Nutrition Essay, Research Paper

Most people know that good nutrition is important for good health. Recommended

Dietary Allowances (RDA) are the daily amounts of essential nutrients that will prevent

deficiencies in most healthy people. But not many people realize the importance a healthy

diet can have on their health for years to come. To help us stay healthy a person should

eat a variety of foods, maintain ideal weight, avoid too much fat, and eat foods with

enough starch and fiber. A good diet helps children grow, develop, and do well in school.

It also helps young and older adults to work productively and feel their best. A healthy

diet can also lessen the risk factors for obesity and high blood pressure. For our benefit,

the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of

Agriculture has issued Dietary Guidelines. These guidelines are designed to help

Americans choose the recommended number of daily servings from each of the five

different food groups; Bread, Meat, Vegetable, Fruit, and Dairy. The Nutrition Facts

Label is made to help you buy foods that will meet the Dietary Guidelines. Most

processed foods now carry nutrition information.

People need energy and essential nutrients. These nutrients are essential because the

body cannot make them and has to get them from food. Energy needs vary by age. Adults

need less food than younger and more active individuals. People who are less active or are

trying to lose weight will eat less food and have problems meeting their nutrient needs.

Almost all Americans need to be more active, because an inactive lifestyle is unhealthy. In

order to stay at the same body weight, people need to balance the amount of energy in

food with the amount of energy the body uses. People need to put more energy into daily

activities. The pattern of eating is also important. Snacks provide a large amount of

calories for many Americans. Unless nutritious snacks are part of the daily diet, snacking

will cause weight gain. Also binge eating and fasting will add to weight problems.

Maintaining weight in older people is important because they usually lose weight as they

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age. Some of that weight is muscle. People need to exercise regularly to maintain muscle,

to feel better and to reduce the risk of falls and broken bones.

The quality and variety of food in the United States allow almost everyone to have a

nutritious diet. Nutrients are divided into five major groups; proteins, carbohydrates, fats,

vitamins and minerals. Each of these food components have a special function in the body,

and all of them together are needed for overall health. The body uses energy to function

and keep itself at a constant temperature. Scientists have been able to find out that the

body gets its fuel from carbohydrates, fats, and protein.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the most available foods in the world. Carbohydrates in foods, like

whole grain breads and cereals, provide calories and nutrients and also increase dietary

fiber. Dietary fiber, like lettuce, if eaten daily, can decrease the risk of colon cancer. If

there isn’t enough carbohydrates in the body during exercise, the body tires faster.

Research has proven that a daily diet high in carbohydrates is helpful. Most sports

nutritionists recommend a meal high in carbohydrates 3 or 4 hours before an event.

Carbohydrates provide most of the energy in almost all people’s diets. The best sources

for carbohydrates are grains, potatoes, vegetables, and fruits.

Fats

Everyone thinks that fat in the diet is bad, but really the body needs it. Fat provides

energy by giving calories to the body. They are the most concentrated source of energy in

the diet. People need to watch how much fat they eat, not do without it entirely. Because

fat sources have little water in them, they take up less room, so we eat more fat without

getting full. So that’s why it is easy to get fat on a high-fat diet. Obesity increases the risk

for high blood pressure and eventually for stroke. It is also associated with heart disease.

There is evidence that certain kinds of cancer like colon, lung, and bladder cancer run in

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people who have high-fat diets. It is also known that breast and uterine cancer are more

common in obese women. Best sources of fat are margarine, vegetable/plant oils, nuts,

meats, cheese, and cream.

Protein

The main purpose of protein in the body is to build and repair tissues. Most of the

body’s protein is located in the muscle tissue. Every cell in the body is partly made of

proteins. As a child grows, his muscles are built from proteins. A person with burns or

open sores need protein to heal these wounds. Also, if carbohydrates, starches, or fats are

unavailable, protein can be used to supply energy. Everyone needs some protein

everyday. How much is needed depends on body size, rate of growth, and each persons

healing requirements. The best sources of protein are eggs, milk, fish, meat, poultry, and

nuts.

