Development of food-based dietary guidelines for South Africa - the process.

Abstract

This paper reviews the motivation behind and the process of development of positive practical affordable sustainable and culturally sensitive food-based dietary guidelines (FBDGs) to help South Africans over the age of 5 years to choose an adequate but prudent diet. The guidelines are based on the existing consumption of locally available foods and aim to address identified nutrition-related public health problems. The FBDGs consist of 10 short clear and simple messages which have been tested for comprehension appropriateness and applicability in consumer groups of different ethnic backgrounds in both rural and urban areas. (authors)