FOOD AND NUTRITION

NUTRITION
The science that interprets the interaction of nutrients and other substances in food in relation to maintenance,
growth, reproduction, health and disease of an organism
DIET
It is what an organism eats which is largely determined by the availability and palatability of foods
4 Basic Food Groups
Dairy Products Meat and Eggs Grains Fruits and Vegetables
(milk and cheese) (Fish, poultry, pork, beef, eggs) (bread, cereals and
rice and pasta)
6 CATEGORIES OF FOOD
PROTEIN FAT CARBOHYDRATES
 Supplies amino acids  Supplies energy  Main source of energy
 Maintain healthy body tissues  They can be obtained from: 2 TYPES
 20 essential amino acids: Canola oil Simple Complex
 12-body Flaxseed oil
Sugar Grains
 8-diet Cold-water fish
Honey Beans
2 FAMILIES OF FATTY ACIDS:
Peas
Omega-3 Omega-6 Potatoes
- Reduces risk of
cardiovascular *preferred
and cancer *nutritious
- Alleviate *fewer calories
symptoms of per gram
rheumatoid
arthritis,
dermatitis,
premenstrual
syndrome,
inflammatory
bowel disease
Low Fat diet control the following:
Obesity
 High fat consumption
Coronary Artery Disease
 High consumption of saturated fat
is associated with coronary heart
disease.
Diabetes
 People who are overweight tend to
develop or unseen existing diabetic
condition due to decreased insulin
sensitivity.
Breast cancer
 High dietary consumption of fat is
associated with increased risk of
breast cancer
FIBER VITAMINS WATER
 For texture & support  Important components of life-  Regulate body
 Found in plant foods supporting systems temperature,
Fruits  Hormones transport nutrients
Vegetables  Oxygen transport to cells and rid the
Legumes  Enzyme systems body of waste
Nuts  Commonly known are: materials
Whole grain  A
2 TYPES  B (Thiamine)
Soluble Insoluble  B2 (Riboflavin)
 Fruits  Does not  B3 (Niacin)
 Vegetables dissolve in  B5 (Pantothenic acid)
*apples, oatmeal, water  B6 (Pyridoxine)
rye flour, dried because it  B7 (Biotin)
beans has high  B9 (Folic acid)
amount of  B12 (Cobalamin)
cellulose  C (Ascorbic acid)
 Found in  D
pulps of  E
fruits and  K
skin of
vegetables Water Soluble Fat Soluble
B&C A, D, E, K

High Fiber diet prevents: MINERALS

High cholesterol level Major (Macro) Trace
 Lower blood cholesterol level
 Prevent cholesterol from being Those that body need in Include iron,
reabsorbed into the body. large amounts. zinc, iodine,
Constipation Needed for chemical copper,
 Add more bulk and soften the reaction, and for manganese,
stool, thus reduce painful manufacture of fluoride,
hemorrhoidal symptoms. hormones. chromium,
Diabetes selenium,
 Soluble fibers make a person molybdenum
and boron.
 full faster. A, C, E and Minerals (Zinc, copper, selenium
Cancer or manganese)
 Insoluble fiber in the diet  acts as anti-oxidants
speeds up the movement of  protect the body against damaging
stools through the gastro- free radicals
intestinal tract.  help prevent cancer, premature
The faster the food travels through the aging, heart disease, autoimmune
digestive tract, the less time there is disease, arthritis, Alzheimer’s and
for potential cancer-causing substances diabetes mellitus.
to work.
SIDE EFFECTS DUE TO EXCESSIVE DOSES
A – birth defects, irreversible bone and liver damage
B1 – deficiencies in B2 an dB6
B6 – damage to nervous system
C – Affects absorption of copper, diarrhea
D – Hypercalcemia (Abnormally high concentration of calcium in the blood)
Phosphorus Zinc – affects absorption of calcium
– affects absorption of copper, iron; suppresses the immune system
Allergenic and highly processed foods should be avoided.
 Highly processed foods do not contain significant amount of trace minerals. They contain lots of fat and
sugar as well as preservatives, artificial sweeteners and other additives.
CHRONIC HUNGER
 Nearly 9M children younger than 5 years old die needlessly. More than half from hunger related cases.
 Few of these deaths are related to outright starvation but rather common illness (Diarrhea, measles,
malaria) that move in on vulnerable children whose bodies have been weakened by hunger.
 Freedom from hunger concentrates its services in the world’s poorest nations, where 32% are moderately to
severely stunted below height for one’s age.
 In developing world, more than 1.4B live below the international poverty line earning less than $1.25 per
day.
 Problem of obtaining adequate nutritious food for themselves and families. 1.02B are undernourished and
consume less than minimum number of calories essential for sound health and growth.
 Undernourishment negatively affects people’s health, productivity, sense of hope and over-all well being
 Economically, the effect of constantly securing food consumes valuable time and energy allowing poor
people less time for work and earning income
 Pregnant women and new mothers who breastfeed infants and children are among the most at risk of
undernourishment.
Causes of Chronic hunger:
 Poverty – poor people do not have the resources – land, tools or money needed to grow or buy food on a
consistent basis.
 Armed conflict – war disrupts agricultural production and government often spend more on arms than on
social programs
 Environment overload – over consumption by wealthy nations and rapid growth in poor nations strain
natural resources and make it harder for poor people to feed themselves.
 Discrimination – lack of access to education, credit and employment – a recipe for hunger is often the result
of racial, gender and ethnic discrimination.
 Lack of Clout – caused by powerlessness. People who cannot protect their own interest are hungry.
Effects of Chronic hunger:
a. High infant mortality rate.
a. Malnourished women are likely to be sick, have smaller babies and die earlier resulting in high
levels of infant mortality in areas where chronic hunger is a problem.
b. Vulnerability to common illness.
a. More than 2M children die every year from dehydration due to diarrhea. Malnourished child lacks the
strength to survive in severe case of diarrhea.
c. Increased risk of Infection
a. Malnourished child has weakened immune system making the child more vulnerable to infection
d. Acute vulnerability in times of disaster.
a. Poorest families are already living on the edge of survival. Unexpected shocks, crop failure, floods,
epidemics, typhoons result in devastation and death to some members of the family.
e. Impediments to development
a. Chronic hunger deprives children of essential proteins, micronutrients and fatty acids needed to
grow. Score lower in intelligence tests than normal children.
f. Impediments to economic growth
a. Underweight children spend fewer years in school
b. Has measurable impact on how much they earn in adulthood.

