Nutrition - Biology Activities

Nutrition

Nutrition is the way organisms obtain materials they need to live. There are two types of nutrition, autotrophic nutrition and heterotrophic nutrition. Autotrophic nutrition is how plants get their food. Plants use energy from sunlight to convert raw materials into food. This process is called photosyn-thesis.

Heterotrophic nutrition is how animals get food. Animal food may be plants or other animals, alive or dead. Food is anything that provides the body with a source of energy, material for growth and repair, or other factors for good health. Nutrients are food substances necessary for healthy growth. Humans eat foods containing the following nutrients: carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, and mineral elements. Nutrition is important because it allows us to move, grow, keep our bodies warm, repair damaged tissue and ght diseases.

The activities in this section often appear on the NECTA examination because of their relevance to students' daily life. Therefore, it is important that these nutrition activities are practiced by the students, at rst in small groups and then individually.