scotPHO introduction:
  Alcohol
  Diet & Nutrition
  Key points
Introduction
  Policy context
  Data
  Key data sources
  References
  Useful links
  Drugs
  Multiple Risk Factors
  Physical Activity
  Sexual Health
  Tobacco Use
Text Only  |  Text Size: A |  A+ |  A++

Diet and nutrition: introduction

The links between diet and nutrition, and health/ill-health

Good nutrition throughout life is essential to good health.  Eating a healthy diet can help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease, stroke, cancers, obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and tooth decay (WHO/FAO, 2003)PDF Button (723kb). Diet also plays a major role in managing certain diseases, eg diabetes.  

Although outwith the scope of these web pages, it is worth noting that the health of a proportion of the population may be affected by:

  • allergy to, or intolerance of, certain foods
  • food-borne disease, eg gastro-intestinal infections caused by Salmonella and Campylobacter species, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD).

Poor diet and nutrition is a major cause of ill-health and premature death in Scotland today.  The two leading causes of death in Scotland are cancer and coronary heart disease (CHD).  An estimated one-third of all cases of CHD are attributable to diet (European Heart Network, 1998).  Dietary factors are also thought to play a role in about one-third of all cancer deaths, although the links between specific dietary components and cancer are less well established than those between diet and CHD (Doll and Peto (1981)).  One example is that colorectal (bowel) cancer, the third most common cancer in both men and women in Scotland, appears to be linked to high consumption of red and processed meats and low consumption of dietary fibre (Health Education Authority, 1999).  Meanwhile, increasing intake of fruit and vegetables can significantly reduce the risk of many chronic diseases (WHO/FAO, 2003)PDF Button. 

The influence of diet and nutrition on health and wellbeing begins pre-birth, with maternal diet being found to play a role in pregnancy outcomes (NHS Health Scotland, 2005)PDF Button. In childhood and young adulthood, healthy eating is vital to brain and body development.  Key, too, is the formation of eating habits in early years.  There are, however, growing concerns about poor nutrition and diet among children and young people, including increased consumption of foods high in saturated fats, added sugar and salt.  An associated issue is the rising levels of overweight and obesity among children.  Scotland's children also have one of the worst records of dental decay in the western world - for more information see the oral health section of this website.

What is healthy eating?

For advice and information regarding healthy eating see:

Alcohol consumption also impacts upon diet and health.

Finally, to improve overall health and maintain a healthy body weight, healthy eating needs to be combined with physical activity.