Unit 1 hlt 230

risk factors

A personal characteristic that increases your chances of developing a chronic disease. Examples include family history, age, environmental conditions and lifestyle practices.

How can you individualize your diet?

By using food guides so that is is nutritionally adequate and suits your food likes and dislikes, budget and lifestyle.

chronic disease

Health problems that usually take many years to develop and have complex causes. Examples: heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

Diet over the lifespan:

It's important to note that nutritional needs of healthy people vary during different stages of their lives. Thus, infants/children/pregnant women/older adults often need nutritional supplements to boost their nutrient intakes.

organic nutrients:

Known as this because they have the element carbon in their chemical structure. Includes carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and vitamins.

Difference between macronutrients and micronutrients:

Macronutrients supply energy of cells and micronutrients do not.

Major functions of water:

Maintenance of fluid balance, regulation of body temperature, elimination of wastes, transportation of substances, participant in many chemical reactions.

Cell

The smallest functional unit in a living organism, including a human being. They do not need food to survive but they do need the nutrients in food to carry out their metabolic activities.

Metabolism

The total of all chemical reactions (changes) that occur in living cells, including reactions involved in generating energy, making proteins, and elimination waste products.

Micronutrients

Vitamins and minerals. The body needs very small amounts of them to function properly.

Essential nutrients for humans:

Water, vitamins (A/B/C/D/E/K etc.), glucose (from carbohydrates containing foods), minerals (elements), components of proteins (lysine/valine etc.), and fats that contain linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids.

diet

Your usual pattern of food choices.

Six classes of nutrients:

carbohydrates, fats and other lipids, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and water

Macronutrients

carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. The body needs relatively large amounts of these nutrients daily.

Key Nutrition Concepts

1) there are no good or bad foods 2) variety, moderation, and balance are features of a healthy diet 3) food is the best source of nutrients and phytochemicals 4) there is no "one size fits all" approach to good nutrition 5) foods and nutrients are not cure-all's

If an essential nutrient is missing from the diet...

A deficiency disease occurs as a result. This is a state of health characterized by certain abnormal physiological functional changes that result in signs and symptoms of disease (skin rashes, diarrhea, loss of night vision). When the nutrient is added to the diet=the deficiency disease is cured.

How much kcals produced:

A gram of carbohydrates and a gram of protein each supply about 4 kcal; a gram of fat provides about 9 kcal. Although alcohol isn't a nutrient, it does provide energy; a gram of pure alcohol furnishes 7 kcal. If you know how many grams of these are in food then you can estimate the number of kilocalories it provides.

Lifestyle

A persons way of living that includes diet, physical activity habits, use of drugs such as tobacco and alcohol, and other typical patterns of health-related behavior

dietary supplements

A product that contains a vitamin, a mineral, an herb or other plant product, an amino acid, or a dietary substance that supplements the diet by increasing total intake. Some may be helpful and some may not be helpful and even harmful.

malnutrition

A state of health that occurs when the body is improperly nourished. Many Americans consume nutritionally poor diets and suffer from this. Over nutrition is also a form of this.

Good vs bad food:

All foods have nutritional value, so no food deserves to be labeled "bad" or "junk" although certain foods are healthier choices than others. A food is bad for you if it contains toxic substances or is contaminated with bacteria, viruses, or microscopic animals that cause food-borne illness.

Why food and nutrients aren't cure alls:

Although specific nutrient deficiency disease can be cured once the nutrient is added to the diet, nutrients don't "cure" other ailments. Diet is only one aspect of yourself that influences your health. Other lifestyle factors as well as genetics and environment also play major roles in determining your health status.

Comparing body compositions:

Average healthy young men and women have similar amounts of vitamins, minerals, and carbohydrates in their bodies, young women have less water and protein and more fat.

What is the most natural, reliable and economical way to obtain nutrients and beneficial phytochemicals?

Base your diet on a variety of "whole" and minimally processed foods. Most of the time eating 100% raw foods isn't practical and sometimes can be unsafe. Many foods undergo some form of processing (peeling, refining, heating) before they are eaten. This can make foods more safer and convenient to eat.

empty calories

Calories from unhealthy types of fat, added sugar, and/or alcohol. Thus, this type of food isn't a good source of vitamins and minerals. Examples: candies, pastries, snack chips, sugar-sweetened drinks, and some alcoholic beverages.

functional foods

Foods that are manufactured for specific health-related functions and they have health-related purposes. Although some of these foods can help people improve their health in other ways, more research is needed to determine their benefits as well as possible harmful effects.

