and vegetables is advocated. Fruits and selected vegetables such as carrots are recommended as healthy snacks, but these are hardly viewed as such by the general population. Excessive use of saltfish is discouraged, but sardines canned in water are promoted for the iron and calcium.
A continuing challenge is that traditional dishes tend to combine calorie dense foods. Nutritionists who understand multimixes can break out the ingredients into their separate food groups so that individuals realize how much they are consuming. For example, the roti meal contains the roti skin as a staple food, fat, the filling of legumes or food from animal, and vegetables. People are encouraged to serve each item separately on the plate rather than wrapping the roti. This way, they can more easily reduce the helping size of each item.
The conventional American serving sizes have been adapted to the Caribbean food options listed in
CFNI publications, notably “Meal Planning for Diabetes,” “Chronic Renal Failure–A Diet Guide for the Caribbean,” and “Nutrition and Cancer Therapy.” There are also nutrition care protocols for treatment of chronic disorders, including information for those with limited training in nutrition (21).
The population is considered highly literate, and they respond favorably to information in writing, such as food substitution lists. People are also receptive to group sessions led by nutrition officers.
