Nutrition Basics
How many kcal/g in carbs, proteins, fats, alcohol?
4 kcal/g carbs 4 kcal/g proteins 9 kcal/g fat 7 kcal/g alcohol
What is the DSHEA of 1994 : Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act
A federal legislation that allows manufacturers to classify nutrient supplements and herbal products as foods
Who was Joseph Goldberg and what did he do?
A scientist that hypothesized that pellagra resulted from something lacking in diet.
What are some reliable sources for nutrition info?
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics National Osteoporosis Foundation CDC FDA NHANES
What is a food system?
All components relating to production of food. - production - processing - distribution - access - consumption - waste recovery
Explain the change in food spending tendencies among Americans
Americans are eating above recommendations of added fats, sugars, high-fat protein foods, and grains. Below recommendations for vegetables, dairy, and fruit
What is a calorie?
Amount of heat energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius
Which circumstances increase a person's chances of undernutrition in the United States?
Anorexia nervosa poverty chronic alcoholism
Dietetics
Application of nutrition and food info to achieve and maintain optimal health and to treat many health-related conditions
What are some factors that can influence our food selection?
Biological + physical factors Life stages Sensory Information Cognitive + psychological factors Environmental factors Expert Advice factors
People may choose nutritionally inadequate diets because of:
Lack of knowledge Low or fixed income Eating disorders Alcohol or drug addition Medical problems
What does NHANES stand for?
National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
What are the downsides of dietary supplements?
Not heavily tested to ensure safety and effectiveness prior to availability to being on the market. FDA doesn't regulate as strictly as prescription meds Supplements with phytochemicals may not have the same effectiveness as just eating the plants that naturally contain them.
What are dietary supplements?
Product that contains a vitamin, mineral, herb or other plant product, amino acid, or dietary substance that supplements the diet.
What are some RED FLAGS in nutrition world?
Promising quick remedies Sounds too good to be true Testimonials Attacking science and nutrition experts Promoting benefits while overlooking potential dangers Vague sources or vague scientific sounding terms Pseudoscience
What is the gold standard of nutrition research (hint: a type of human trial experimental study? How is it done?
RCT: Randomized Control Trials Human subjects randomly divided into treatment + control groups. Similar variables (i.e. age, gender, health status) Only treatment group receives the intervention and results are compared to the control group.
What are the limitations of RCT experiments?
Results can't be generalized to the whole population And it's carried out under optimal controlled setting, different from real world activities.
What is a "lifestyle"?
Way of living --> usual dietary practices + exercise habits
How do men and women body comps differ?
Women, less water and protein. More fat
What is a chronic condition? Some examples?
a long term condition with complex causes Ex: heart disease, diabetes, and cancer
conditionally essential amino acids
amino acids that are normally considered nonessential but become essential under certain circumstances when the body's need for them exceeds the ability to produce them
What is a Megadose?
amount of vitamin or mineral that greatly exceeds the recommended amount. 10+ times
What are confounding variables?
factors not being studied but may influence the outcome of the study.
What is the Federal Trade Commission FTC?
federal government agency that protects consumers against misinformation and deceptive acts or practices by businesses in the U.S.
Essential Nutrients are?
nutrients that can only be obtained from the diet
What are macronutrients?
nutrients the body needs in large amounts carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins
What are micronutrients?
nutrients the body needs in small amounts Vitamins and minerals
Medical Nutrition Therapy
nutritionally modified diets for people with chronic health conditions
What are risk factors?
personal, attributes, characteristics, or exposures that increase a person's chances of developing a chronic disease.
What are some cases in which a nutrient can become conditionally essential?
prenatal development, serious illnesses, or metabolic disorders
Nutrient dense refers to foods that____ Examples:
provide more nutrients relative to kcalories Ex: Fruits, nuts, kale, quinoa etc
Deficiency diseases are:
unusual physiological changes when a specific nutrient is lacking from diet
Which two nutrients are the major sources of energy?
Carbohydrates and Lipids
What are the 6 classes of nutrients?
Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, vitamins, minerals, water
What are the two types of Epidemiology studies? Explain the two.
Case control - people with a health condition paired with people with similar characteristics but don't have the condition Cohort - collect and analyze information about a group of people over time (retrospective or prospective)
What are catechins and where are they found in food/drinks?
Compounds that help regulate blood pressure, increase weight loss, and protect the brain from disease. Found in tea.
What is pellagra?
Deficiency disease in niacin
Energy-dense foods are____ Example:
High in calories, and often have a low nutrient value. Ex: donuts
Megadose
Eating above the nutritionally recommended amounts of vitamins or minerals
What does in vivo?
Experiment on living organisms
What does in vitro mean?
Experiment on parts or cells from a living organism. Think Petri dish
What foods contain a lot of isoflavnoids?
Soybeans (lentils, beans, peas)
What are Human Trial Experimental Studies?
Studies on humans that usually involve changing certain parts of their diets and examining health impact. It's the best way to determine which dietary factors contribute to diff health outcomes.
Epidemiology
Study of diseases and statistics of a population in order to determine potential correlations to health problems
What are nutrients and what do they do?
The life-sustaining substances found in food. Aids in the growth, maintenance, and repair of body cells Body uses it for energy, growth, development, regulation of processes, and metabolism
Define Nutrition
The scientific study of nutrients and how the body uses them
What is a nutrient requirement?
The smallest amount of each nutrient necessary to maintain a defined level of nutritional health
Who is responsible for revising the Health People report every 10 years?
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Another word for malnutrition:
Undernutrition
Orange, red, and yellow fruits and vegetables are rich food sources of....
beta-carotene The precursor to vitamin A in the body
How are calories measured?
bomb calorimeter
What are empty calories?
calories from food that are provide little to no vitamins or minerals.
What do dietitians need to consider when formulating a patient's diet?
current health status occupation food preferences budget family and support system ability to access or prepare foods
Coprophagy
eating feces
Malnutrition
state of health that occurs when the body is improperly nourished
What is nutritional genomics?
studying effect of genes on disease risk and using nutrition interventions to prevent it.
What are phytochemicals?
substances in plants that are NOT nutrients but may provide health benefits
Physiological Dose
the amount of a nutrient that is within the range of safe intake and enables the body to function optimally