MBC 301

NUTRITIONAL BIOCHEMISTRY
Nutritional biochemistry is the study of nutrition as a science which deals with the physiology,
medicine, microbiology, pharmacology, chemistry and biology and uses these sciences for the
study of health, diet, nutrition, disease and drug treatment. Nutritional biochemical therapy saves
lives, reduces morbidity, improves health outcomes, and reduces healthcare costs and patients.
Nutritional biochemistry examines the health benefits gained from eating organic fruits and
vegetables. It specifically focuses on nutrient chemical components, and how they function
metabolically, physiologically, and biochemically. It also uses science such as physics, chemistry
and biology. It is study of nutrition as a science. Nutritional biochemical therapy refers to
specific nutrition procedures including assessment and interventions in the treatment of an
illness, injury or disease condition.

Nutrition is the science of food and its relationship to health. Nutrition refers to nourishment that
sustains life. Pike and Brown, 1984 defined it as “the science that interprets the relationship of
food to the functioning of living organism. Many common health problems can be prevented or
alleviated with a healthy diet.-

Nutritional science is composed of various studies in food components, nutrients, and their
function regarding humans and other mammals

Nutritional biochemistry specifically focuses on nutrient chemical components, and how they
function metabolically, physiologically, and biochemically. Biochemistry research in this field is
primarily centered upon defining dietary regulations for the general public.

What has been discovered by nutritional biochemistry?

Already, much has been discovered in the field of nutritional biochemistry.

1. research into the biochemistry of nutrition has helped to establish the related field of
nutritional psychiatry. Research in this sector has already revealed much about how diet
can be manipulated to help both prevent and manage various mental health issues. For
example, recent research has demonstrated that the Mediterranean
diet is associated with better overall mental health than “unhealthy”
 eating patterns, such as those associated with the Western diet. More
recently, evidence has shown that a variation of the Mediterranean diet, the
‘green’ Mediterranean diet, is more strongly associated with better mental than the
classic Mediterranean diet. This evidence is helping to pave the way to understanding
the intricacies between diet and mental illness.

2. Nutritional biochemistry has also helped to reveal facts about how

nutrients influence the growth, development, and function of cells and
tissues. Studies have shown how nutrients impact cellular
homeostasis. Studies have also shown how stress responses interact
with this link and how it can trigger the disease. This avenue of
research may be particularly significant in developing new
preventative strategies for various physical illnesses.
3. Nutritional biochemistry has also produced a great deal of important
evidence regarding the role of diet in the development of cancer. Thus
far, research has supported the idea that genetics play a vital role in
the establishment of cancer. Further to this, studies have shown that
genetic factors, including DNA instability and gene alterations, are
influenced by nutrition. In addition, there is some evidence to suggest
that aberrant DNA methylation, a key contributing factor to
carcinogenesis, is also influenced by nutrition.
4. Overall, nutritional biochemistry is helping to uncover the relationship between
diet and various functions of the body, helping to elucidate how what we eat is
associated with disease. The field is very wide, and there is much more to be
discovered. Over the coming years, we can expect many more influential findings
emerging from nutritional biochemistry.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR HUMAN NUTRITION-

Food nutrients are chemical constituents in the food we eat that are essential for life and must
be supplied to the body in suitable amount. They provide the energy needed for the metabolic
processes in the body.
There are seven major classes of nutrients: carbohydrates, fats, dietary fiber, minerals, proteins,
vitamins, and water.-These nutrient classes can be categorized as either macronutrients (needed
in relatively large amounts) - carbohydrates, fats, fiber, proteins, and water. Basically, they
provide energy except water

micronutrients (needed in smaller quantities) - minerals and vitamins.-The macronutrients

(excluding fiber and water) provide structural material (amino acids from which proteins are
built, and lipids from which cell membranes and some signaling molecules are built), energy.-
Some of the structural material can be used to generate energy internally, and in either case it is
measured in Joules or kilocalories (often called "Calories" and written with a capital C to
distinguish them from little 'c' calories).-Vitamins, minerals, fiber, and water do not provide
energy, but are required for other reasons.-A third class of dietary material, fiber (i.e., non-
digestible material such as cellulose),seems also to be required, for both mechanical and
biochemical reasons, though the exact reasons remain unclear.

