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1.2 What Are Nutrients?
Learning Objectives
- Define the word “nutrient” and identify the six classes of nutrients essential for health.
- List the three energy-yielding nutrients and their energy contribution.
What’s in Food?
Figure 1.3 The Six Classes of Nutrients
The foods we eat contain nutrientsSubstances required by the body that must be obtained from the diet.. Nutrients are substances required by the body to perform its basic functions. Nutrients must be obtained from diet, since the human body does not synthesize them. Nutrients are used to produce energy, detect and respond to environmental surroundings, move, excrete wastes, respire (breathe), grow, and reproduce. There are six classes of nutrients required for the body to function and maintain overall health. These are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, water, vitamins, and minerals. Foods also contain nonnutrients that may be harmful (such as cholesterol, dyes, and preservatives) or beneficial (such as antioxidants). Nonnutrient substances in food will be further explored in Chapter 8 "Nutrients Important As Antioxidants".
Macronutrients
Nutrients that are needed in large amounts are called macronutrientsNutrients that are needed in large amounts. Includes carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and water.. There are three classes of macronutrients: carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins. These can be metabolically processed into cellular energy. The energy from macronutrients comes from their chemical bonds. This chemical energy is converted into cellular energy that is then utilized to perform work, allowing our bodies to conduct their basic functions. A unit of measurement of food energy is the calorie. On nutrition food labels the amount given for “calories” is actually equivalent to each calorie multiplied by one thousand. A kilocalorie (one thousand calories, denoted with a small “c”) is synonymous with the “Calorie” (with a capital “C”) on nutrition food labels. Water is also a macronutrient in the sense that you require a large amount of it, but unlike the other macronutrients it does not yield calories.
Carbohydrates
CarbohydratesOrganic molecules composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. There are two basic forms: simple sugars and complex sugars. are molecules composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The major food sources of carbohydrates are grains, milk, fruits, and starchy vegetables like potatoes. Nonstarchy vegetables also contain carbohydrates, but in lesser quantities. Carbohydrates are broadly classified into two forms based on their chemical structure: fast-releasing carbohydrates, often called simple sugars, and slow-releasing carbohydrates.
Fast-releasing carbohydrates consist of one or two basic units. Examples of simple sugars include sucrose, the type of sugar you would have in a bowl on the breakfast table, and glucose, the type of sugar that circulates in your blood.
Figure 1.4 The Macronutrients: Carbohydrates, Lipids, Protein, and Water
Slow-releasing carbohydrates are long chains of simple sugars that can be branched or unbranched. During digestion, the body breaks down all slow-releasing carbohydrates to simple sugars, mostly glucose. Glucose is then transported to all our cells where it is stored, used to make energy, or used to build macromolecules. Fiber is also a slow-releasing carbohydrate, but it cannot be broken down in the human body and passes through the digestive tract undigested unless the bacteria that inhabit the gut break it down.
One gram of carbohydrates yields four kilocalories of energy for the cells in the body to perform work. In addition to providing energy and serving as building blocks for bigger macromolecules, carbohydrates are essential for proper functioning of the nervous system, heart, and kidneys. As mentioned, glucose can be stored in the body for future use. In humans, the storage molecule of carbohydrates is called glycogen and in plants it is known as starches. Glycogen and starches are slow-releasing carbohydrates.
Lipids
LipidsA family of organic compounds composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. They are insoluble in water. The three main types of lipids are triglycerides, phospholipids, and sterols. are also a family of molecules composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, but unlike carbohydrates, they are insoluble in water. Lipids are found predominately in butter, oils, meats, dairy products, nuts, and seeds, and in many processed foods. The three main types of lipids are triglycerides (triacylglycerols), phospholipids, and sterols. The main job of lipids is to store energy. Lipids provide more energy per gram than carbohydrates (nine kilocalories per gram of lipids versus four kilocalories per gram of carbohydrates). In addition to energy storage, lipids serve as cell membranes, surround and protect organs, aid in temperature regulation, and regulate many other functions in the body.