Vitamins

Vitamins help your body use carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. In most cases, vitamins

cannot be made by the body and must be taken from food. Vitamins are necessary for

growth, healthy skin, teeth and eyes, and cell formation. They are also important in

digestion, mental alertness, and resistance to bacterial infections. All natural vitamins are

found only in living things, plants and animals. Good sources of vitamins are meat, fish,

poultry, milk, fruit, breads, and cereals. There are 13 known vitamins, 4 fat-soluble and 9

water-soluble vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E, and K. The water-

soluble vitamins include vitamin C and the B-vitamin complex.

A lot of people think vitamins can replace food. They cannot. If you eat a variety of

nutritious foods, you shouldn’t need vitamin supplements. Taking more nutrients than your

body needs won’t give you any more energy, but will prevent nutritional deficiency

diseases like scurvy, beriberi, and rickets, although these diseases are rare in the United

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States. Taking vitamin and mineral supplements to prevent or give you more protection

against cancer has not been proven effective. It has been found that smoking slightly

increases the body’s need for vitamin C, but not for nutrients over the 100% of the

Recommended Dietary Allowances. High-potency vitamin/mineral combinations could be

dangerous if taken in large amounts. Some side effects are fatigue, diarrhea, and hair loss.

More serious effects are kidney stones, liver or nerve damage, or even death. If

supplements are dangerous, why are they being sold? Our laws do not allow the United

States Food and Drug Administration to limit the amount of nutrients that go into a single

pill.

Water

You won’t find water listed on nutrient charts, but everyone knows that we can’t live

without it. While we can survive for long periods of time without many vitamins and

minerals, it takes only a few days without water to lead to death. Water is a colorless

compound of hydrogen and oxygen that almost every cell in the body needs to survive, it

contains no calories. Even tissues that are not thought of as “watery” contain large

amounts of water. Water makes up about three-fourths of the brain and muscles, and bone

is more than one-fifth water. In all, water accounts for about one-half to two-thirds of the

body’s makeup.

One of water’s many important jobs is to carry nutrients and oxygen to all parts of the

body through the blood and lymphatic systems. Also, it plays an important role in

regulating body temperature; the heat released when we lose water through perspiration

helps keep us cool.

We cannot rely on thirst as the only indicator of water requirements. It is possible to

quench your thirst without putting back into your body the amount of water you need.

That’s the reason you’re advised to drink 6 to 8 glassed of fluid every day, whether you’re

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thirsty or not. This recommendation has special meaning for the elderly, they are less

likely to get thirst signals when their bodies need water. Drinking water past the point of

thirst also lessens the risk of dehydration for people who live in really hot climates, or

athletes and laborers who sweat all the time. It’s almost impossible to take in too much

water, since the body is very efficient at getting rid of what it doesn’t need.

Most of the water we drink comes from beverages, including juice, milk, and soft

drinks. Coffee and tea also supply water, but these sources are taken daily and they

increase loss of water through the kidneys. Solid foods also add a lot to our daily water

intake. Most fruits are more than 80 percent water, and even foods that don’t seem juicy

or moist supply us with large amounts of water.

Minerals

Minerals are necessary for good health and growth. Certain amounts of minerals are

needed to keep our bodies working properly.

The two important body functions that mineral elements do are building and regulating.

The building functions have to do with the skeleton and all soft tissues, including the

blood. The regulating functions include heartbeat, blood clotting, maintenance of blood

pressure, water balance, nerve responses, and carrier of oxygen from the lungs to tissues.

Large amounts of some minerals are needed in the diet because they are present in large

amounts in the body. These minerals – calcium, phosphorus, sodium, chloride, potassium,

magnesium and sulphur are known as macrominerals. More than 100 milligrams of these

minerals are needed everyday. Others, called trace minerals, are needed in small amounts.

