Nutrition Basics and Terminology

Flashcards covering essential terminology and concepts in nutrition based on lecture notes.

Diet

The kind and amount of food consumed each day.

Food

Anything that nourishes the body.

Nourish

To keep alive.

Nutrition

The study of how food keeps us alive, including ingestion, digestion, absorption, assimilation, and excretion of food.

Nutritional Sciences

The study of nutrition including dietary components and metabolism.

Nutrient

Molecular substances that are nourishing or that provide nourishment to cells and thus every multicellular component of the human organism.

Essential Nutrients

The body cannot make these nutrients, they must be consumed.

Nonessential Nutrients

Nutrients that the body can make and do not need to be consumed.

Energy-Producing Nutrients

Nutrients that produce calories when metabolized by the body

Kilocalorie (Calorie)

The unit used to measure energy, defined as the amount of heat required to raise one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.

How do we apply this definition to the energy applied to food?

By using a Bomb Calorimeter.

ATP

Adenosine Tri-Phosphate, the ultimate fuel used in the body.

We capture the chemical energy between the carbon-carbon bonds in digestible Carbohydrates, Fats and Proteins to form ATP

Food keeps us alive by providing Calories (energy) and Nutrients. The relationship between Calories and Nutrients is called: Nutrient Density

The amount of nutrients provided relative to the number of calories in food.Foods with high nutrient density are nutritious.

Sound Diet Characteristics

Include calorie control, adequacy, balance, moderation, and variety.

Malnutrition

Impairment of health resulting from deficiency, toxicity, or imbalance of nutrient intake.

Longevity Factors

Diet, exercise, and other lifestyle factors that affect lifespan.

Hunger

The physiological need for food.

Satiety

Physiological feedback mechanisms that terminate food intake.

Appetite

The psychological desire for food.

Omnivore

An individual who consumes both plant and animal foods.

Vegetarian

An individual who consumes primarily plant foods with limits on animal foods.

Vegan

A strict vegetarian with no animal products consumed.

Semi-vegetarian

Primarily a vegetarian with some restrictions on animal foods.

Non-Energy-Producing

Do not provide Calories but have other important functions.

Energy-Producing Nutrients (Macronutrients)

• Carbohydrates, Fats, and Proteins

• Provide Calories

Essential Non-Energy-Producing-Nutrients

• Are non-caloric

• Vitamins & Minerals (Micronutrients) 

• Water

Energy-Producing Nutrients

• Carbohydrates* provide 4 Calories per gram

• Proteins provide 4 Calories per gram

• Fats provide 9 Calories per gram

• Alcohol provides 7 Calories per gram

Carbohydrates

the High Performance Fuel

• Carbs are fast and best at making ATP 

Fats

the Low Level Fuel

• Fats are very slow to produce ATP

Proteins

the building blocks for growth and repair

• Only under intense stress does protein provide ATP

• Loads of toxic waste is produced when protein is over consumed

The Non-Energy-Producing
(non-caloric) Nutrients

• No ability to generate ATP

• No Calorie value

• Some non-caloric nutrients can be essential for the body

• Physiological failure or death occurs if the nutrient is withheld from the diet

The Goal of Eating

To fuel and nourish the body optimally

Calorie Control

An appropriate amount of Calories are eaten to maintain a healthy body weight.

Adequacy

Essential nutrients, fiber, and energy (Calories) are present in the diet.

Balance

Food types complement one another in the diet. Not any one nutrient or food type is overbearing.

Moderation

The diet does not contain an excess of unwanted substances.

Variety

Different foods are used for the same purpose in the diet.

• Result of a sound diet:

  • Health:

• The state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being; not just the absence of infirmity.

• Result of a poor diet:

  • Malnutrition:

• Impairment of health resulting from deficiency, toxicity, or imbalance of nutrient intake or body utilization (includes over-nutrition and under-nutrition).