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Introduction to
Nutrition

Source: epSos.de

Chapter 1: The Science of Nutrition

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What is Nutrition?
• According to the American Medical
Association nutrition is
§ the science of foods and their components
§ their actions, interactions and balance in relation
to health and disease
§ and the process by which the organism ingests,
digests, absorbs, transports, utilizes, and excretes
food substances.
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Why Study Nutrition?

• Poor diet and sedentary lifestyle are risk factors for chronic
diseases, accounting for ~2/3 of all deaths in the US.
§ Heart disease (29% of all deaths)
§ Cancer (22%)
§ Stroke (7%)
§ Diabetes (3%)

• Research shows that a healthy diet – especially one rich in

fruits and veggies – coupled with frequent exercise can
prevent many age-related diseases.
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Why Study Nutrition?

• We live longer than our
ancestors did, so people
want to know how dietary
choices can bring a long
healthy life within reach

It’s not just a longer life,

It’s a longer healthier life!
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What are Nutrients ?

• Substances obtained from food that are important for
growth and health of the body
• Essential nutrient: Nutrient that is needed in the body
that the body cannot make (or cannot make enough of)
and so must be obtained from the diet

• Essential Nutrients
1. Carbohydrates Macronutrients:
2. Lipids/Fats Energy providing
3. Protein nutrients
4. Vitamins Micronutrients: Do
5. Minerals not provide energy
6. Water
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Energy Sources and Uses

• Humans need energy to perform body functions
• Energy is measured in calories where 1 calorie is the
amount of energy required to raise the temperature of 1 g
of water by 1 Celsius
• Since this is such a tiny measure, 1 kcal (1000 calories) is
more commonly used.
• But 1 calorie in everyday usage means 1kcal
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Macronutrients: Energy Sources

• Energy comes from carbohydrates, lipids/fats, proteins
(and alcohol) we consume
• Because we need large amounts of these nutrients, they
are called the macronutrients
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Micronutrients: Vitamins & Minerals

• Vitamins and minerals are needed in smaller amounts
in the diet and so are called the micronutrients
• Micronutrients do not provide any energy to the body
but have important roles in regulating body functions
and supporting growth and development

Photo © PhotoDisc
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Introducing the Nutrients:

Carbohydrates
• Commonly known as sugars, fibers and
starches
• Organic* compounds made up of
carbon, hydrogen and oxygen
Photo © PhotoDisc

• They are the primary source of energy,

providing approximately
4 kcal energy/gram (exception is fiber)
• Dietary sources include: grains,
vegetables, and fruits
*Organic compounds
are substances that
contain carbon and
hydrogen atoms
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Introducing the Nutrients:

Lipids
• Commonly known as fats and oils
• Organic compounds made of carbon,
oxygen & hydrogen
• Triglycerides are the major form of fat in
foods and a key energy source of the body
• They provide about 9 kcal energy/gram Photo © PhotoDisc

• They are abundant in various food sources

like fats and oils, meats, and dairy products
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Introducing the Nutrients:

Proteins
• Organic compounds composed of
carbon, oxygen & hydrogen and
nitrogen
• Primary function is to: build and
maintain body structures and regulate
body function
• Proteins provide 4 kcal of energy/gram,
but the body relies more on
carbohydrate and lipids to meet its daily Photo © PhotoDisc

energy needs.
• Found in meats, dairy
products, and legumes
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Introducing the Nutrients:

Vitamins
• Vitamins are organic compounds that have a wide
variety of chemical structures
• There are 13 vitamins essential in the diet
• They are classified into two types:
§ Fat soluble: Vitamins A, D, E & K
§ Water soluble: Vitamins B & C
• Vitamins play a role in regulating many
body processes
Photo © PhotoDisc

• Vitamins can be lost through cooking

and processing of foods
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Introducing the Nutrients:

Minerals
• Minerals are inorganic elements
§ They can all be found in the periodic table of elements
• They are divided into two groups:
§ Major minerals
• Needed in gram amounts daily (Eg. calcium and sodium)
§ Trace minerals
• Less than 100 mg needed daily (Eg. iron and zinc)
• Minerals have important structural and functional roles
in the body (Eg. Calcium forms bone, iron is needed for blood)
• Since they are all single elements, minerals are not
destroyed by cooking
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Introducing the Nutrients:

Water
• The human body is made up of 60% water
• This nutrient can be obtained from
water (of course) and through many of the foods and
beverages we consume
• Water functions as a solvent, a
medium for transporting and excreting
nutrients, and in cooling the body.

