Medicues Diet & Exercise

Nutrition

• Nutrients are essential compounds needed for healthy metabolism.

• Essential nutrients cannot be made or synthesized by the human body.

• There are approximately 40 nutrients.

• A deficiency in a nutrient can cause physiologic abnormalities that when replaced, should disappear.

• Essential nutrients include:
· essential amino acids (amino acids that cannot be made by the human body and must come form the diet)
· water-soluble vitamins
· fat-soluble vitamins
· minerals
· essential fatty acids (fatty acids that cannot be made by the human body and must come from the diet)

• The human body also requires:
· adequate energy substrate
· a small amount of usable carbohydrates
· indigestible carbohydrate (fiber/bran)
· additional nitrogen
· water

February 4, 2009

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