CARBOHYDRATES
Carbohydrates are essential macronutrients that are the primary source of energy for humans; 1
gram of carbohydrate contains 4 kcal of energy. Carbohydrates also play roles in gut health and
immune function. Carbohydrates are present in plant-based foods like grains, fruits, vegetables,
and milk. Carbohydrates are ingested in the form of simple carbohydrates, like monosaccharides
and disaccharides, or complex carbohydrates, like oligosaccharides and polysaccharides.
Monosaccharides are the basic building blocks of all carbohydrates and include glucose,
fructose, and galactose. Glucose is the primary form to which carbohydrates become metabolized
in humans. Disaccharides contain two sugar units and include lactose, sucrose, and maltose.
Lactose is a carbohydrate found in milk, and sucrose is basic table sugar. Oligosaccharides
consist of 3 to 10 sugar units and include raffinose and stachyose, which are in legumes.
Polysaccharides include greater than ten sugar units and consist of starches, glycogen, and fibers,
like pectin and cellulose. Starches like amylose are in grains, starchy vegetables, and legumes
and consist of glucose monomers. Glycogen is the storage form of glucose in animals and is
present in the liver and muscle, but there is little to none in the diet. Fibers are plant
polysaccharides like pectin and cellulose found in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes
but are not digestible by humans. However, they play a major role in gut health and function and
can be digested by microbiota in the large intestine. For healthy children and adults,
carbohydrates should make up approximately 45 to 65% of energy intake based on the minimum
required glucose for brain function. The recommended fiber intake is greater than 38 g for men
and 25 g for women, which is the intake that research has observed to lower the risk of coronary
artery disease. Some carbohydrates are more nutritious than others. Optimal carbohydrate intake
consists of fiber-rich, nutrient-dense whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and added sugar.

Proteins

Proteins are essential macronutrients that contribute to structural and mechanical function,
regulate processes in the cells and body, and provide energy if necessary. Proteins are composed
of amino acids and are available in food sources like meats, dairy foods, legumes, vegetables,
and grains. 1 gram of protein contains 4 kcal of energy. The recommended protein intake is
0.8 to 1 gram per kilogram of body weight per day. For healthy children ages 1 to 3, ages 4 to 18,
and adults, approximately 5 to 20%, 10 to 30%, and 10 to 35% of daily energy intake should
come from protein, respectively, based on the adequate amount needed for nitrogen equilibrium.

Functions of proteins
1. Required for general growth, maintenance & repair of body tissues.
2. It serves as an energy source, It provides 4kcal/g
3. Required for the supply of the essential amino acids which cannot be synthesized by the body

4. Required to build new tissue, particularly during the rapid growth period of infancy and early
childhood, during pregnancy and nursing, and after infections or injuries

Lipids
Lipids are essential macronutrients that are the main source of stored energy in the body,
contribute to cellular structure and function, regulate temperature, and protect body organs.
Lipids are found in fats, oils, meats, dairy, and plants and consumed mostly in the form of
triglycerides. One gram of fat contains 9 kcal of energy. For healthy children ages 1 to 3, ages
4 to 18, and adults, approximately 30 to 40%, 25 to 15%, and 20 to 35% of daily energy intake
should come from fat, respectively. Approximately 5 to 10% and 0.6 to 1.2% of the daily fat
energy intake should consist of n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (linoleic acid) and n-3
polyunsaturated fatty acids (α-linolenic acid), respectively.
They are major components of adipose tissue, and together with proteins and carbohydrates, they
constitute the principal structural components of all living cells. Fatty acids in lipids can be
grouped into unsaturated fatty acids (including monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) and
saturated fatty acids.

FUNCTIONS OF LIPIDS

Help in absorption of fat-soluble vitamins.

Essential fatty acids (EFA) are important for the function and structure of body cell
membranes.

MUFAs and PUFAs have beneficial effects such as lowering risk of coronary heart disease,
cancer, cataract, and other inflammatory disorders.

act as an insulator and padding for vital organs.

WATER
Water is the most abundant and surely the most frequently overlooked component in food.
It is estimated that over 35% of our total water intake comes from the moisture in the food we
consume.

The water content of food varies, it may be as low as 0% in vegetable oils and as high as 99% in
some vegetables and fruit.
Water by itself is free of calories and plain water does not contain nutritive substance, but it
may be an ingredient itself in food.