Photo © PhotoDisc
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The North American Diet

• Most North Americans need to:
§ Reduce sugar intake and increase starch and fiber
§ Decrease our animal product consumption (60% of
dietary fat comes from animal sources in North
America - far more than recommended.)
§ Moderate our consumption of sugared soft drinks,
fatty foods, and full fat dairy products.
§ Increase our consumption of fruits, vegetables, and
whole grains.
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The North American Diet

• We need nutrients to survive, but we choose to eat for
many reasons beyond nutrition

• Food choices are influenced by:

§ Preferences
§ Culture & traditions
§ Habits
§ Cost and availability
§ Health and nutrition concerns

• In the short term, our food choices may not have an

immediate impact on our health, but consistently
making poor food choices over time can increase risk for
chronic disease and diminish health
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Nutritional Health Status

• Ensuring we have adequate intakes of all of the essential
nutrients is key for maintaining health
• Nutritional status is a measure of whether someone is
consuming the right amounts and balance of nutrients for
their body
• There are three categories of nutritional status:
§ Desirable nutritional status:
§ Undernutrition Malnutrition includes
§ Overnutrition both of these states
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Nutritional Health Status:

Three Categories
1. Desirable nutritional status:
• Is the state where the body has enough of the
nutrients to support normal functions, as well as
maintain surplus stores for times of increased need.

2. Undernutrition:
• When nutrient intake does NOT meet nutrient needs
• In the early stages there may be no signs or
symptoms
• Persistence of this state leads to development of
deficiency symptoms (flaky skin, poor growth, etc)
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Nutritional Health Status:

Three Categories (continued)
3. Overnutrition:
• When more nutrients are consumed than the body
needs
• An excess intake of vitamins and minerals can lead
to toxicity
• An excess intake of energy (calories) can lead to
weight gain and obesity
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Assessing Nutritional Status

• The manner to determine ones nutritional
adequacy
• 6 key assessment types:
1) Medical History
2) Anthropometric Assessment
3) Biochemical Tests
4) Clinical Exam
5) Dietary Analysis
6) Environment Assessment
Assessing Nutritional Status:
1) Medical History
• Asks about prior health, current conditions, medications
and family medical history (to determine genetic
predisposition)
• Determines whether there are pre-existing conditions
that may affect nutrition status
Assessing Nutritional Status:
2) Anthropometric Assessment:
• Measurement of the physical characteristics of the
body (e.g. height, weight, skin fold measurements,
waist circumference)
• Determines whether growth and body
composition is appropriate

3) Biochemical Tests:
• Laboratory tests (e.g. blood, urine or fecal samples) to
measure the amount of nutrients or markers of
nutrient status (eg. enzyme activity) in the body
• Useful for detecting deficiencies before signs and
symptoms are apparent
Assessing Nutritional Status:
4) Clinical Exam:
• Physical examination by a trained physician to look for
outward signs of malnutrition

Signs of Rickets (Vitamin D deficiency)

Assessing Nutritional Status:
5) Dietary Analysis:
• Examines an individual’s food intake over time. This
allows for estimation of nutrient consumption and
may give clues about potential nutritional problems
Assessing Nutritional Status:
6) Environment Assessment:
§ Provides information on education and economic
background which gives further insights on the types
of food choices made
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Limitations of Nutritional Assessments

• Many signs and symptoms are not specific
• Fatigue and dry skin can be caused by many nutritional
conditions and those not related to nutrition
• Signs and symptoms of nutritional deficiencies can take
a long time to develop
• Osteoporosis can take a lifetime of calcium deficiency before it
manifests
• Recording and analyzing diets is very difficult to do with
accuracy
§ Most people do not remember everything they ate in a day, and
have a hard time recalling portion sizes
§ Similar foods may have very different nutrient contents, and
nutrition databases (eg. NutriCalc) may have incorrect or missing
information about the nutrient content of foods
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Scientific Research in Nutrition

