NCM 105 NUTRITION AND DIET THERAPY

Basic Nutrition: Concepts, Tools and

Assessment

BASIC CONCEPTS IN NUTRITION

College of Nursing and Midwifery
1. Understanding Food and Nutrition
Concepts
2. Malnutrition: Forms, Causes, and
Consequences
DEFINING FOOD,NUTRITION AND OTHER
RELATED TERMS
OPTIMUM OR GOOD NUTRITION- A
condition of the body when it has adequate
supply of essential nutrients that are
efficiently utilized such that growth and and
good health are maintained at the highest
possible level.
MALNUTRITION- A condition of the body
caused by sustained deficiency, excess, or
imbalance in one or more nutrients

Definition of Health

Health is state of complete physical, mental

and social well-being and not merely the
absence of disease or infirmity.

DIGESTION- The process of breaking down

food into substances that aid the body in its
different functions.
FOOD- Any substance that people eat and
drink to maintain life and growth.
KNOWING THE NUTRIENTS IN THE FOOD
• People need food to live
• The human body is not able to produce
essential nutrients.

NUTRIENTS- Substances obtained from food

and used by the body for energy, building
and repairing tissues, and regulating body
processes.

NUTRITION- study of how the body uses

food.

NUTRITIONAL STATUS- Physiological state

of an individual as determined by the kinds
and amount of food consumed and by the
ability of the body to use them.
BASIC TOOLS IN NUTRTION
DESCRIBING THE NUTRITIONAL
GUIDELINES FOR FILIPINOS (NGF)
1. Eat a variety of foods everyday
2. Breastfeed infants exclusively from
birth to six months, and then, give
appropriate foods while continuing
breastfeeding.
3. Maintain your children’s normal growth
through proper diet and monitor their
growth regularly.
4. Consume fish, lean meat, poultry or dried
beans
5. Eat more vegetables, fruits, and root
crops.
6. Eat foods cooked in edible/cooking oil
daily.
7. Consume milk, milk products, and other
calcium-rich foods such as small fish and
dark green leafy vegetables everyday.
8. Use iodized salt, but avoid excessive
intake of salty foods.
9. Eat clean and safe foods.
10. For a healthy lifestyle and good
nutrition, exercise regularly, do not smoke
and avoid drinking alcoholic beverages.
Explaining the Daily Nutritional Guide
Pyramid for Filipinos
FOOD PYRAMID
A dietary guide that teaches the
principle of eating a variety of foods
every day at the right amounts
-Composed of six food groups
-DNGP is based on the Filipino dietary
pattern (rice + viand or “ulam”, and fruits)
- DNGP also shows the importance of
drinking water, exercise or physical activity,
and personal and environmental hygiene.
PINGGANG PINOY
serves as a visual tool to help Filipinos
adopt healthy eating habits at meal
times by delivering effective dietary
and healthy lifestyle messages.
DIETARY STANDARDS
RECOMMENDED ENERGY AND NUTRIENT
INTAKE
Nutrient-based dietary standard on
recommended intakes of energy and
nutrients for the maintenance of good
health.
PHILIPPINE DIETARY REFERENCE INTAKES
is the collective term comprising reference
value for energy and nutrient levels of
intakes.
• Estimated Average Requirement (EAR):
daily nutrient intake level that meets the
median or average requirement of healthy
individuals in particular life stage and sex
group, corrected for incomplete utilization
or dietary nutrient bioavailability.
• Recommended Energy/Nutrient Intake
(REI/RNI): level of intake of energy or
nutrient which is considered adequate for
the maintenance of health and well-being
of healthy persons in the population.
• Adequate Intake (AI): daily nutrient
intake level that is based on observed or
experimentally-determined approximation
of the average nutrient intake by a group
(groups) of apparently healthy people that
are assumed to sustain a defined nutritional
state.
•Tolerable Upper Intake Level or Upper
Limit (UL): highest average daily nutrient
intake level likely to pose no adverse health
effects to almost all individuals in the
general population.
FOOD COMPOSITION TABLE- used as a
basis in dietary intake assessments,
nutritional research and nutritional
epidemiology.
FOOD EXCHANGE LISTS- Grouping of
common foods that have practically the
same amount of protein, carbohydrate and
fat.
NUTRITIONAL ASSESSMENT
General Objective
Collect basic data on nutritional status of
population to be used as a guide in
planning, formulation and modification of
action programs intended to improve the
nutrition and health of the
community/population.
FOOD SECURITY
All people, at all times, have physical, social,
and economic access to sufficient, safe and
nutritious food which meet their dietary
needs and food preference for an active
and healthy life.
FOOD AND NUTRITION SECURITY
Achieved if adequate food is available and
accessible to, and satisfactorily used and
utilized by all individuals at all times to live a
healthy and active life.A
MALNUTRITION: FORMS, CAUSES, AND
CONSEQUENCES
Characterizing the Forms of Malnutrition
FORMS OF MALNUTRITION
1. Undernutrition
2. Overnutrition
3. Specific Nutrient Deficiency
4. Nutrient Imbalance
1. Undernutrition
a. Underweight
A condition when children weigh less than
expected for their age and gender;
May indicate stunting or wasting or both
(underweight- for-age)
f. CED
Results from a long standing intake of a diet
that is inadequate in energy to sustain
optimal growth and physical activity

