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Food on wheels with big deficiencies Lots of salt and no vitamin C.
A healthy diet should be balanced, with little fat, sugar and salt, but more vitamins and minerals. Especially older people are advised to eat healthily. But those who rely on food on wheels will not find it easy. As the NDR noted, menus of delivery services can be quite unhealthy.
Eating on wheels can be unhealthy
In order to stay fit and healthy until old age, it is not only important to move regularly, but also to eat healthily. Seniors who are supplied with food on wheels, but this should not be so easy. As the Norddeutsche Rundfunk reports online, menus of delivery services can be unhealthy. The research of the NDR economic and consumer magazine "market" have revealed. According to the information, all the meals examined were conspicuous - as measured by recommendations of the German Nutrition Society (DGE).
The NDR consumer magazine "Markt" has tested several menus of delivery services and found that eating on wheels can be unhealthy. (Image: Hildebrandt / fotolia.com) Dishes tested by different suppliers
Was examined food on wheels from five well-known providers, where in each case the most expensive court was ordered. As the laboratory analysis showed, the food studied contained no detectable vitamin C. The amounts of calcium and magnesium were sometimes very low. On the other hand, most foods had a noticeably high salt content. The dishes examined were Meyer Menu, Hanse Menüdienst, Johanniter menu service in Hamburg, Hamburger Küche and Landhausküche.
No menu tested contained vitamin C.
"If you order food on wheels, you should realize that meals have been kept warm for a long time, sometimes for many hours, and that many vitamins are reduced or even completely dissolved," said nutritionist and diabetologist Dr. med. Matthias Riedl opposite "Market". Vitamin C was actually not detectable in any of the five selected meals. According to Riedl, a lack of vitamin C could possibly lead to an infection tendency and wound healing disorders. It is said that none of the providers commented on undetectable vitamin C in their respective courts.
Little calcium and magnesium
Especially little calcium was contained in a fish dish of the Johanniter menu service: Only 87 milligrams resulted in the test. That's less than a third of the DGE recommendation for food on wheels (333 milligrams). The Rostbratwurst with mashed potatoes and red cabbage from Meyer Menü contained the least amount of magnesium. At 56 milligrams, the salary was well below the DGE recommendation of 117 milligrams. "Both minerals are important for our bone health," said Riedl. Magnesium deficiency can lead among other things to muscle cramps or confusion. At the request of "Markt," the Johanniter-Menüdienst replied that it was not realistic to draw conclusions about nutrient supply from a single diet. Meyer menu did not comment on that.
High salt intake endangers the health
According to the report, four out of five foods contained relatively much salt. Most of it was determined in the Matjes with fried potatoes and bacon beans, supplied by the Hamburger kitchen: 8.7 grams. "You should not eat more than six grams of salt per day," says Riedl. High salt intake can increase the risk of diseases such as high blood pressure, heart attack or stroke according to health experts. The supplier Hamburger Küche reported in writing that the market testers had in the sample "opted for a North German specialty and not for a calorie and low-salt variant".
Less meat - more vegetables
As the NDR further reports, the Hamburg nutritionist Anja Thiesbürger finds the diets of most suppliers of food on wheels too meaty. The expert recommends eating no more than three times a week and at least one fish a week. This should be plenty of vegetables and a carbohydrate side dish, preferably from wholegrain, on the table. The nutritionist believes it is important for delivery services to publish food calories and nutritional values on the Internet so consumers can find out before ordering. According to the report, this only makes Meyer menu of the tested providers. The program "Markt" will be broadcast on Monday, April 4, at 8:15 pm on NDR television. (Ad)