Nutrients are substances the body requires in small amounts for health and proper functioning, divided into six classes according to their biochemical properties: carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, water and vitamins and minerals.
Nutrients can be found in food sources like plants. Cells rely on these essential components for energy, and they also control many other processes in our bodies.
Carbohydrates
Carbs (otherwise known as carbs) provide energy to our bodies. You can find carbs in many foods, including beans and other legumes, whole grains, vegetables, fruits and fruits – they even appear in some processed products such as pasta cookies and soda!
Your body breaks down carbohydrates into sugars that can be used as fuel or stored as glycogen in liver and muscle tissue, or converted to fat for storage purposes. Carbohydrates provide your main source of energy.
Choose carb-containing foods with reduced added sugars and refined flour content for optimal health, such as unprocessed or minimally processed whole grains, starchy vegetables, beans and fruit which contain essential vitamins, minerals and fiber-rich vitamins that may reduce obesity risk as well as type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Choosing these types of food over processed ones could lower obesity risks as well as T2DM risk.
Proteins
Proteins are complex molecules composed of long chains of amino acids connected by bonds. Each protein molecule consists of hundreds of amino acids linked like beads on a necklace. Proteins provide building blocks for bones, muscles, blood vessels, skin tissues, enzymes hormones and vitamins as well as helping to balance fluid balance within our bodies and transport essential nutrients throughout.
Human bodies cannot produce all the amino acids required to synthesize proteins on its own; as such, some must come from outside sources (food). These essential amino acids include leucine, isoleucine, valine, phenylalanine, methionine threonine tryptophan and arginine; these nine must be supplied through food in order for human bodies to function effectively.
Animal proteins (such as chicken meat, fish, eggs and milk) contain all essential amino acids while plant proteins such as soy beans lentils quinoa amaranth may or may not. Research continues into how diet plays into chronic disease risk.
Lipids
Lipids (also referred to as fats, oils and waxes) play an array of essential roles both inside the body and food products. Lipids act as energy reserves, regulate hormones, transmit nerve impulses, cushion vital organs and transport fat-soluble vitamins – while adding flavor, texture and satiety. Vegetable oils, fatty fish and nuts are major sources of dietary lipids; particularly vegetables oils are an abundant source of mono- and polyunsaturates while many sweet baked goods and cookies contain saturated fatty acids.
Lipids provide a concentrated energy source and play an essential role in cell structure, intercellular communication and hormone formation. Furthermore, lipids support the formation of steroid hormones, regulate fluid balance and play an integral role in developing signaling molecules for cells. Furthermore, during cooking and storage they break down to release volatile compounds that contribute to food flavor while being modified further through Maillard reaction or Strecker degradation processes.
Water
Water, an ionic compound consisting of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen molecule, is essential to life on Earth. As an abundant and versatile substance that exists in gaseous, liquid, and solid states – water is one of the main building blocks for living organisms and plays an integral part in metabolic processes in our bodies.
Water can be found in various foods and beverages, either consumed as such or added as cooking liquid. Milk and juice are especially rich sources of hydration for children.
Water consumption across nationally representative surveys can vary considerably due to differences in energy expenditure and environmental conditions, making it hard to create an Estimated Average Requirement (EAR). Water intake data have nevertheless been used to create ratios analyzing food water content as well as developing rational recommendations for fluid intake using ratios such as Table 5. A simple method that makes this easier is using ml/kcal analysis of fluid intake patterns, deficits or gaps outlined herein.
