Basic Nutrition
Nutrients are the substances that the body needs to regulate body functions, promote growth, repair body tissues, and obtain energy. Your body requires many different nutrients to maintain homeostasis. There are six classes of nutrients:
- carbohydrates
- fat
- proteins
- vitamins
- minerals
- water
Carbohydrates:
are nutrients made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. There are two general types of carbohydrates: simple and complex.
Simple carbohydrates consists of sugars. Glucose is the most important of these sugars because it goes directly into the blood stream to provide quick bursts of energy to the cells of the body. Sugars are naturally found in fruits, vegetables and milk.
Complex carbohydrates are made up of sugars that are linked together chemically to form long chains known as starches. Starches are better providers of long-term, sustained energy and are found in potatoes, rice, cereals, and breads. Extra glucose is converted into a type of starch called glycogen. When glucose is needed, glycogen is converted back to glucose.
Fiber is a type of complex carbohydrate that is found in plants. Fiber is not really a nutrient because it cannot be broken down and then absorbed into the bloodstream. Fiber plays a necessary role in maintaing homeostasis within the diegestive system. Fiber passes through the body without being digested, helping prevent constipation and reducing the risk to some cancers. Fiber can be fond in whole-grain bread, cereals, fruits, seeds, and vegetables.
Fats are the nutrients with thehighest energy content. It is recommended that approximately 30% of your daily calory intake come from fat. Fats are also composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Fats serve three major functions of the body:
- Supply energy to the body
- Protect vital organs
- Provide insulation to maitain body temperature
There are two groups of fats:
Unsaturated Fats have fewer than the maximum possible number of hydrogen atoms in their structure. These fats include polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. Unsaturated fats are usually a liquid at room temperature and can be found in vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds.
Saturated Fats contain as many hydrogen atoms in their structure as is possible chemically. Usually saturated fats are a solid at room temperature. Saturated fats can be found in animal fat and dairy products. Saturated fats can affect the cholesterol level in the blood. Cholesterol is a waxy , fatlike substance found in the cells of all animals. The body needs cholesterol, but elevated levels of cholesterol are associated with heart disease. Cholesterol can collect in blood vessels and clog them. Cholesterol is found in animals, (meats), dairy products, and eggs. The body also manufactures its own choleserol.
Proteins are nutrients that contain nitrogen as well as carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. Proteins aid in the growth and repair of the body. Proteins are long chains of smaller links bound together chemically. The smaller links are known as amino acids. The digestive system brakes down the protein in your food into individual amino acids. These amino acids are them absorbed into the blood stream and transported to the cells, where the amino acids are reassembled to form new proteins. The pretein in the body are made up of 20 different amino acids. A persons diet must supply nine amino acids and the body can manufacture the other eleven. The nine amino acids that cannot be manufatured by the body are called essential amino acids.These essential amino acids can be found in fish and meats. other high protein foods are eggs, poultry, milk, and milk products, and beans. To obtain all the essential amino acids form plant protein alone, you must consume a variety of plant sources together.
Vitamines are nutrients that are made by living things and assist many chemical reactions in the body. Vitamins aid the body with various processes and do not provide the body with energy or the raw materials of which your cells are made of. There are two classes of vitamins:
Fat-soluble vitamins dissolve in fatty materials of the body. The fat soluble vitamins include A, D, E, and K, which can be stored in the fat deposits of the body.
Water-soluble vitamins: dissolve in water. The body cannot store water-soluble vitamins, so these vitamins must be supplied through an individual's diet.
Minerals: are nutrients that are not manufactured by living organisms. Minerals occur naturally in rocks and soil. Twenty-four different minerals have been discovered to be essential for good health. You need six of these minerals in significant amounts. These minerals are calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, and chlorine. You need only trace amounts of other minerals, such as fluorine, iodine, iron, sulfur, copper, and zink.