BIOLOGY Volume 1 - A Guide to General Biology - 2004

8. HETEROTROPHIC NUTRITION

8.7. Human Nutrition

It is often said that good Nutrition is the key to health. It follows that poor nutrition can lead to various health issues. Literally speaking, malnutrition can be defined as bad nutrition. While we tend to associate this term with undernutrition, in a broader sense, malnutrition also encompasses overeating.

Undernutrition can result not only in death directly caused by starvation, but also in a reduced resistance to disease as an indirect consequence. This type of malnutrition is typically prevalent in developing countries. In developed countries, by contrast, overeating is frequently a cause of premature death. Indeed, overeating plays a major role in The Development of coronary and cerebrovascular disorders. In this section, we will examine both proper and improper nutrition.

8.7.1. Nutrition, Nutrients, Food, and Diet

Nutrition is the acquisition of the energy and Materials necessary to sustain life. It fulfills two primary requirements of living organisms: The Need for energy and the need for building blocks, which are stored as chemical compounds known as nutrients. These can be organic, such as CARBOHYDRATES, Lipids, Proteins, and Vitamins, or inorganic, such as mineral salts. We consume food, which primarily serves as the source of these nutrients. In a broad sense, a diet refers to an individual's pattern of food intake (both the quantity and quality of the food consumed, as well as the timing of meals).