What is nutrition?
● The science of food and the nutrients
○ Their actions interactions and balance in relation to health
○ Food provides the nutrients needed to fuel, build and maintain body cells
Why we eat certain foods?
● Preference, habit, cost, social interactions, availabili
What is nutrition?
● The science of food and the nutrients
○ Their actions interactions and balance in relation to health
○ Food provides the nutrients needed to fuel, build and maintain body cells
Why we eat certain foods?
● Preference, habit, cost, social interactions, availabili
What is nutrition?
● The science of food and the nutrients
○ Their actions interactions and balance in relation to health
○ Food provides the nutrients needed to fuel, build and maintain body cells
Why we eat certain foods?
● Preference, habit, cost, social interactions, availabili
What is nutrition?
● The science of food and the nutrients
○ Their actions interactions and balance in relation to health
○ Food provides the nutrients needed to fuel, build and maintain body cells
Why we eat certain foods?
● Preference, habit, cost, social interactions, availabili
What is nutrition?
● The science of food and the nutrients
○ Their actions interactions and balance in relation to health
○ Food provides the nutrients needed to fuel, build and maintain body cells
Why we eat certain foods?
● Preference, habit, cost, social interactions, availabili
Vitamins: are defined as organic compounds, other than any of the amino acids, fatty acids and
carbohydrates that are necessary in small amounts in the diet of higher animals for growth,
maintenance of health and reproduction.
13 essential vitamins:
Vitamin A (Retinol)

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)

Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)

Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamine)

Niacin
Panthotenic Acid

Folate

Biotin

Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid)

Vitamin D (Cholecalciferol)

Vitamin E (Tocopherol)

Vitamin K
FUNCTIONS OF VITAMINS:
promote growth

promote reproduction

promote health & vigor

promote nervous activity

promote normal appetite

promote resistance to infection.

promote digestion
MINERALS
Minerals – are inorganic elements occurring in nature. They are inorganic because they do not
originate in animal or plant life but rather from the earth’s crust.

Although minerals make up only a small portion of body tissues, they are essential for growth
and normal functioning of the body.

They include the trace elements copper, iodine, iron, manganese, selenium and zinc together
with the macro elements calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium.

FUNCTIONS OF MINERALS
Some minerals form hard tissues such as bones and teeth
Electrolytes, sodium and potassium are the most important factors in the osmotic control of
water metabolism
Some minerals may act as catalysts in the enzyme system, or as integral parts of organic
compounds in the body such as:
Iron in hemoglobin
Iodine in thyroxin
Cobalt in vitamin B12.
Zinc in insulin and
Sulfur in thiamine.

Principles of Nutrition:Trends–Today and Tomorrow

The basic principle is to “Eat to live not live to Eat”. The principles of nutrition basically
give guidelines to eating well and wisely. The messages from health and nutrition experts
attempts to increase the knowledge and awareness of the outcome of food choices.
The trend is eating the correct proportions of the macro and micro nutrients to stay
healthyandpreventdiseases.Theuseofherbalanddietarysupplementsisincreasing
inthesociety.Theefficacyandsafetyoftheirusehasbeeninvestigatedbymanyongoingresearch.

Recommendationsofmanycommitteesthroughouttheworldmaybesummarizedas
follows:
1.If overweight,total energyintakeshould bereduced toachieve optimum weight.
2.There should be a general shiftaway from fat consumption to consumption of
More carbohydrate.
3.A greater proportion of carbohydrate should be consumed as complex carbohydrates and less
as sugars.
4.A greater proportion of dietary fats should bei n the form of PUFA and MUFAand
Loss of saturated fat.
5.Consumption of cholesterol and salts hould be reduced

Defining Nutrient Requirements: Dietary Reference Intakes

How do we know how much of a given nutrient people should eat, or how much is too much?
For this information, we can turn to the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI)—a set of
recommendations developed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
to describe the amounts of specific nutrients and energy that people should consume in order to
stay healthy. They are developed by groups of nutrition scientists, who together evaluate the
research to determine how much of a nutrient is required to prevent deficiencies and chronic
disease, as well as how much is excessive and could cause toxicity.