Proteins
ProteinsMacromolecules composed of chains of organic monomeric subunits, called amino acids. Amino acids are simple monomers composed of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen. are macromolecules composed of chains of subunits called amino acids. Amino acids are simple subunits composed of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen. The food sources of proteins are meats, dairy products, seafood, and a variety of different plant-based foods, most notably soy. The word protein comes from a Greek word meaning “of primary importance,” which is an apt description of these macronutrients; they are also known colloquially as the “workhorses” of life. Proteins provide four kilocalories of energy per gram; however providing energy is not protein’s most important function. Proteins provide structure to bones, muscles and skin, and play a role in conducting most of the chemical reactions that take place in the body. Scientists estimate that greater than one-hundred thousand different proteins exist within the human body.
Water
There is one other nutrient that we must have in large quantities: water. Water does not contain carbon, but is composed of two hydrogens and one oxygen per molecule of water. More than 60 percent of your total body weight is water. Without it, nothing could be transported in or out of the body, chemical reactions would not occur, organs would not be cushioned, and body temperature would fluctuate widely. On average, an adult consumes just over two liters of water per day from food and drink. According to the “rule of threes,” a generalization supported by survival experts, a person can survive three minutes without oxygen, three days without water, and three weeks without food. Since water is so critical for life’s basic processes, the amount of water input and output is supremely important, a topic we will explore in detail in Chapter 7 "Nutrients Important to Fluid and Electrolyte Balance".
Micronutrients
MicronutrientsNutrients needed in smaller amounts. Includes vitamins and minerals. are nutrients required by the body in lesser amounts, but are still essential for carrying out bodily functions. Micronutrients include all the essential minerals and vitamins. There are sixteen essential minerals and thirteen vitamins (See Table 1.1 "Minerals and Their Major Functions" and Table 1.2 "Vitamins and Their Major Functions" for a complete list and their major functions). In contrast to carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins, micronutrients are not directly used for making energy, but they assist in the process as being part of enzymes (i.e., coenzymes). Enzymes are proteins that catalyze chemical reactions in the body and are involved in all aspects of body functions from producing energy, to digesting nutrients, to building macromolecules. Micronutrients play many roles in the body.
Minerals
Minerals are solid inorganic substances that form crystals and are classified depending on how much of them we need. Trace minerals, such as molybdenum, selenium, zinc, iron, and iodine, are only required in a few milligrams or less and macrominerals, such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and phosphorus, are required in hundreds of milligrams. Many minerals are critical for enzyme function, others are used to maintain fluid balance, build bone tissue, synthesize hormones, transmit nerve impulses, contract and relax muscles, and protect against harmful free radicals.
Table 1.1 Minerals and Their Major Functions
| Minerals | Major Functions |
|---|---|
| Macro | |
| Sodium | Fluid balance, nerve transmission, muscle contraction |
| Chloride | Fluid balance, stomach acid production |
| Potassium | Fluid balance, nerve transmission, muscle contraction |
| Calcium | Bone and teeth health maintenance, nerve transmission, muscle contraction, blood clotting |
| Phosphorus | Bone and teeth health maintenance, acid-base balance |
| Magnesium | Protein production, nerve transmission, muscle contraction |
| Sulfur | Protein production |
| Trace | |
| Iron | Carries oxygen, assists in energy production |
| Zinc | Protein and DNA production, wound healing, growth, immune system function |
| Iodine | Thyroid hormone production, growth, metabolism |
| Selenium | Antioxidant |
| Copper | Coenzyme, iron metabolism |
| Manganese | Coenzyme |
| Fluoride | Bone and teeth health maintenance, tooth decay prevention |
| Chromium | Assists insulin in glucose metabolism |
| Molybdenum | Coenzyme |
Vitamins
The thirteen vitamins are categorized as either water-soluble or fat-soluble. The water-soluble vitamins are vitamin C and all the B vitamins, which include thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, pyroxidine, biotin, folate and cobalamin. The fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K. Vitamins are required to perform many functions in the body such as making red blood cells, synthesizing bone tissue, and playing a role in normal vision, nervous system function, and immune system function.
