An Introduction to Nutrition
- WHAT IS NUTRITION:
- Nutrition is a complex science that has a few topics - physiology, anatomy, pathology, food chemistry, sociology and psychology
- HISTORY:
- During the 20th century, the role of nutrients in health and disease was discovered.
- Nutrition is also important for good health - physical and mental well-being
- GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE:
- Developing countries are also seeing a rise in diet-related diseases as they start to adopt the western diet.
- In less developed regions, famine and chronic under-nutrition remain a constant threat.
- In the UK, there are major inequalities in health linked to poor diet.
- MEDIA:
- There is noticeable nutrition in the media every single day
- HEALTHY DIET:
- A healthy diet is needed because it offers the best protection against the risk of disease and it provides sufficient energy and nutrients to maintain normal physiological functions ad the grow and replacement of body tissues
- By eating the wrong things you are at risk of getting overweight, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.
- Some tips for eating healthy - Base your meals on starchy foods, eat lots of fruit and veg, eat more fish, cut down on saturated fat and sugar, try to eat less salt (no more than 6g a day), get active and try to be a healthy weight, drink plenty of water and do not skip breakfast
- ENERGY:
- Energy is fundamental fro survival
- Energy is derived from the metabolism of carbohydrate, fat and protein in food. Men must have 10,600 kj per day and women must have 8,100 kj per day
- MACRO NUTRIENTS:
- Carbohydrate is rapidly broken down to glucose and is the most readily available source of energy.
- Fat is a concentrated source of energy, provides essential fatty acids and carries fat soluble vitamins
- Protein provides amino acids essential for growth and repair of body tissues, can be used as a source of energy when necessary
- It is recommended that about 50% of total energy should come from carbohydrate, no more than 35% of energy from total fat and 15% of energy from protein.
- DIETRY FIBRE:
- Dietry fibre is not obsorbed by the body
- It is to maintain normal bowel function, it also increases satiety, helps to lower blood cholesterol levels and boost immunity
- It is recommended that we eat 18g of dietry fibre per day, this is linked to fruit and veg intakes. It is recommended that we eat at least 5 portions per day of fruit and veg per day.
- WATER:
- Water is essential for life, survival time without water can be a matter of days or hours.
- Dehydration can lead to thirst, headaches loss of concentration and some poor health outcomes, such as constipation
- Water is provided by both food and drink