The DRI standards can be divided into two main categories:

Recommendations for energy intake – How many calories are required, and how much energy
should proportionately come from carbohydrate, fat, and protein?

Recommendations for nutrient intake – How much of each nutrient should be consumed, and
how much is excessive?

The DRIs include two types of recommendations related to energy intake:

1. Estimated Energy Requirement (EER). The EER is an estimate of how many calories a
person needs to consume, on average, each day to stay healthy, based on their age, sex,
height, weight, and physical activity level. For adults, the EER is meant to be a caloric
intake that maintains energy balance, meaning that it won’t cause weight loss or gain. For
children, the EER includes the energy needed for normal growth. For pregnant or
lactating women, it includes energy needed for development of the fetus and other
pregnancy requirements or for milk production. Different EER values were also
developed for different physical activity levels, because greater physical activity requires
more energy. The EER should be considered a “ballpark” estimate of a person’s caloric
needs
2. Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR). The AMDR is the
calculated range of how much energy from carbohydrate, fat, and protein is
recommended for a healthy diet. People who do not meet the AMDR may have increased
risk of developing health complications—although these are also ballpark
recommendations, not absolute requirements for health.
Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR) for the three energy-yielding
macronutrients.

Daily Recommendations for Nutrient Intake

There are four different types of DRI values used to describe recommendations for intake
of individual nutrients:
Estimated Average Requirements (EAR)
Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA)
Adequate Intakes (AI)
Tolerable Upper Intake Levels (UL)

The Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) is the amount of a nutrient that meets the
requirements of 50 percent of people within a group of the same life stage and sex. The
requirements of half of the group will fall below the EAR, and the requirements of the
other half will be above it.

once the EAR of a nutrient has been established, the Recommended Daily
Allowances (RDA) value can be mathematically determined. While the EAR is set at a
point that meets the needs of half the population, RDA values are set to meet the needs of
the vast majority (97 to 98 percent) of the target healthy population. You can see this in
the graph above. The RDA is a better recommendation for the population, because we
can assume that if a person is consuming the RDA of a given nutrient, they are most
likely meeting their nutritional needs for that nutrient.

Adequate intake
The AI is based on observing healthy people and seeing how much of the nutrient in
question they are consuming. An AI is less precise than an RDA, but in the absence of an
RDA, the AI is our best guess of how much of a given nutrient is needed. If there is not
an RDA for a nutrient, than the AI is used as the nutrient-intake goal.

Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) consuming too much of many nutrients can also
cause health problems. This is where the Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) is helpful.
ULs indicate the highest level of continuous intake of a particular nutrient that may be
taken without causing health problems.
When a nutrient does not have any known issue if taken in excessive doses, it is not
assigned a UL. However, if a nutrient does not have a UL, that doesn’t necessarily mean
that it is safe to consume in large amounts—only that there isn’t currently evidence that
large amounts will cause problems

USES OF DRI’S
1. Health professionals. Registered dietitians and other nutrition professionals use the
DRIs to provide dietary counseling and education and to plan menus for institutions,
such as hospitals, long-term care, prisons.
2. Development of dietary guidelines. These include the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for
Americans, MyPlate, and Canada’s Food Guide. In each case, developers ensure that
their advice will help people meet the DRI standards.
3. Nutrition labeling. The DRIs help to inform Nutrition Facts labels on foods and
Supplement Facts on supplement labels.
4. Assistance programs. School meals, WIC, SNAP, Child and Adult Care, and
Administration on Aging programs must ensure that their programs align with the
DRI.
 5. Nutrition monitoring research. Data from surveys of what people in the U.S. and
Canada eat are compared with the DRIs to monitor national nutritional health.
6. Military. The military uses the DRIs as a reference to ensure nutrient needs are met
for the armed forces, to plan meals, and to procure military rations.
7. Food and supplement industries. In the development of healthy food and safe
supplement products, these industries should refer to the DRI.

