Chapter 1

Question 1

Define Nutrition

Answer 1

How an organism acquires food and uses food to support all processes required for its existence

Question 2

What are Nutritional Geonomics

Answer 2

The science of how nutrients affect the activities of genes (aka nutrigenomics) AND how genes affect the interactions between diet and disease (aka nutrigenetics).

Question 3

What are Essential Nutrients? (Desciption, not listing)
Bonus: What would their absence in the diet lead to? What would a surplus lead to?

Answer 3

Nutrients a person must obtain from food because the body cannot make them sufficiently to meet physiological needs (aka indispensable nutrients). There are about 40 essential nutrients.
- Absence of Essential Nutrients would lead to deficiency disease and eventually death
- Too much can lead to chronic diseases or sudden death as in overdosing

Question 4

What are Non-Essential Nutrients? name some

Answer 4

Not meant to be required from the body because they already produce them. Examples include fiber and phytochemicals

Question 5

Name factors that drive good food choices?

Answer 5

Cognitive Fix (learning about nutrition), learning how to cook

Question 6

What is the goal of plant domestication? What was the focus of early agriculture?

Answer 6

Gain access to plants for human use, particularly as a reliable and abundant food source.
Early agriculture was focused on producing energy foods (grains, fats, proteins)

Question 7

What are the Essential Nutrients (list)

Answer 7

Carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, vitamins, minerals, water

Question 8

What were the deficiencies in early human diets

Answer 8

Grain + fish → basic macronutrients, poor in micronutrients → health issues.

Question 9

What are micronutrients?

Answer 9

Nutrients needed in tiny amounts, critical for body function; deficiencies cause major diseases.

Question 10

What are amino acids?

Answer 10

Building blocks of protein. There are 20 of them.

Diet must supply nine essential amino acids, while the remaining eleven can be “built” by cells of the liver

Question 11

What are Fats?

Answer 11

Carbohydrates and proteins can be converted into lipids and stored as energy for later use. Fat can store more than double the energy per gram than carbs and protein. Must be supplied by the diet.