g. GAM
Term used to include all malnourished
children whether they have moderate or
b. Stunting severe wasting or edema or some
The child’s height is less than expected for combination of this conditions
their age and gender
(underheight- for-age) 2. Overnutrition
a. Overweight
Weighing too much for one’s length or
height
c. Wasting b. Obesity
The child’s weight is less than expected for A condition of being severely overweight
their height and gender
(underweight- for-height) BMI

d. Marasmus
A form of severe undernutrition
Non- edematous malnutrition

3. Specific Deficiency
A pathological state resulting from a relative
or absolute lack of an individual nutrient
e. Kwashiorkor - Vitamin A Deficiency Disorders (VADD)
A form of severe undernutrition - Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA)
Edematous malnutrition - Iodine Deficiency Disorder (IDD)

a. VADD
VITAMIN A- A micronutrient found in
animal products and plants (beta-carotene,
less absorbable form)
- Essential for normal growth and
development, vision and helps the body
fight diseases
VADD- Term used to cover all physiological
disturbances caused by low Vitamin A
status, including clinical signs
VADD occurs when people:
• Do not consume enough Vitamin A-rich
foods
• Do not receive Vitamin A supplements on
a regular basis
• Have frequent illnesses and are
undernourished
People Most at Risks to VADD
• Infants and children
• Infants who are not
breastfed properly
• Pregnant or lactating women
Improving Vitamin A Status of Children
• Could prevent 23% of young deaths
• Prevent blindness and save lives
• Reduces demand on health care system
B. IDA
Iron
Mineral essential to the body found mainly
in hemoglobin and myoglobin; iron
helps form the red blood cells
Sources of Iron
Animals: contained more absorbable form
of iron (heme) Vegetables: legumes, green
leafy- contained less absorbable form of
iron(non-heme)
Iron Deficiency Anemia
Characterized by a decrease in the
concentration of hemoglobin (Hb) in the
blood
-needed in the transport of oxygen to
tissues and organs
IDA Results from
• Low levels of iron and low iron
bioavailability in the diet
• Deficiencies in nutrients linked with iron
absorption and metabolism (Vit C)
IDA Symptoms
• General weakness or fatigue
• Shortness of breath upon exertion
• Dizziness
• Pallor (paleness)
Not all anemias are caused by iron
deficiency but if anemia in a population is
high it is likely caused by iron deficiency
anemia.
C. IDD

Iodine
-Essential micronutrient and component of
thyroxin which control normal functioning
of the brain and body
-Found in shellfish and seafood and
commonly consumed through iodized salt

Iodine Deficiency Disorder

Refers to all of the ill effects of iodine
deficiency in a population

Iodine Deficiency Disorder

Determined by measuring the amount of
iodine in the urine (urinary iodine excretion
or UIE)and by detecting the presence of
goiter