Balanced diet and

Malnutrition
Objectives
• Discuss the importance of a balanced diet in human.
• Components of a balanced diet (including vitamins and minerals and
their roles).
• The results of their deficiency or surplus (malnutrition).
• The effects of age, sex and occupation on dietary needs.
• Vegetarianism Dietary recommendations for treating and preventing
named deficiency and physiological diseases – diabetes and
hypertension.
Background knowledge
Students should know:
• Macromolecules
- protein
- lipids
- carbohydrates
• The atoms comprised in each
• Their function in the body
• Their sources
Diet
• Diet - Includes any food we eat and drink daily
• Some diets are good
• Some diets are bad
Importance of a balanced diet
• A diet that has all the major nutrients ensures that the body is able to
function properly.
• If a balanced diet is not maintained the body may fail to perform 1 or
more functions
• It ensures that energy requirements of individuals are met
• Example: eye sight, energy production, proper bone formation, etc.
What is a balanced diet?
• A diet which contains correct proportions of food from all 6 (six)
Caribbean food groups.
Staples (cereals, provision, rice)
Legumes (red beans, channa, peanuts)
Vegetables (dark green, leafy and yellow)
Food from animals (eggs, meat, milk, cheese)
Fruits (citrus, watermelon, pear)
Fats and substitutes ( butter, cooking oil, margarine)
• Once the Caribbean food groups are eaten you would be provided with
- carbohydrates, fats, protein, vitamins, minerals, water and roughage/ fibre
• Can you figure out which of the above nutrients each food group would provide
for our bodies?
Staples- carbohydrates, fibre, vitamins
Legumes- protein, fibre, minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates
Vegetables- Vitamins, minerals, fibre, water
Food from animals- protein, fats, minerals, vitamins
Fruits- Vitamins, minerals, fibre, water, carbohydrates
Fats and substitutes- fat, vitamins
Diet is affected by different factors
• Gender: Men have more muscle and higher metabolic rates, therefore
needs more food to provide more energy
• Age: Children and teenagers are growing and need more proteins and
vitamins than adults
• Occupation: persons who are more active would require more energy
than persons who sit for most of the day
• Pregnancy: pregnant or nursing mothers need extra energy to support
the developing and growing child
• Sickness: someone with a fever would require more energy
Vegetarians and vegans
• Vegetarian- someone who mostly eat food from plants
• Vegan - someone who ONLY eat food from plants.
• Some persons may choose this type of diet based on religion, economic,
ecological reasons or because they think it is healthier
• Their diet may be deficient in iron, calcium, and vitamin B 12 which are mostly
found in meat.
• They would need to eat more dark leafy vegetables, peas, beans and fortified
soya products to obtain these nutrients. If vitamin C is eaten along with these
things it increases the amount of Iron absorbed by the body.
• Vegetarians diets are normally lower in fat and have high roughage content
which promotes bowel movement.
Malnutrition
• If vegetarians are not careful in ensuring they get all nutrients then
they can suffer from malnutrition
• Mal-nutrition = bad-nutrition occurs when there is excess,
deficiencies or imbalances in a person’s intake of nutrients.
• Imbalances and deficiencies may cause deficiency disorders
• Excess can cause the person to be overweight leading to obesity
which increases physiological diseases like hypertension, heart
disease and diabetes.
Vitamins
Vitamins
Surplus vitamins
• Vitamins are organic
• They are micronutrients
• Surplus vitamins can be harmful to the body, especially in children
• Too much vitamin A can cause jaundice, itchy skin, blurry vision,
headache, nausea, liver damage, etc.
• Too much vitamin D can cause high levels of calcium in blood,
excessive thirst and urination, loss of appetite, vomiting, nausea and
calcification of soft tissues
Minerals
Surplus minerals
• Minerals are inorganic
• They are micronutrients
• Like vitamins surplus minerals can be harmful to the body
• Surplus calcium causes calcification of soft tissues
• Surplus sodium can raise blood pressure resulting in hypertension and
fluid retention
• Surplus iron can cause liver damage
Water
• Inorganic
• Human body made of approximately 65% water
• Dissolves chemicals in cells so that they can react
• Dissolves substances to be transported in blood
• Dissolves substances to be excreted
• Acts as a reactant e.g for hydrolysis
• Acts as a coolant, removing heat and cooling the body
Roughage
• Cannot be digested
• Made of cellulose from plants
• Adds bulk to food which stimulates peristalsis
• Helps prevent constipation
• Reduces the risk of colon cancer