Vitamin deficiencies can cause severe health problems. For example, a deficiency in niacin causes a disease called pellagra, which was common in the early twentieth century in some parts of America. The common signs and symptoms of pellagra are known as the “4D’s—diarrhea, dermatitis, dementia, and death.” Until scientists found out that better diets relieved the signs and symptoms of pellagra, many people with the disease ended up in insane asylums awaiting death (see Note 1.19 "Video 1.1"). Other vitamins were also found to prevent certain disorders and diseases such as scurvy (vitamin C), night blindness (vitamin A), and rickets (vitamin D).
Video 1.1
Pellagra
(click to see video)This video provides a brief history of Dr. Joseph Goldberger’s discovery that pellagra was a diet-related disease.
Table 1.2 Vitamins and Their Major Functions
| Vitamins | Major Functions |
|---|---|
| Water-soluble | |
| B1 (thiamine) | Coenzyme, energy metabolism assistance |
| B2 (riboflavin) | Coenzyme, energy metabolism assistance |
| B3 (niacin) | Coenzyme, energy metabolism assistance |
| B5 (pantothenic acid) | Coenzyme, energy metabolism assistance |
| B6 (pyroxidine) | Coenzyme, amino acid synthesis assistance |
| Biotin | Coenzyme |
| Folate | Coenzyme, essential for growth |
| B12 (cobalamin) | Coenzyme, red blood cell synthesis |
| C | Collagen synthesis, antioxidant |
| Fat-soluble | |
| A | Vision, reproduction, immune system function |
| D | Bone and teeth health maintenance, immune system function |
| E | Antioxidant, cell membrane protection |
| K | Bone and teeth health maintenance, blood clotting |
Food Quality
One measurement of food quality is the amount of nutrients it contains relative to the amount of energy it provides. High-quality foods are nutrient dense, meaning they contain lots of the nutrients relative to the amount of calories they provide. Nutrient-dense foods are the opposite of “empty-calorie” foods such as carbonated sugary soft drinks, which provide many calories and very little, if any, other nutrients. Food quality is additionally associated with its taste, texture, appearance, microbial content, and how much consumers like it.
Food: A Better Source of Nutrients
It is better to get all your micronutrients from the foods you eat as opposed to from supplements. Supplements contain only what is listed on the label, but foods contain many more macronutrients, micronutrients, and other chemicals, like antioxidants that benefit health. While vitamins, multivitamins, and supplements are a $20 billion industry in this country and more than 50 percent of Americans purchase and use them daily, there is no consistent evidence that they are better than food in promoting health and preventing disease. Dr. Marian Neuhouser, associate of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, says that “…scientific data are lacking on the long-term health benefits of supplements. To our surprise, we found that multivitamins did not lower the risk of the most common cancers and also had no impact on heart disease.”Woodward, K. “Multivitamins Each Day Will Not Keep Common Cancers Away; Largest Study of Its Kind Provides Definitive Evidence that Multivitamins Will Not Reduce Risk of Cancer or Heart Disease in Postmenopausal Women.” Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Center News 16 (February 2009). http://www.fhcrc.org/about/pubs/center_news/online/2009/02/multivitamin_study.html
Key Takeaways
- Foods contain nutrients that are essential for our bodies to function.
- Four of the classes of nutrients required for bodily function are needed in large amounts. They are carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and water, and are referred to as macronutrients.
- Two of the classes of nutrients are needed in lesser amounts, but are still essential for bodily function. They are vitamins and minerals.
- One measurement of food quality is the amount of essential nutrients a food contains relative to the amount of energy it has (nutrient density).
Discussion Starters
-
Make a list of some of your favorite foods and visit the “What’s In the Foods You Eat?” search tool provided by the USDA. What are some of the nutrients found in your favorite foods?
- Have a discussion in class on the “progression of science” and its significance to human health as depicted in the video on pellagra (see Note 1.19 "Video 1.1").