FOOD PYRAMID
A food pyramid is a representation of the optimal number of servings to be eaten each day from
each of the basic food groups. The Food Guide Pyramid was a recognizable nutrition tool that
was introduced by the USDA in 1992. It was shaped like a pyramid to suggest that a person
should eat more foods from the bottom of the pyramid and fewer foods and beverages from the
top of the pyramid.
The Food Guide Pyramid displayed proportionality and variety in each of five groups of foods
and beverages, which ascended in horizontal layers starting from the base and moving upward
toward the tip: breads, cereals, pasta and rice; fruits and vegetables; dairy products; eggs, fish,
legumes, meat and poultry; plus alcohol, fats and sugars.
If each your meals are planned in proportion with the healthy eating pyramid then you are much
more likely to achieve your daily requirements for vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins
and essential fats.
The 1992 USDA Food Guide Pyramid is shown in Figure above

TYPES OF PYRAMID

1.THE HEALTHY LIVINGPYRAMID

This encourages:
-food variety –limited salt
-minimum fat –sufficient water
-adequate fibre –physical activity
The majority of the food in a healthy diet should come from the two largest sections at the
base of the pyramid: fruit and vegetables and starchy foods.
The healthy eating pyramid is divided into layers of differing sizes representing the five common
food groups, from the base upwards:

1. Fruit and vegetables.

2. Starchy foods, such as bread, cereals and potatoes.
3. Proteins, such as meat, fish, eggs and beans.
4. Milk and dairy foods.
5. Fats and sugars.

1. Fruit and vegetables

Aim for at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables each day. The key is to include a variety to
ensure you get a good mix of vitamins and minerals on a daily basis. Why not see how many
different colours you can fit onto your plate at each meal?

2. Starchy foods

Carbohydrates should make up the second largest portion on your plate. Choose from potatoes,
rice, beans, bread, whole-grains, cous cous and pasta.

3. Proteins

Protein is needed by the body for building and repair. As it lies in the centre of the pyramid, you
should consume a moderate amount at each meal. High quality proteins (those that are of animal
origin and are easier for the body to absorb) include meat, fish, poultry, eggs and dairy
products. Low quality proteins also count towards your daily intake, including grains, fruit,
vegetables, peas, beans, nuts and seeds.

4. Dairy foods

Dairy is also at the centre of the food pyramid and so should be eaten in moderate amounts at
every meal. Choose from a mixture of milk, cheese, yoghurt, butter, cream and any other
products made using animal milk.
 5. Fats and Sugars

Fats and sugars are found at the tip of the healthy eating pyramid. These are non-essential
elements to a diet and so should be eaten in small amounts. Make sure that you only eat small
amounts of foods such as biscuits, crisps, cakes, pastries and other processed
foods, including pizzas, ready-meals and pies, as they contain a lot of calories and minimal
nutritional value. Additionally, aim to avoid saturated fats (normally those from animal
sources, such as butter and meat) which can raise cholesterol and be detrimental to health.

2.THEMEDITERRANEANDIETPYRAMID
Thisisthedietassociatedwithlowratesofchronicdiseases,inflammationand
highlifeexpectancy
Itconsistsoffruitsandvegetables,legumesandgrainsareatthebaseofthe
pyramid.Theyaregivenafavorableranking.
Oliveoil,cheeseandyoghurtaretakeninmoderationDiaryandfish/poultryare
alsoconsumedinmoderation
Eggs,sweetsandredmeatfilloutthetopofthepyramid.
BiochemicalReasoning:
Wholegrainshasmoreproteinsandminerals
Fruitsandvegetables/beaannnnnnnnshelpcleararteries
Oilyfishlowerstriglyceridesandbloodpressure
Oliveoilandnutslowersbadcholesterol
Aglassofwineisgoodfortheheart
3. THE FOOD GUIDE PYRAMID
It is not arigidguide. It allows flexibility for food choices
The base of the pyramid advises cereals, bread,rice/pasta as mains ervings of food
Vegetables and fruits are needed in generous amounts
Milk/diaryproducts;meat/poultry;fish/eggs/nutsareneededinmoderation.
Sweets/oils are used sparingly
OTHERS
1.DIABETIC PYRAMID
Dietishe most critical as pectinthecontrolandreversalofdiabetesandthepreventionof
prediabetesfrom progressingtotype2diabetes.Unfortunately,mostpatientsdonotknow
whattoincludeintheirdiet. TheAmerican Diabetes Association(ADA)has created a diet
pyramid to be followed by diabetes patients.
Itcontains6foodgroups,showingtherightfoodsandamountstobeconsumeddaily.The
widersectionatthebottom ofthepyramid shouldbeconsumedinlargeramountswhilethe