Understanding Nutrition: Essential Insights for 9th and 10th Graders

1. By: Veronica Rhea Audience: 9th and 10th graders NUTRITION

2. Vocabulary • Nutrition- The process by which your body takes in and uses food. The energy your body receives from food is measured in calories

3. Calorie- A unit if heat used to measure the energy your body uses and the energy it receives from food • The calories in the food you eat provide energy your body needs Nutrition affects lifelong health. Poor Nutrition can put you at risk to develop: • Cardiovascular Disease 2) Certain Cancers 3) Stroke 4) Osteoporosis

4. What influences your food choices? • Hunger- Natural physical drive to eat, prompted by the body’s need for food • Appetite- psychological desire for food. • Smell of good food makes you want more even when you are full!

5. Food and Emotions • Eat in response to emotional need Stressed, frustrated, lonely, sad, bored • Leads to weight gain • When appetite is depressed, perhaps when you are upset, body is not getting nutrients it needs!

6. Food and Environment • How your family and friends eats will influence how you eat! • Unhealthy snacks, big portions, unhealthy meals • Fast food, cheap & convenient • Advertisements will try to influence your decisions.

7. Nutrients • Your body uses nutrients in many ways : • Energy source • To heal, build and repair tissue • Sustain growth • Help transport oxygen to cells

8. 6 Types of Nutrients • Carbohydrates • Proteins • Fats • Vitamins • Minerals • Water

9. Carbohydrates • Starches and sugars found in foods • Main source of energy • 45-65% of your daily calories should come from carbohydrates (about 1500 calories) • Fiber- tough complex carb that the body can not digest-moves waste through digestive system

10. Carbohydrates • Role: Gets broken down into their simplest forms, mostly glucose. • Glucose- Main source of fuel, stored in body

11. Proteins • Nutrients the body uses to build and maintain its cells and tissues. • amino acids • Muscles, bones, skin and internal organs are constructed of protein. • One egg=6 grams, Chicken Breast= 30 grams

12. Fats • Need a certain amount • Provide small amount of energy • Cardiovascular endurance= fat burn • 3 types • Unsaturated, saturated, trans

13. Unsaturated Fats • Vegetable oils, nuts and seeds. • Eating these in moderate amounts can help lower risk of heart disease

14. Saturated Fats • Found mostly in animal based foods • Meat, Dairy • Consuming too much may lead to heart disease

15. Trans Fat • Margarine, snack foods, packaged baked goods- cookies crackers • Raise your total blood cholesterol levels, increases risk of heart disease

16. Fats are high in calories • Consuming too many can lead to unhealthy weight gain and obesity • Cholesterol- waxy, fat-like substance in your blood • Excess cholesterol can Clog arteries, raising risk for heart disease!

17. Vitamins • Compounds found in food that help regulate many body processes. • Vitamin C, folic acid and B vitamins-water soluble • Dissolve into water and pass easily in the bloodstream during digestion • Body doesn’t store these, unused amounts are removed by kidneys.

18. Fat Soluble Vitamins • Stored in body fat for later use. • Vitamins (A,D,E,K) • If you consume too many, can build up in body and become harmful • More Info on Vitamins : • http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy890

19. Minerals • Elements found in foods that are used by body • We can not produce them, we need to consume them through food or supliments • Calcium- promotes bone health • Helps reduce risk of osteoporosis • Commonly found in milk.

20. Water • Essential for body’s functions: • Moving food through digestive system • Digesting carbohydrates • Transporting nutrients • removing waste • Storing, releasing heat • Cooling body through perspiration • Lubricating joints • Cushioning eyes, brain and spinal chord

21. Girls need 9 cups of fluids a day • Boys- 13 fluids a day • About 20% of your daily water intake comes from foods you eat, since most foods contain some water