November 19, 2022

Micronutrient and Macronutrient Diversity and Richness in Food

By organizing plants botanically, it makes it much easier to perceive which categories

are richer in certain nutrients and which are not. It also allows for a greater understanding of

why nutrient diversity is important for optimal health. Grouping them taxonomically also offers

a deeper understanding of how plants of the same family can differ or resemble each other.

Fleshy Fruits

Fleshy fruits are the mature ovary of a flower. This includes fruits and vegetables like

cherries, tomatoes, eggplant, and blueberries. They carry the greatest amount of simple

carbohydrates. This is because they are much more sweet tasting than rest for animals to

consume and spread their seed. Carbohydrates are important because they provide us with

energy and simple carbs are made up of glucose that provide just that. They are more present

in fleshy fruits because the germs need them to grow.

Fleshy fruits were overall the richest in vitamin C and significant sources of it. Vitamin C

is essential and has many functions. It plays an important role in immune function, collagen

synthesis, and acts as an antioxidant (Schiff, 2019. 300). The culinary vegetable that stood out

the most overall was the red bell pepper. It houses the highest amounts of carbohydrates,

potassium, and vitamins A, E, and C. Blackberries are also worth mentioning for their richness in

fibre.
USO’s

Underground storage units are another great source of carbohydrates and kilocalories.

Carbohydrates are important because they give us ready to use energy. Unlike fleshy fruits,

underground storage organs do not carry many simple carbs. Instead, they have higher levels of

starches and dietary fibres. They also are rich in vitamin A, especially carrots and sweet

potatoes. This is because they contain a weighty amount of beta-carotene. A carotenoid found

in both USO’s that the body can convert into vitamin A. it is also the reason for their orange

colour. Vitamin A is vital for proper development of epithelial cells and to protect the body

from pathogens (Calogeropoulous, 2021. 36). I chose to evaluate beets, and contrarily to the

rest of the USO’s beets contributed the most in terms of iron and simple carbohydrates.

Leaves

Leaves such as spinach and lettuce do not store macronutrients since they do not serve

as food for organisms, but as energy converters. Therefore, they have little-to-no traces of

carbohydrates, lipids, or proteins. Although leaves are not energy yielding, they do house some

minerals and few vitamins. They have a significant amount of vitamin-A and folate.

The fat-soluble vitamin A is important for immune system function and cellular production,

growth, and maintenance. Folate is imperative for amino acid metabolism and DNA synthesis.

Although leaves also have a decent amount of calcium, it is essentially useless since the leaves

also contain elevated levels of oxalate. Oxalate is an anti-nutrient and limits the amount of

calcium that can be absorbed in the body, therefore making it a very poor contributor for
calcium. I also chose to add coriander to my list for analysis. To my discovery, coriander

contributes even less micronutrients than lettuce, endives, and spinach overall.

Seeds

Truly the winners for best macronutrient and micronutrient provider goes to seeds.

Between tree nuts, legumes, and grains we can see that seeds are most energy yielding and

nutrient-dense categories. I chose to evaluate chickpeas and hazelnuts. There is a very visible

pattern in the diversity and richness of micro and macronutrients that these foods provide.

Notably, the opulence in kilocalories, fibre, lipids, magnesium, phosphorus, and zinc. Seeds

contain much more complex carbs because plants store their energy in the seeds, roots, and

tubers.

Legumes are a significant source of fibre, which is important for the gut. Soluble fiber

slows the rate of digestion and absorption in the small intestine. This allows for a delay that lets

the brain know its full. The insoluble fibres also have a key role by adding volume to the waste

and triggering contractions to move the waste along (Calogeropoulous, 2021. 22).

While also being a big carbohydrate contributor, seeds are the richest in lipids of the

plant kingdoms. They have significant levels of PUFA’s, MUFA’s and SFA’s. Lipids are important

because they provide energy for cellular work in the body, serve as the bodily cushions and

insulators, cellular envelopes, and absorbing fat-soluble vitamins.

Tree nuts are the greatest suppliers for the essential polyunsaturated fatty acids

omega-6 and omega-3. They must be provided by the diet because the body is unable to

synthesize them. Omega-6 is important because it allows our cells to produce compounds with
hormone-like functions. Peanuts and walnuts are great source of linoleic fatty acid and contain

more than enough for adequate intake per day.

Seeds were not the greatest contributor for vitamins. However, they earned their seat

as a significant source of vitamin E. Vitamin E is important because it protects PUFA’s from free

radicals and immune system functions. As for minerals magnesium, phosphorus, and potassium

are all provided in great quantities from seeds. They are needed for various tasks such as bone

health, cellular metabolism, and fluid balance. Unfortunately, the anti-nutrient phytate in some

seeds can restrict the intake of iron, zinc, magnesium, and calcium (Harvard).

Animal Products

Animal products, specifically the meats, are the only ingredient that provides no

carbohydrates since the muscle tissue is made up of amino acids. The muscle tissue is almost

pure protein with lipids, which is why meats do still offer a decent number of kilocalories. Our

body uses proteins for an array of things such as muscle development, enzymes, hormones, and

so much more. The building blocks of protein are amino acids and 9 of the 20 must come from

our diet which is why it’s important to consume proteins. Meat was also the only provider of

the water-soluble vitamin B12 that is key to maintaining the myelin sheaths. As well a

noteworthy source of vitamin B6 needed for amino acid metabolism and vitamin D needed for

bone health and the metabolism of minerals calcium and phosphorus.

Moreover, the meats deliver the largest amount of lipids on average. Specifically, the

meat had a larger contribution to SFA’s than any other ingredient overall, although MUFA’s and

PUFA’s were less prominent than the quantities found in seeds. Lipids are needed as energy for
muscles and cells, but not as much as carbohydrates and proteins since the energy for lipids are

not usually the ones to be consumed immediately. Decisively, meat is a good source of proteins

and lipids.

Cruciferous Vegetables

Finally, cruciferous vegetables originate from the mustard plant and are all either

modified flowers, stems, leaves, or buds. Like leaves, they hold very few energy yielding

macronutrients, but they do provide in the micronutrient division. They are an excellent

sources of vitamin C which helps the immune system, vitamin A

Although not the largest supplier of every vitamin and mineral, cruciferous vegetables

do provide some.The calcium provided in cruciferous vegetables, namely broccoli and Brussel

sprouts is an excellent source. Unlike with leaves, there are no oxalates that bind to the calcium

and prevent the absorption of the mineral making it highly bioavailable.

Works Cited
Are Anti-Nutrients Harmful? Harvard. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/anti-

nutrients/#:~:text=Phytates%20(phytic%20acid)%20in%20whole,legumes%E2%80%94ca

n%20decrease%20iron%20absorption. (November 14, 20s22)

Calogeropoulous, Catherine. What is Food. Montreal, McGraw Hill. 2021

Schiff, Wendy J. Nutrition For Healthy Living. New York, McGraw Hill. 2019