There are many types of diets, each with a specific goal. We often think of weight loss, heart health, and diabetes diets. A therapeutic diet might restrict nutrients like carbs, fats, and proteins, while others might encourage their intake. The variety of diets and how they can be combined can be complex.

What is a Regular Diet

A regular diet or normal diet includes all kinds of foods, and you can eat whatever you like. It may or may not be healthy, but there are no strict rules. You can choose your portion sizes and meal frequency. It’s flexible and tailored to your preferences.

What is a Therapeutic Diet

A therapeutic diet is a special meal plan designed to manage specific nutrients or foods, typically part of a medical treatment. Doctors prescribe them, and dietitians create them. These diets are usually adaptations of regular diets, customized to meet an individual’s nutritional requirements. 

They can be adjusted for nutrient control, texture, or to accommodate food allergies or intolerances.

When Does a Person Need a Therapeutic Diet

Therapeutic diets are often prescribed for various reasons:

• Maintain nutrition
• Restore nutrition
• Correct nutrition
• Reduce calories for weight management
• Increase calories for weight gain
• Balance carbs, fats, and proteins for diabetes control
• Boost specific nutrients like protein
• Reduce certain nutrients like sodium
• Eliminate allergenic foods or intolerances
• Modify textures for chewing or swallowing issues.

Types Of Therapeutic Diets

Nutrient Adjustments

• No concentrated sweets diet: Involves regular foods without added sugar
• Diabetic diets: Manages calorie, carbohydrate, protein, and fat intake for balanced nutrition, blood sugar regulation, and weight control. Common calorie levels include 1,200, 1,500, 1,800, and 2,000.
• No added salt diet: It involves seasoning food just like regular meals but without the addition of salt.
• Low sodium diet: also known as 2-gram Sodium Diet
• Low fat and low cholesterol diet: Keep fat intake under 50 grams or 30% of calories. Focus on low total fat, saturated fat, and around 250-300 mg cholesterol.

• High fiber diet: Boost fiber intake with a mix of sources like fruits, legumes, vegetables, whole grains, and cereals.
• Renal diet: Limits sodium, potassium, fluid, and protein to specific levels.

Texture Adjustments

• Mechanical soft diet: Changes the consistency of the regular diet to a softer texture.
• Puree diet: the regular diet is pureed into a smooth liquid consistency.

Food allergy or Intolerance Adjustments

Tube Feedings

• Liquid tube feedings instead of meals
• Liquid tube feedings along with meals

Extra Nutrition

Alongside regular meals, extra nourishment can be prescribed in the form of:

• Supplements, typically liquid nutritional shakes taken once, twice, or thrice a day, with meals or in between.
• Nourishments, as snack foods or beverages between meals in the mid-morning and/or mid-afternoon.
• HS snack, a snack at bedtime.

Summary

Therapeutic diets are specialized eating plans tailored to manage specific health conditions. These are crucial components of comprehensive treatment plans, playing a pivotal role in promoting wellness and managing chronic conditions.

Reference: https://www.cdss.ca.gov/agedblinddisabled/res/VPTC2/9%20Food%20Nutrition%20and%20Preparation/Types_of_Therapeutic_Diets.pdf