they are an annoyance, you should always give meals that are hot. You should tell the person that you are going to feed them because they might be confused and feel vulnerable, it is especially important if they are visually impaired. You would need to make sure that they have had nough to eat and are drinking frequently, but when they are drinking you should only give them one mouthful at a time so they do not choke.
You need to wash the face and hands of the individual before and after the meal to ensure that they are clean, if a person is fed through a tube it can become a problem for their digestive system. if a person has a difficult time swallowing they would be prone to choking, being of this you should cut the meal up into small pieces before serving and always keep an eye on the person whilst their eating in case they do start to choke.
In a nursery if a child has to be fed through a tube they can be picked on and teased for being different, this can be a negative influence on then as it could cause them to feel like an outsider and different. I suggest to overcome this the other children get told as to why the child is being fed through a tube so they understand that it is not unnatural and weird, this can cause them to not to feel self-conscious about the way they eat.
