Nutrition and Health Basics

Nutrition and Health

• Fruits and vegetables are the main sources of “GLOW” foods, which are essential for promoting body immunity and regulatory functions.
• Fortified foods, including iodized salt, are also good sources of “GLOW” foods.

Nutrients in Food

• Nutrients are substances contained in food that nourish the body and are required to maintain general health and physiological functions.
• There are three major categories of nutrients: macronutrients, micronutrients, and water.

Macronutrients

• Macronutrients are required in large amounts and include:
• Carbohydrates: primary source of energy, including starches, fiber, and sugars.
• Proteins: body-building foods required for growth, maintenance, and repair of tissues.
• Fats/oils: provide energy, build body cells, and facilitate the absorption and use of fat-soluble vitamins.

Carbohydrate Requirements

• Individual carbohydrate requirements vary according to age, sex, physical activity level, and physiological status.
• The recommended daily carbohydrate intake should provide about 45% to 65% of the total body energy/calorie requirements of 2000–3000 kilocalories (kcal).

Protein Requirements

• The recommended intake of protein each day is about 1 gram per kilogram of body weight.
• Extra protein is required during illness, convalescence, and after surgery.

Classification of Foods

• Foods can be classified according to their functions in the body:
• Energy-giving foods (“GO” foods): rich in carbohydrates and fats, providing energy to the body.
• Body-building foods (“GROW” foods): rich in protein, helping to maintain life and promote growth, repair, and maintenance of body tissues.
• Protective (“GLOW” foods): rich in minerals and vitamins, essential for promoting body immunity and regulatory functions.

Fats and Oils

• Fats and oils are derived from both animal and plant sources and are rich in energy.
• They can be divided into saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, with saturated fats increasing the risk of heart disease.

Dietary Fibre

• Dietary fibre increases the body’s sense of satisfaction, protecting against constipation and helping to slow the body’s absorption of sugar and cholesterol.
• Main sources of dietary fibre include whole grains, vegetables, legumes, and fruits.

Micronutrients

• Micronutrients are required by the body in small amounts and include vitamins and minerals.
• Vitamins are organic compounds that perform specific metabolic functions in the body, divided into fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins.
• Minerals are required for normal functioning of body processes, including growth, development, water balance, and neurological processes.

Water

• Water maintains fluid balance, cell turgidity, and is a solvent for certain nutrients, used in removing excreta and keeping parts of the body moist.
• Drink at least 2-3 litres of water per day, especially in hot weather, to avoid dehydration.

Pharmacy Practice and SI Units

• In pharmacy practice, cm³ is considered equivalent to milliliter, but the symbol cc for cubic centimeter is not an accepted SI symbol.
• Decimal fractions are used, not common fractions, and zeros should be placed in front of leading decimal points to prevent medication errors.

Use of SI in Pharmacy

• The SI system is used to manufacture and label pharmaceutical products, write, fill, and compound prescriptions and institutional medication orders, and express clinical laboratory test results.
• Drug doses are typically administered in milligram or microgram amounts and prepared in solid dosage forms or in a stated volume of a liquid preparation.
• Doses for certain drugs are calculated on the basis of body weight and expressed as mg/kg.

Measure of Length

• The meter is the primary unit of length in the SI system.
• The table of metric length includes units such as kilometer, hectometer, dekameter, decimeter, centimeter, millimeter, micrometer, and nanometer.

Measure of Volume

• The liter is the primary unit of volume in the SI system.
• The table of metric volume includes units such as kiloliter, hectoliter, dekaliter, liter, deciliter, centiliter, milliliter, and microliter.

Measure of Weight

• The primary unit of weight in the SI system is the gram, which is the weight of 1 cm³ of water at 4°C.
• The table of metric weight includes units such as kilogram, hectogram, dekagram, gram, decigram, centigram, milligram, microgram, nanogram, picogram, and femtogram.

Prescription Writing Style using SI

• Quantities of weight are usually written as grams and decimals of a gram, and volumes as milliliters and decimals of a milliliter.

Fundamentals Computations

• To reduce SI units to lower or higher denominations, use a unit position scale by moving the decimal point one place to the right or left.

Learn about the importance of fruits and vegetables in promoting body immunity and the different categories of nutrients in food for maintaining general health.