As part of its wide-ranging remit, HCC engages with health professionals to share factual, evidence-based resources on red meat.
Members of the team exhibited at the Royal College of Midwifery Conference back in February to highlight the important role of red meat during and post pregnancy. To reinforce this message, HCC attended the Maternity and Midwifery Festival in Cardiff in September.
During the event, the team spoke to midwives about the important nutrients and vitamins included in red meat and distributed recipes for sharing with their patients. HCC’s Consumer Executive, Elwen Roberts held cooking demonstrations to entice the crowd, offering samples of balanced meals which would provide pregnant women with the minerals they need to boost their nutrition.
HCC also teamed up with lead specialist dietician, Sioned Quirke who presented at the event on the topic of ‘Healthy eating for antenatal and postnatal health.’ With over 20 years’ experience working in the NHS and privately, and a master’s degree in Advanced Dietetic Practice, her top tips included choosing lean cuts of meat and trimming off visible fat, ensuring that meat is cooked thoroughly (not pink inside) and avoiding liver and liver products during pregnancy. Sioned also emphasised the nutritional value of red meat for pregnant women as an excellent source of protein and iron.
She said: “Lean red meat like beef, lamb and pork can be a good source of protein, iron, zinc and Vitamin B12. If pregnant, eating cooked red meat in the recommended portion size (70g a day or 500g over the course of a week) can have numerous health benefits such as strengthening the immune system, supplying long-term energy, building and fixing body tissues and protecting the body from infections.”
Elwen Roberts said: “Eating healthily during pregnancy is important for mother and baby. It’s advisable to eat a variety of different foods every day to get the right balance of nutrients, and that includes red meat.
“The response we received from the midwives that engaged with us was very positive. We hope that they will encourage their patients in all corners of Wales to enjoy red meat as part of their diets.”
HCC’s resources for health professionals, as well as educators, can be found on a dedicated website: Health & Education - United Kingdom
