Introduction to Nutrition Science

Nutrition

INTRODUCTION

Food is the basic necessity of life. Everybody eats food and most people enjoy it. From the beginning, scientists were curious about the food they con-sumed, its passage in the body and its effects. In the beginning nutrition was mainly related to the energy needs of the body from carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Minerals were studied in detail when they were discovered to be important nutrients. Along with the minerals came the discovery of vitamins. Now nutrition is an important part of our life. We have realized that quality of our health depends upon the nourishment we provide to our body. Most people eat what they like and their choice of food is not influenced by the awareness of its nutritive value. It is always necessary to understand that a delicious dish is not necessarily a nutri-tious one.

Introduction to Nutrition Science

Definition: Nutrition is the science of foods, the nutrients and their action, interaction and balance in relationship to health and disease; the process by which the organism ingests, digests, absorbs, transports and utilizes nutrients and dis-poses of their end products.

Antoine Lavoisier is the father of Nutrition. He designed a calorimeter which measured the heat produced by the body from work and consumption of varying amounts and types of foods

Nutrients are the constituents in food that must be supplied to the body in suitable amounts. They are classified as macronu-trients and micronutrients.