Nutrition and Health,

Grade 12, University

Preparation(HFA4U)
Unit 1 – Lesson 4
Micronutrients

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Learning Goals
1. Identify the sources and explain the functions of macronutrients (i.e.,
carbohydrates, fats, proteins), micronutrients (i.e., vitamins, minerals), and
water (B1.1)
2. analyse specific foods to determine their nutrient content, using available food
and nutrition information (B1.3)
3. explain the processes of and factors affecting the digestion, absorption, and
metabolism of food (B3.1)
4. analyse foods to identify their macronutrient content (i.e., the percentage of
calories from various types of nutrients) (B3.2)
5. analyse their own nutrient intake with reference to current Canadian guidelines
(B4.1)

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Success Criteria
 I will be able to name and explain the purpose of micronutrients
and water
 I will be able to explain how energy is obtained through
nutrients and recommended sources of calories

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Nutrients - Review

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Vitamins and Minerals

• Vitamins are chemicals that help to regulate many vital processes and
aid in other nutrients in doing their job.
– We only require a small amount of vitamins.

• Minerals are non-living substances that help the body work properly
and, in some cases, become part of the body tissues, such as bone.
– Only needed in small amounts.

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Water
• Water is a nutrient because it is essential to life.
– It makes up most of our body weight too.

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How Much Do You Need?

• Everybody requires the same nutrients, although not the same amounts.

• Females need more iron than males, athletes and others who are
physically active need more than inactive people.

• Older adults require less of many nutrients.

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How Much Do You Need?

• Canadian and American scientists have created a new set of standards for
assessing nutrient needs of people of different ages, genders, and with
special needs, such as infants and pregnant women.

• Canadians use Recommended Nutrient Intakes (RNI) and Americans

use Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs).

• These together form the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) to help

North Americans stay healthy.
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Dietary Reference Intakes

• What is the purpose of the DRI?

• Used by dieticians, nutritionists, and other health professionals to help

shape nutrition policy.

• Ensures that dietary guidance is scientific and reliable.

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Dietary Reference Intakes

• Used to help with educational programs and materials.

• Used in food industry for product development and nutritional labelling.

• Helps to set standards for assessing the nutrient intakes of Canadians.

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How Nutrients Are Measured

• Most nutrients are needed in relatively small amounts. It is easier to
measure them using the metric system, the system of measurement used
by scientists.

• The metric system includes small units of measurement, such as

milligram (mg).
– Example, female teens need 15 mg of iron each day.

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Energy From Nutrients

• Running, walking, sitting, and even reading every word in this sentence
ALL require energy.

• Your body gets this energy from carbohydrates, as well as proteins and
fats. The energy is measured in units called kilocalories.
– A kilocalorie or calorie- is the amount of energy needed to raise the
temperature of one kilogram (a little more than 4 cups) of water one
degree Celsius.

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Our Energy Needs

• The number of calories your body needs for energy in a given day
depends on a number of factors.
– These factors include: your activity level, age, weight, and gender.

• If you are still growing, the number is affected by increased energy

demands for building muscles and bones.

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Our Energy Needs

• The Dietitians of Canada recommend that instead of counting calories,
you should focus on making healthy food choices and following
Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating (we will talk about this in great
detail later).

• If you only count calories, you can miss out on nutrients that your body
needs to function properly.

• Activity, portion size, and the foods that you choose from each group, as
well as how you prepare them, are all important.
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Recommended Sources of Calories

• Scientists have determined that carbohydrates and proteins in their purest
forms provide 4 calories per gram, whereas fat provides 9 calories per
gram.

• Fat has more than twice the number of calories per gram as either of the
other energy-producing nutrients.

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Recommended Sources of Calories

• Health experts recommend that you get less than 30% of the calories you
take in from fat; approximately 55% carbohydrates; and at least 12 to
15% from protein.

• This ratio provides the healthiest balance of the three nutrients.

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Recommended Sources of Calories

Carbohydrates include:
• Breads, fruits (bananas, apples, grapes), vegetables (potatoes, carrots,
tomatoes)

Fats include:
• Butter, chocolate, vegetable oil, butter

Proteins include:
• Meats, fish, cheese, lentils, beans

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Recommended Sources of Calories

• Example, Johnny needs about 2200 calories a day, should get less than
660 of those calories from fat (2200 x .30= 660).

• How much grams of fat will supply 660 calories?

• Since there are 9 calories in 1 gram of fat, divide 660 by 9. The answer is
roughly 73 grams.

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Recommended Sources of Calories

• Thus, if Johnny eats a fast-food cheeseburger and fries for lunch (about
47 grams of fat), he needs to eat lower-fat choices the rest of the day to
stay under 73 grams of fat.

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Homework:
Micronutrients

• In the resources section you will find the

Micronutrients homework handout.
• You should review the lesson notes and
then proceed to solve the homework
questions.
• You will find an attached mid-unit
assignment
• Submit your work to the Dropbox called
U1L4: Homework.

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HFA4U
UNIT 1 Lesson 4