How Nutrients Become You

1
How Nutrients Become You

• Chapter 3

2
You Are What You Eat

• Food is your bodys fuel
• You need food to function just as a car needs
  gasoline to function
• When you eat, your body breaks the food down into
  nutrients

3
What are Nutrients?

• Nutrients consist of various chemical substances
  in food that make up the diet
• They are essential to life and nourish the body
• They provide energy and help build and maintain
  body cells

4
6 Nutrient Groups

• Carbohydrates - Energy
• Fats Make up cell membranes
• Proteins helps make up body cells and helps
  promote growth
• Vitamins
• Minerals
• Water

5
Functions of Nutrients

• Build and Repair body tissues
• Nutrient needs are greater during periods of
  rapid growth (childhood, adolescence)
• Lack of adequate nutrition during growth may
  affect physical size, strength and health

6
Functions of Nutrients

• Regulate Body Processes
• Digestion, Absorption and Metabolism

7
Provide Energy

• Quality of the food you eat will determine how
  well your body functions
• Energy is needed for all life processes
  (breathing, pumping blood, moving muscles)
• You need energy every minute of the day
• Carbohydrates, fats and proteins provide energy

8
How is Energy Measured?

• The energy value of food is measured in
  kilocalories, also know as calories
• Carbohydrates provide the body with 4
  kilocalories per gram
• Fats provide 9 kilocalories per gram
• Proteins provide 4 kilocalories per gram

9
What Happens to the Food I Eat?

• Digestion occurs. This is the breakdown of food
  into usable forms we can absorb
• It starts in the mouth

10
In the Mouth

• Digestion starts when you see or smell food
  saliva can start flowing in the mouth
• The enzyme salivary amylase in saliva helps break
  down starches
• Your teeth physically break down food by grinding
  it into tiny pieces known as chewing or
  mastication

11
In the Esophagus

• Once the food is swallowed, it passes into the
  esophagus
• The esophagus is a long tube that connects the
  mouth to the stomach
• Muscles of the esophagus contract and relax
  forcing the food into the stomach
• THE LEAST AMOUNT OF DIGESTION OCCURS IN THE
  ESOPHAGUS

12
In the Stomach

• Stomach is widest part of the digestive system,
  and is located on the left side of the body-can
  hold about 2 ½ pints of food
• Stomach produces gastric juices that chemically
  break down food
• The food is churned until it turns into a thick
  liquid called chyme

13
Small Intestine

• Chyme is released into the small intestine a
  little at a time
• Small intestine is a long winding tube between
  the stomach and the large intestine
• Bile, pancreatic juice and intestinal juice are
  digestive juices that help breakdown chyme
• About 95 of digestion occurs in the small
  intestine

14
Large Intestine

• Small intestine is connected to the large
  intestine
• Little digestion occurs here
• Main function is to reabsorb water
• Solid wastes that occur from digestion are called
  feces

15
Digesting Nutrients

• Food generally remains in the stomach 2-3 hours
• Liquids leave the stomach before solids
• Carbohydrates and proteins digest faster than
  fats
• This is why fatty foods give you a feeling of
  fullness

16
Absorption of Nutrients

• Digested food molecules are passed through the
  wall and into the blood stream and carried to
  cells throughout the body This is known as
  absorption
• Nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine and
  the large intestine
• Once nutrients reach your cells, they undergo
  changes to produce energy needed to sustain life
  (metabolism)