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
Make crops more efficient – increase the average productivity of the world’s major crops by 20% without using more
lands, water and inputs.
History/Facts:

1950 – a hectare could feed 2 people

2030 – it will have to feed 5
40% of farmland are degraded and an area large enough to feed Europe is too depleted to produce food. In fact, we
lose a soccer field of farmland every second to desertification, urbanization and degradation.
Technology and know-how-together
- These will help growers produce more food without using more inputs
- Resilient seeds that need less water and chemicals.
- Better plowing and planting schemes
- Rescue more farmland by improving the fertility of 10M hectares of farmland on the brink of degradation
Practices that conserve soil are essential
- Appropriate use of fertilizers.
o Planting different types of crops each season. Use techniques to avoid unnecessary plowing.
- Help biodiversity flourish
o Farming depends on biodiversity. More than a third of the world’s agricultural crops depend on
pollination by bees and insects.
- Farmers must create and support habitats
o Like flowering field margins, meadows and hedgerows to help wildlife thrive
We need to help farm become more productive, and farmers to protect and improve biodiversity around their fields.
- By providing tools and training that make agriculture more productive, efficient and profitable.
o Training on new technology and farming practices help smallholders improve their yield and access
to the market.
o With this, farmers are helped restore and maintain vibrant rural communities and enable farmers to
progress beyond subsistence agri.
- Empower small farmers.
o Most of the world’s farmers are small holders on less than 2 hectares of land.
o For many, financial risks are high and the returns are low
o With more than 2.5M people depending on agriculture for their livelihood, it is crucial for farmers to
be helped in their farming communities to prosper.
- Help people stay safe.
o Agriculture is the world’s second largest source of employment and one of the most dangerous.
o Agricultural workers suffer occupational accidents and illness each year caused by exposure to
chemicals, working with machinery and others.
- Identify the bottlenecks that prevent behavioral change
o Track the effectiveness and impacts of labor safety training programs.
- Raise awareness of the hazards and risks associated with agricultural work, share knowledge of how this can
be effectively managed.
o Train as many farmers as possible through local partnerships and retailers who sell the products.

Environmental Wastes
Classifications
Liquid type Solid Type
- Wash water from homes, for cleaning industries and - Garbage and rubbish – old car tires, broken
waste ingredients furniture, etc.
Hazardous type Organic
- those that potentially threaten public health or the - food wastes, fruits, vegetables, etc.
environment. - biodegradable – broken by microorganisms
o Could be: and become manure.
 Flammable – easily catch fire - Turn into compost.
 Reactive – easily explode
 Corrosive – can easily eat through
metal
 Toxic – poisonous to humans and
animals

