NCMA 215: Nutrition and Diet Therapy Flashcards

These vocabulary flashcards cover the fundamental concepts of nutrition and diet therapy, including macronutrients, micronutrients, nursing roles, metabolic processes, and lifespan nutrition requirements.

Health

The complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

Nursing

A caring profession practiced with an earnest concern for the art of care and science of health.

Promotive Nursing Goal

Actions or measures designed to support behavior conducive to health.

Preventive Nursing Goal

Actions or measures designed to protect individuals, families, groups, or communities from harm to their health.

Curative Nursing Goal

Actions or measures designed to correct or remove disease or any illness.

Rehabilitative Nursing Goal

Actions or measures designed to restore health and promote recovery from any alteration of health.

Caregiver

A nurse role focused on helping clients promote, restore, and maintain dignity, health, and wellness.

Advocate

A nurse role that promotes what is best for the client and protects client rights.

Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy

A theory of basic human needs ranging from physiologic needs (oxygen, fluids, nutrition) to self-actualization.

Digestion

The process where foods are broken down for the body to use in growth, development, healing, and prevention of diseases.

Absorption

The process where digested nutrients are actively and passively transported through the intestinal mucosa into the blood or lymphatic circulation.

Metabolism

Complex chemical process that occurs in the cells to allow for energy use and for cellular growth and repair.

Nutrition (Science)

The science of food and nutrients, their action and interaction, in relation to providing the body with substances to maintain homeostasis.

Macronutrients

Major nutritional components required in relatively large amounts, specifically proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

Micronutrients

Nutritional components present in relatively small amounts, such as vitamins and minerals.

Carbohydrates (CHO)

Organic compounds composed of Carbon, Hydrogen, and Oxygen that serve as the primary source of fuel for the brain and body; provides $4\,calories/gram$.

Gluconeogenesis

The process by which protein is converted into glucose for use by the body.

Ketosis

A process where the body converts lipids to glucose for energy when carbohydrates are scarce, often resulting in the formation of ketone bodies.

Glucose

Also known as 'physiologic sugar' or 'blood sugar', it is the principal form of sugar used by the body's brain, nerve cells, and red blood cells.

Fructose

Known as 'fruit sugar' or 'levulose', it is identified as the sweetest of all sugars.

Galactosemia

A metabolic disorder where infants are born with an inability to metabolize galactose.

Glycogen

Often called 'animal starch', it is the storage form of carbohydrates in the body, found in the liver and muscles.

Glycogenolysis

The process of converting liver glycogen back into glucose for the body's use.

Fiber (Roughage)

The indigestible part of food and primary constituent of plant cell walls that aids digestion and acts as a 'broom' in the digestive tract.

Proteins (CHON)

Organic compounds consisting of amino acids that build and repair body tissues; provides $4\,calories/gram$.

Anabolism

The metabolic process of repairing worn out body tissues.

Catabolism

The continued wear and tear going on in the body through metabolic breakdown.

Marasmus

A form of protein-energy malnutrition characterized by severe food deprivation and semi-starvation, leading to loss of subcutaneous fat.

Kwashiorkor

A disease caused by a severe shortage of protein, often occurring after weaning, characterized by edema and an enlarged liver.

Fats (Lipids)

Organic nutrients on a glycerol base that provide concentrated energy and insulate the body; provides $9\,calories/gram$.

Steatorrhea

The presence of excess fat in the feces.

HDL (High-Density Lipoprotein)

Known as 'good cholesterol' or alpha lipoprotein; it acts as a scavenger for lipids in the blood.

LDL (Low-Density Lipoprotein)

Known as 'beta lipoprotein', it transports cholesterol into the artery walls.

Vitamins

Compounds that help convert food into energy but do not provide energy directly; classified as fat-soluble or water-soluble.

Hypervitaminosis

Vitamin toxicity caused by excessive accumulation of vitamins in the body.

Retinol (Vitamin A)

A fat-soluble vitamin essential for eyesight, growth, and immune reaction; deficiency causes night blindness and Xerophthalmia.

Calciferol (Vitamin D)

A vitamin synthesized via sunlight that is essential for calcium and phosphorus absorption; deficiency causes rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults.

Tocopherol (Vitamin E)

An antioxidant vitamin that protects tissues against oxidation damage and aids in the formation of red blood cells.

Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C)

A water-soluble vitamin that prevents scurvy, aids iron absorption, and promotes wound healing.

Thiamine (Vitamin B1)

A vitamin that prevents Beri-beri and is essential for normal heart and nerve function.

Riboflavin (Vitamin B2)

A co-enzyme for energy metabolism; deficiency causes cheilosis and a magenta red tongue (glossitis).

Niacin (Vitamin B3)

A vitamin where severe deficiency leads to Pellagra, characterized by the '4D' disease (dementia, dermatitis, diarrhea, and death).

Folic Acid (Vitamin B9)

A vitamin essential for DNA synthesis and red blood cell formation; deficiency can cause neural tube defects in offspring.

Cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12)

A vitamin essential for nerve function and RBC formation; deficiency leads to pernicious anemia.

Calcium (Ca)

The most abundant mineral in the body (99% in bones), essential for blood clotting and muscle contraction.

Sodium (Na)

The chief cation in extracellular fluid (ECF) that maintains water balance; normal serum value is $135-145\,mEq/liter$.

Potassium (K)

The chief cation in intracellular fluid (ICF) that aids muscle contraction and heart function; normal serum value is $3.5-5.5\,mEq/liter$.

Iron (Fe)

A component of hemoglobin essential for blood supply; deficiency causes nutritional iron deficiency anemia and koilonychia.

Iodine (I)

A mineral component of the hormone thyroxine; deficiency causes goiter and cretinism.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

A tool to determine nutritional status calculated by weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared ($BMI = \frac{Weight(kg)}{Height(m)^2}$).

Basal Metabolism

The energy required by the body at rest for internal chemical activities, approximately $1\,calorie/kg$ of body weight per hour.

Pinggang Pinoy

A Filipino food guide using a plate model to show the right proportions of Go, Grow, and Glow foods per meal.

Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN)

A method of providing a nutritionally complete solution intravenously through a large central vein like the subclavian vein.

PICA

The persistent ingestion of inedible substances with little nutritional value, sometimes seen in pregnancy.

Anorexia Nervosa

An eating disorder characterized by excessive dieting and exercise to the point of starvation due to an extreme fear of gaining weight.

Bulimia Nervosa

An eating disorder characterized by episodes of binge eating followed by purging, fasting, or excessive exercise.