These are iron, manganese, copper, iodine, zinc, cobalt, fluoride, and selenium. Some

mineral elements are considered harmful, such as lead, mercury and cadmium.

Phosphorus helps strengthen bones and teeth and is also a part of every body tissue. It

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has more functions than any other mineral element. Antacids can interfere with

phosphorus absorption. If used for a long time antacids could cause severe bone

demineralization. Good sources of phosphorus are meat, fish, poultry and eggs. Fruits and

vegetables are usually low in phosphorus and are not good sources.

Potassium is necessary for the fluid inside body cells. It helps control muscle action

and transfer of nerve impulses. Prolonged vomiting and kidney disease will cause

potassium deficiencies. The best sources of potassium are fruits and vegetables.

Sodium is found mainly in the blood and fluids outside body cells. It maintains water

balance inside and outside the cells. The sending of nerve impulses also depends on the

proper amounts of sodium. Doctors will often advise patients to reduce the amount of salt

in their diet in cases of high blood pressure, kidney disease, cirrhosis of the liver and

congestive heart disease. A decrease in salt can reduce water holding, which usually is

associated with these health problems.

Magnesium is important to the normal functioning of nerves and muscles. When there

is not enough magnesium in the body, people could have symptoms like muscle spasms,

weakness, irregular heart beat, and leg cramps. In malnourished people, a lack of

magnesium will cause tremors and convulsions.

Since there are too many vitamins and minerals to research in full, I have listed below

the essential ones and what each one does for the body.

Vitamin A: Promotes good eyesight and helps keep the skin and mucous membranes

resistant to infection.

Vitamin B1: (thiamine) – Prevents beriberi. Important to carbohydrate energy and health

of nervous system.

Vitamin B2: (riboflavin) – Protects skin, mouth, eyes, eyelids, and mucous membranes.

Vitamin B6: (pyrido xine) – Important in the regulation of the central nervous system.

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Vitamin B12: (cobalamin) – Needed to form red blood cells.

Niacin: Maintains the health of skin, tongue, and digestive system.

Folic acid: (folacin) – Required for normal blood cell formation, growth, and

reproduction.

Other B Vitamins: biotin, pantothenic acid.

Vitamin C: (ascorbic acid) – Maintains collagen, a protein necessary for the formation of

skin, ligaments, and bones. It helps heal wounds, and mend fractures and aids in resisting

some types of viral and bacterial infections.

Vitamin D: Important for bone development.

Vitamin E: (tocopherol) – Helps protect red blood cells.

Vitamin K: Necessary for formation of prothrombin, which helps blood to clot.

Vegetarians

Some Americans eat vegetarian diets for reason of culture, religious beliefs, health,

dislike of meat, compassion for animals, and belief in non-violence. Most vegetarians eat

dairy products and eggs, and have excellent health. Vegetarian diets meet with the

Dietary Guidelines and can meet all known nutrient needs. The key to a healthy

vegetarian diet is to eat a wide variety of foods including fruits, plenty of green leafy

vegetables, whole grain products, nuts, and seeds. Because animal products are the only

sources of vitamin B-12, vegetarians must supplement their diet with this vitamin. Also

vegetarian diets, especially for children, need to have the right amount of vitamin D and

calcium, which comes from dairy products.

In the eighteenth century, scientists learned more about how food helped the body

work. And in the twentieth century, vitamins were discovered as essential elements in the

human diet. So much is known about nutrition today it’s hard to believe that 100 years ago

rickets was a common disease for young people, lack of iron for the wealthy, and cavities

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were a part of life for children. Two hundred years ago, the average life expectancy was

35 years. One hundred years ago, it was 40 years. Today, with all our medical advances

and knowledge of nutrition the life expectancy could be 75 years. But even with this

knowledge Americans still continue to eat too much food that is too high in fat,

cholesterol, sugar, and salt!

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