1.INTRODUCTION
Introduction to Nutrition and Diet

• Diet is the sum of food consumed by a person
• Complete nutrition requires ingestion and absorption of vitamins, essential amino acids from protein and essential fatty acids from fat-containing food, also energy in the form of carbohydrate, protein, and fat.
• Dietary habits and choices play a significant role in the quality of life, health and longevity.
• So during this program, we shall learn how to make a good diet and nutrition plan.
• But before we start learning about diet and nutrition, I strongly recommend you to take the next lecture on Basic Anatomy any Physiology so that you may about our body.

Basic Anatomy and Physiology

2. PHUSICAL HEALTH-DIET AND NUTRITION
Fundamentals of Diet and Nutrition

Food is that which nourishes the body. Food may also be defined as anything eaten or drunk. In short, food is the raw material from which our bodies are made. Intake of the right kinds and amounts of food can ensure good nutrition.

Diet refers to whatever we eat and drink each day. Thus, it includes the normal diet we consume and the diet people consume in groups (hostel diet). Diet may also be modified and used for ill person as part of their therapy (therapeutic diets)

Calories A calorie is a unit of energy. In nutrition, calories refer to the energy we get from the food and drink we consume, and the energy we use in physical activity.

Everyone one a different calorie requirement based on his or her age, gender, lifestyle etc. Anyone who eats more calories than daily energy requirements gains weight and anyone who eats lesser calories than daily requirements loses weights.

Here on the screen we can see the Estimated Calorie Needs per Day, by Age, Sex, and Physical Activity Level. There are also a lot of different mobile apps and website available to estimate calorie requirements. Just google Calorie Calculator and we will find them.

In case we want to plan a diet to lose weight, ensure that the diet has lesser calories than daily needs. And in case we want to plan a diet to gain weight, ensure that the diet has more calories than daily needs.

Its simple isn’t it?

Let me make it simpler

1 pound or 0.45 kilogram baby fat equals about 3,500 calories. So if we want to lose i pound of our body weight, we need a deficit of 3,500 calories… either by burning calories or by eating less calories. So, in general, if we eat 500 calories less than our daily calorie need, we’d lose about  pounds a week, The same way if we eat 500 calories more than our daily calories need, we’d gain about 1 pounds a week.

However we will learn different ways to plan diet later in this course.

Nutrition has been defined at work in the body. Nutrition includes every think that happens to food from the time it is eaten until it is used for various functions in the body.

Nutrients are components of food that are needed by the body for a normal, healthy life.

Nutrients include water, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins, There are several nutrients in each of the groups; hence the plural form of these words has been used. Thus there are over 40 essential nutrients supplies by food, which are used to produce literally thousands of substances necessary for life and physical fitness.

Balanced nutrition includes drinking plenty of clean water and regularly eating good food (Six food groups: grains, vegetables, fruits, milk products, meat and beans, and oils).

Essential nutrients can be grouped into six categories: Carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins, minerals, and water.

Carbohydrate, protein, and fat are macronutrients because we need them in bigger amounts and they make up most of our diet.

Vitamins and minerals are micronutrients because we need them in much smaller amounts. Smaller doesn’t mean unimportant: Deficiencies in specific vitamins and minerals can create massive problems.

Water is more of a carrier of these nutrients but interestingly, it is calcified as a micronutrient, even Hough we might drink litters and litters everyday.

Carbohydrates

They are called carbohydrates because they contain carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

Provide energy for brain, muscle, and other body functions.

Carb intake for most people should be between 45% and 65% of total calories.

One gram of carbohydrates equals about 4 calories, so a diet 2,000 calories per day would need carbohydrate between 225 grams and 325 grams.

However, people with diabetes should not eat more than 200 gram of carbs par day, while pregnant woman need at least 175 grams.