The many factors that influence food choices:

Income, occupation, ethnic background, moods, nutritional and health benefits, religious beliefs, food conposition/convoenence/availability, family, peers, food flavor/texture/appearance, childhood experiences, education, current health status, habits, advertising and media, rural vs. urban residence etc.

Your lifestyle may:

Increase or reduce your chances of developing a chronic disease or delay it's occurrence for years or even decades.

Should you take nutrient supplements?

Many people do but your body is designed to obtain nutrients from foods, not supplements. Nutrients from food are more easily digested and absorbed than those in supplements.

Antioxidants

Many phytochemicals function as this. Substance that protects cells and their components from being damaged or destroyed by harmful environmental and internal factors. Protects cells and their components from being damaged or destroyed by chemically unstable factors that are called free radicals.

Major roles of nutrients in body:

Most nutrients have more than one function and some nutrients have similar roles in your body. In many instances, several nutrients work together to keep your body healthy.

How to extend lifetime:

No guaranteed way to do this but your chances of living a long and healthy life is increased by consuming more fruits, vegetables, unsalted nuts and other foods as well as exercising regularly.

Phytochemicals

Plants make hundreds of these. Compounds made by plants that are not nutrients but may be healthful. They don't always have beneficial effects on the body; some are toxic (poisonous) or can interfere with the body's ability to absorb nutrients.

Major function of proteins:

Production of structural and functional components; cellular development, growth, and maintenance; regulation of body processes; immune functioning; fluid balance; source of energy.

Major function of minerals:

Regulation of body processes, including fluid balance; formation of certain chemical messengers; structural and functional components of various substances and tissues; necessary for physical growth, maintenance and development.

Major function of vitamins:

Regulation of body processes, maintenance of immune function, production and maintenance of tissues, protection against agents that can damage cellular components.

nonnutrients

Some foods, particularly those from plants contain this. Substances that are not nutrients, yet they may have healthful benefits. Alcohol is an example because it is an energy-supplying non-nutrient that can have harmful as well as beneficial effects on your health.

Major function of lipids:

Source of energy (fats), cellular development, physical growth and development, regulation of body processes, absorption of fat-soluble vitamins.

Major function of carbohydrates:

Source of energy (most forms)

Water

The body requires large amount of this but it is not considered a macronutrient because this nutrient provides no energy.

Nutrients

The life-sustaining chemicals in food that are necessary for proper body functioning. Regardless of what you eat and drink, your body needs this.

Calorie

The unit that describes the energy content of food. The amount of energy in food is reported in 1000-calorie units called kilocalories or calories. Interchangeable with "food energy" or simply "energy"

Risk of high doses of dietary supplements:

There is a range of safe intake for every micronutrient. You can develop health problems by taking high doses of dietary supplements that contain vitamins/minerals.

Nutrient-dense:

This food or beverage contains more beneficial nutrients (protein/fiber/vitamins C and E/iron/calcium/potassium) in relation to total calories, especially calories from unhealthy fats, added sugars, and/or alcohol. Examples: broccoli, leafy greens, fat-free milk, orange juice, lean meats, and whole grain cereals.

Features of a healthy diet:

Variety(different foods from each group), moderation(consuming foods in reasonable amounts), and balance(matching calorie intake with calorie expenditure to maintain a healthy weight) Most foods are mixtures of nutrients, but no natural food is "perfect" in that it contains all nutrients in amounts that your body needs.

essential nutrients

Your body can make many nutrients, such as fat and cholesterol (types of lipids), but about 50 nutrients must be supplied by food because the human body does not produce the nutrient or make enough to meet its needs. WATER is the prime example of this.

energy density

describes the energy value of a food in relation to the food's weight. High-fat foods are this because they're concentrated sources of energy. Most fruits aren't this because they contain for more water than fat. Not all energy-dense foods are rich sources of empty calories (nuts).

Leading causes of death

heart disease, cancer, chronic lower respiratory infections, accidents, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, influenza and pneumonia, kidney disease and suicide.

Nutrition

scientific study of nutrients and how the body uses these chemicals.

What is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States?

smoking