Nutrition

Nutrition
Basics1
Second Stage
Gulan Jabbar
Assistant Lecturer
2021-2022
Department of Basic Sciences
gulan.jabbar@hmu.edu.krd
 Learning Objectives
1. Introduction/ Nutrition is a
science
2. Essential and non-essential
nutrients
3. The 10 nutrition principles
4. Food Security and Food
Insecurity
5. DRIs and the variables affecting
 it
The Father of the Science of
Nutrition
In 1775
Antoine
Lavoisier
discovered the
energy-
producing
property
of food.
 Introduction
1. Nutrition is an interdisciplinary science
focused on the study of foods, nutrients,
and other food constituents, and health.

2. Nutrition include digestion, absorption,

transport, metabolism, and functions
performed by essential nutrients which
are needed for growth and health.
Nutrition falls under which field?
Food Security and Food Insecurity
• Food Security: Access at all times to a
sufficient supply of safe, nutritious foods.

• Food Insecurity: Limited or uncertain

availability of safe, nutritious foods, or the
ability to acquire them in socially
acceptable ways.
• The latest edition of the State of
Food Security and Nutrition in
the World, that was published in
12 July 2021 , states that around
660 million people may still face
hunger in 2030, in part due to
lasting effects of the COVID-19
pandemic on global food
security – 30 million more
people than in a scenario in
which the pandemic had not
occurred.
• Well before the COVID-19
pandemic, we were already not
on track to meet our
commitments to end world
hunger and malnutrition in all its
Principles of the Science of Nutrition

Principle # 1
Food is a basic
need of Humans.
Principle #2
Food provide
energy (calorie),
nutrients, and other
substances needed
for growth and
health.
Principles of the Science of Nutrition

Principle #3 Health
problems related to
nutrition originate
within cells.

Principle #4 Poor
nutrition can result from
both inadequate and
excessive levels of
nutrient intake.
Principles of the Science of Nutrition
Principle #5 Humans
have adaptive
mechanisms for
managing fluctuations in
food intake.

Principle #6
Malnutrition can result
from poor diets and from
disease states, genetic
factors, or combinations
of these causes.
Principles of the Science of Nutrition

Principle #7 Some
groups of people are
at higher risk of
becoming
inadequately
nourished than
others.
Principle #8 Poor
nutrition can
Nutrients
Chemical substances in foods that are used by
the body for growth, tissue maintenance and
repair, and ongoing health.
Essential Nutrients: The body cannot
manufacture, or produce in sufficient amounts.
(Carbohydrates, certain amino acids, essential
fatty acids, Vitamins, Minerals, & water).
Macronutrients and Micronutrients?
Nonessential Nutrients: They can be produced
by the body from other components but they
do not have to be part of our diets.
(Cholesterol, Creatine, & Glucose).
Dietary Reference Intakes
DRIs: Nutrient Recommendation
(DRIs)
General term used for the nutrient intake
standards for healthy people. They include:

1. Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs)

An estimate of the amount of a nutrient required
to meet the needs of nearly all (97%-98%)
healthy people. These levels are believed to
decrease the risk of certain chronic diseases.
Dietary Reference Intakes
(DRIs)
2. Adequate Intakes (AIs)
3. Estimated Average
Requirements(EARs)
4. Tolerable Upper Intake Levels (Uls)
 Factors Influencing (DRIs)
1. Age: The (RDA) for a number of
nutrients varies from infancy to adulthood.
For example, adult requires:
0.8 g of protein per kg of body weight per
day (46-56 g/day)
While infants require:
1.52 g/kg/day (9.1 g/day)
Factors Influencing (DRIs)
2. Gender: Dietary allowances for males
are approximately 20% greater than those
for females, reflecting the generally larger
body mass of men.
The allowance for iron is an exception,
because women must replace iron lost
during menstruation.
RDA Iron for adult males (8mg/day)
RDA Iron for adult female (18mg/day)
Factors Influencing (DRIs)
3. Other factors: The RDAs for most
nutrients are increased about 20% to 30%
above normal during pregnancy and
lactation. As well as, patients with injury or
illness.
Body size, genetic traits, growth,
medication use & lifestyle habits (Smoking,
alcohol intake).
Dietary Energy
• calorie: Is a unit of measure of the energy, or
heat, required to raise the temperature of 1
gram of water by 1 degree Celsius.
• Calorie: Is a measure of the amount of energy
transferred from food to the body.
• Joule: Is a unit of electrical energy, commonly
used in the physical sciences.
1 calorie = 4.184 joules
1 Calorie (kilocal)= 4.184 kilojoules= 4184 Joule
Dietary Energy
• Energy is not a nutrient (substance) but is
needed in the body for metabolic processes,
heat production, growth and synthesis,
physiological functions, & muscular activity.

• It is released from food components by

oxidation.
• The main sources of energy are carbohydrates,
proteins, fats and, to a lesser amount, alcohol.
 Dietary Energy
Energy release from the
main 3 nutrients:
1. Carbohydrates 4 Cal/g
2. Proteins 4 Cal/g
3. Fats 9 Cal/g
* Alcohol 7 Cal/g ”empty
calories”?
Principles of the Science of Nutrition

Principle #9
Adequacy, variety,
and balance are
key characteristics
of a healthy diet.
Principle #10
There are no
“good” or “bad”
foods.
 References
1. Nutrition Through the Life Cycle fifth edition by
Judith E. Brown
2. https://www.eatright.org/
3. https://www.wfp.org/publications/2021-state-food-
security-and-nutrition-world-report-and-inbrief