Nutrients And Other Food Substitutes:
Food is perfect thing we have in this life. We require a variety of nutrients, which can only be obtained by eating a wide variety of foods. What do our bodies require? More than 40 different nutrients in food have been identified by scientists. These substances are required for growth as well as the chemical reactions and processes that keep us alive and functional (metabolism).
Except for a very small number of foods that are almost entirely composed of one nutrient, the vast majority of the foods we consume are nutrient mixtures. Nonetheless, each food group in the Food Guide Pyramid (grains, fruits and vegetables, milk products, and meats) contributes a different set of nutrients to our diets. Fruits and vegetables, for example, are the primary source of many vitamins, minerals, and complex carbohydrates in our diets, whereas meat (including dry beans and legumes, eggs, poultry, and fish) is the primary source of protein for the majority of people. It can be difficult to tell the difference between nutrients and the foods that contain them. For example, when you hear nutritionists discuss the importance of What do more complex carbohydrates mean, and what foods contain those nutrients? The nutrients themselves are the focus of this chapter—how they are digested, what happens to them in the body, and what they do for you. We also discuss the best food sources for each nutrient, because when you go to the supermarket, you don't look for protein, starch, fiber, or antioxidants; you look for chicken, rice, raisin bran, and orange juice.utrients are classified according to their chemical structures and functions. Carbohydrates, proteins, and fats found in foods are referred to as macronutrients because they are the most abundant. Macronutrients, in addition to their other functions, provide energy in the form of calories. Micronutrients include vitamins and minerals.They are needed by your body in much smaller amounts. Although micronutrients help your body use the energy in macronutrients, they do not provide energy (calories) on their own. Water is also an important, calorie-free nutrient. The work that our bodies do every day depletes some of our stores of these essential nutrients. Only by eating a varied diet rich in nutrient-rich foods can those nutrients be replaced.
CARBOHYDRATES, PROTEINS, AND FATS ARE THE MACRONUTRIENTS:
Each macronutrient—carbohydrates, proteins, and fats—plays a unique role in how our bodies function. In addition to their distinct functions, all macronutrients provide calories. When we consume more protein, carbohydrate, or fat than we require to replenish what we have depleted, the excess is converted to and stored as fat. Calories are used to fuel all muscular activity, to carry out metabolic reactions that keep the body running, to keep the body temperature stable, and to promote growth. However, when we consume more calories than we burn, we gain weight. When energy (calorie) intake equals energy output, weight is maintained.
