Nutrition term papers

What is Nutrition?

Nutrition is the process by which we nourish the body. It involves all the systems concerned with taking in and using the foods we ingest.  Proper nutrition is needed for the growth, maintenance, and repair of the body. The ingestion, digestion, and absorption processes are responsible for the body’s nutrition.

History of Nutrition

Knowledge of nutrition and the importance to our health of the foods we eat goes back a long ways.  In fact, Hippocrates, the father of medicine, was keenly aware of the role that foods we eat play in our lives and in our health.  And there is a long list of discoveries about nutrition dating back several centuries.  For example, the discovery that limes, which contain Vitamin C, could help prevent scurvy was made in 1747, the processes by which foods are metabolized were discovered in 1770, and the four elements of which foods are composed were discovered in the early 1800s.  Numerous discoveries have been made about nutrition, as well as insights gained, since that time too, taking us to the present time where the importance of essential nutrients and their role in bodily processes is now firmly established.  

Trends in Nutrition

Since a clear link has been established between the types of foods we eat and certain ailments we suffer, nutrition research has been increasingly focusing on this aspect of our nutrition. Breast cancer, colon cancer, diabetes, high cholesterol, and strokes are just a few of the diseases in which research suggests that proper nutrition can help prevent their onset. 

Majoring in Nutrition

Students that choose to major in nutrition studies will be pursuing a field of study concerned with 1) how the food we eat affects our physical and psychological well-being; and 2) what is the optimal intake of those foods and nutrients.   In particular, nutrition majors will gain a strong foundation in science, will learn about the function of nutrients, and will learn about the body’s nutritional requirements.  Typical courses taken by nutrition majors, in addition to the numerous nutrition courses, such as community nutrition, comparative nutrition, and advanced nutrition, include food science, psychology, biochemistry, microbiology, and statistics. 

A Career as a Nutritionist

The person that chooses to pursue a career as a nutritionist should have both a desire to provide care for individuals as well as an interest in medical research.  Many health fields require a strong background in nutrition because it plays such a key role in prevention and treatment of many diseases.  Registered nutritionist can find employment as dietitians, food scientists, personal chefs, and of course, as nutritionists whether in a hospital, for a corporation, for a sports organization, in a nursing home, or in private practice.

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