• Research utilizing the scientific method has increased
our nutritional knowledge over the years.
• Scientific Method:
§ Make observations and ask questions
§ Generate hypotheses
§ Conduct studies/experiments to test hypotheses
§ Accept/reject hypotheses and form theories
§ Publication and peer review (for evaluation by
other scientists)
§ Follow-up studies
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Types of Scientific Studies

1) Cell culture and animal studies
2) Human epidemiological studies
3) Human controlled experiments
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Types of Scientific Studies:

Cell Culture Studies
• Cells grown in a laboratory to study the effects of
nutrients directly on cells
• Enables scientists to study effect of HOW food
components affect cell functions such as gene expression

Animal Studies
• Useful for studying hypotheses that may be unethical (or
unfeasible) to test on humans
• Not all results can be directly transferred to humans –
what happens in an animal may not happen in the
human body
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Types of Scientific Studies:

Epidemiological Studies
• Observe populations and try to find relationships
between diet and disease (or other outcomes)
• Epidemiological studies demonstrate correlations
• Correlations are relationships that occur more frequently
than can be explained by coincidence but they do not
prove a cause
§ Eg. Studies have found a correlation between skipping breakfast
and obesity. This doesn’t necessarily mean that skipping
breakfast causes obesity, but just that the two are related

CORRELATION ≠ CAUSATION!
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Types of Scientific Studies:

Epidemiological Studies
• There are two main types of epidemiological studies:
1) Case control studies:
§ Compare a group with a condition (the cases) to a control
group that does not have the condition (eg. comparing
those with and without diabetes)
§ Look for differences between groups in what they ate, what
they do etc.

2) Cohort studies:
§ Follows a large group over time
§ Look for differences between people who develop a disease
(eg. cancer) compared to those who do not
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Types of Scientific Studies:

Controlled Experiments
• Compare an experimental/treatment group to a control
group
§ Eg. A group given vitamin C supplements vs a group not
given a supplement
• Control group often given a placebo (a fake treatment)
in order to eliminate bias in the results
• In double-blinded studies, neither the researcher nor
the subjects know which group is the experimental and
which is the control
• Considered a gold standard of scientific study because
these studies are able to illustrate cause and effect
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Data from a wide variety of sources come together to

support (or not) a research hypothesis
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Nutrition Claims
One Product Quick and
Does it All Easy Fixes
Satisfaction
Personal Guaranteed
Testimonials

Medical Jargon
Natural

Don t need to
Time Tested
exercise
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Evaluating Nutrition Claims

• When evaluating a nutrition claim or advertisement, do
the following:

1. Apply basic principles of nutrition to the claim

Does it make sense?

2. Be wary if yes is answered to any of the following:

• Are only advantages discussed (and not disadvantages)?
• Is this a new or secret breakthrough?
• Are claims made about curing disease?
• Do the claims sound to good to be true?
• Is extreme bias against the medical community or
traditional treatments evident?
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Evaluating Nutrition Claims

• When evaluating a nutrition claim or
advertisement, do the following:

3. Consider whether the scientific credentials of the

individual or organization are reputable (Affiliated
with a recognized university, research institute or
medical center)

4. If there is research, what type of study? What was

the size and duration of the study? (Testimonials
are NOT research)

5. Be wary of press conferences or excessive hype

regarding the latest findings.
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Evaluating Nutrition Claims

• Many nutrition products and diet books have
not been evaluated for safety or efficacy, and
many claims are not supported by the
evidence
• Use your common sense and your research
and nutrition knowledge to separate fact
(evidence based claims) from fiction (clever
marketing)
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10 Red Flags of Nutritional Claims

1. Products that promise a quick fix
2. Dire warnings of danger
3. Generally sounds to good to be true
4. Offers very simplistic conclusions
5. Base their promises on a single study
6. Very dramatic statements that are generally refuted by
reputable scientific organizations
7. Lists of good and bad foods
8. Their recommendations are tailored to help sell a product
9. Their studies, are generally not based on peer reviewed studies
10. Their studies are based on studies that ignore differences
between individuals or groups
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How To Evaluate Online Research

• Resources (In Week 1 Study Guide)
§ Capilano University Library:
Online Research - CRAAP Test