Nutrition
Nutrition plays a key role in your health, growth, and physical abilities. Students and athletes that have better nutritional habits have a greater chance of performing better on any athletic field than those with poor nutritional habits. *Nutrition is the processes of taking in and utilizing food substances. Food generates energy and supplies materials used in body tissues and processes. Calories are supplied by carbohydrates (sugars and starches), fats, and proteins. Other nutrients include minerals, vitamins, and dietary fiber. Minerals are used in many ways—iron for hemoglobin; calcium for bones, teeth, and cellular processes; sodium and potassium to regulate homeostasis, iodine to produce thyroid hormones. Trace minerals have functions that are less well-understood. Fiber is not broken down chemically in the body but aids digestion, lowers blood cholesterol, and may help prevent some cancers and hypertension. Different amounts of these nutrients exist in different foods; a varied diet ensures an adequate supply. Nutritional supplements, required by some people, do not compensate for an unhealthy diet. Sufficient water is always essential. Inadequate nutrient intake or absorption leads to malnutrition and disease.
*(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nutrition)
*(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nutrition)
Check out the websites linked below to gain further information on the importance of nutrition and all that goes along with it!
Fizzy's Lunch Lab
Fizzy's Lunch Lab is a vibrant, fun and kid-friendly web-only series featuring original characters and funny stories that entertain and educate families about the importance of good nutrition, a balanced diet, and physical activity. Join Professor Fizzy and his friends in the super-charged Lunch Lab Test Kitchen, as they prepare healthy snacks, investigate the difference between good and bad food, and learn what happens once the food you eat goes into your body. Each week, The Lunch Lab web site will release a new animated short video as well as a corresponding recipe for kids and parents to enjoy. Monthly food/nutrition themes will help guide the program's message, and the animated videos will reinforce concepts pertaining to the featured theme. This will make it easy for parents to extend the learning into the home.
Click on the button below to go to Fizzy's Lunch Lab website:
(description and photo taken from:
http://www.pbs.org/food/shows/fizzys-lunch-lab/)
http://www.pbs.org/food/shows/fizzys-lunch-lab/)
Choose My Plate
The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP), an organization of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was established in 1994 to improve the nutrition and well-being of Americans. Toward this goal, the Center focuses its efforts on two primary objectives:
The Center's core projects to support its objectives are the following:
- Dietary Guidelines for Americans
- USDA Food Guidance System (MyPlate, MyPyramid, Food Guide Pyramid)
- Healthy Eating Index
- U.S. Food Plans
- Nutrient Content of the U.S. Food Supply
- Expenditures on Children by Families
- Advance and promote dietary guidance for all Americans, and
- Conduct applied research and analyses in nutrition and consumer economics.
The Center's core projects to support its objectives are the following:
- Dietary Guidelines for Americans
- USDA Food Guidance System (MyPlate, MyPyramid, Food Guide Pyramid)
- Healthy Eating Index
- U.S. Food Plans
- Nutrient Content of the U.S. Food Supply
- Expenditures on Children by Families
Click on the button below to go to ChooseMyPlate website:
(description taken from:
http://www.choosemyplate.gov/about.html)
http://www.choosemyplate.gov/about.html)