Recycle
- Processing of used materials into new, useful products
Regulation for hazardous and liquid wastes
Licensing.
- Generating, storing, transporting, and wanting to dispose of their wastes.
Waste tracking.
- Need for tracking transport to their final destination
Immobilization approval.
- High level of contaminants may be granted immobilization approval to enable landfill disposal.
Chemical control order.
- Need to impose management restrictions on the chemical’s life cycle
Liquid waste levy
- To reduce the generation of potentially dangerous liquid wastes
- Explore cleaner production technology
- Increase recovery of reusable components for liquid wastes such as oils and water
Dangerous Goods
Waste Generators:
Chemical Manufacturers
- Acids and bases, solvents, organic constituents.
Printing Industry
- Heavy metal solution, waste inks, solvents
Petroleum refining
- Wastewater containing benzene and other hydrocarbons
Leather products
- Toluene and Benzene
Paper industry
- Paint waste containing heavy metals, solvents
Construction industry
- Paint wastes, solvents, acids and bases
Metal manufacturing
- Sludge containing heavy metals, cyanide wastes, paint wastes
Laboratories
- Solvents, acids, bases, various reagents
Maintenance and operation
- Degreasers, parts cleaning solvents, batteries, metal dusts
Vehicle maintenance
- Gasoline, brake fluid, transmission fluid
Toxicity
Degree to which a substance can harm humans or animals
Toxicology
A science that deals with poisons and their effects and with the problems involved (clinical, industrial, or legal)
Classifications

 Acute toxicity – harmful effects in an organ through a single or short-term exposure

 Sub-Chronic – ability of toxic substances to cause effects for more than one year but less than the lifetime
of the exposed organ
 Chronic – ability of a substance or mixture of substances to cause harmful effects over an extended period
of time usually often repeated or continuous exposure sometimes lasting for the entire life.

Measuring Toxicity
Toxicity can be measured by the effect the substances has on an organism, tissue or a cell
LD50
- A lethal dose given to animals to determine the toxicity of toxin.
- It is defined as the dose required to kill half the members of a specific animal population when entering the
animal’s body by a particular route
- A general indication of a substance’s toxicity within a short space of time. A measure of acute toxicity
Fixed dose procedure.
- This was proposed in 1992 as an alternative to LD50. The test substance is given at one of the 4 fixed dose
levels- 5, 50, 500, 2000 mg/kg to 5 male and 5 female rats. When a dose produces a clear sign of toxicity
but no death, the chemical is classified at that level
Parts per million.
- Some chemicals cause toxicity at very low doses, so it is important to understand how low doses compared
with one another
Mouse bioassay for shellfish.
- This consists of injecting extracts of shellfish into mice to determine the presence of substances toxic to
humans. After injection, if 2 out of 3 die within 24 hours, the sale of that particular shellfish is prohibited.
- The problem in the mouse bioassay is the researchers are not given any indication as to which toxin is
present and also the levels of toxicity.
Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry.
- Using LC-MS, the actual toxin can be identified as well as the level of toxicity. This test means that toxins
can be detected and monitored using chemical procedures instead of mice.
Methods of waste disposal
Incineration.
- Reduces wastes materials into their base component by burning them.
- Generates heat which is then used for energy. The by-products of this disposal method include various gases
and inert ash.
- It produces various levels of pollution depending on the incinerator design and the waste material being
burned.
- It has a high financial value than recycling because it is cheaper to burn waste for energy than the expense
involved in recycling.
- It reduces waste volume by 90% of the original refuse. If organic waste is incinerated, the resulting ash can
provide nutrients for hydroponic solution.
Recycling.
- It involves reusing materials by reprocessing them and turning them into new or similar products.
The most common recycle items are plastic, paper, glass and aluminum.
- It is the most environmentally friendly method to dispose of waste because it does not throw any waste
materials.
- The downside of recycling is that only certain items can be recycled and processing plants are expensive to
operate and maintain.
Composting.
- A natural degradation process that convert organic waste into plant food.
- This is done by allowing the waste to sit in one place for months until microbes decompose it.
- This process can turn unsafe waste products into safe compost.
- It preserves more nutrients than incineration.
- The disadvantage is that it is a slow process and requires a lot of land.
Sanitary landfill.
- Waste products that cannot be used or provide another benefit must go to the landfill.
- With recent technology, waste can be dumped in a landfill without the danger of polluting ground water.
- This is done by placing protective lining beneath the waste to prevent harmful chemicals from leaking into
groundwater and polluting drinking water.
Disposal in ocean or sea.
- Waste generally of radioactive nature are dumped into the ocean far from active human habitats.
- However, environmentalists and other advocates challenge this method as such an action is believed to
spelldown for aquatic life by depriving the ocean of its inherent nutrients.

Why is environmental health important?

Environmental Factors:
 Exposure to hazardous substances in the air, water, soil, and food
 Natural and technological disasters
 Climate Change
 Occupational Hazards
 The built environment
6 Themes on Environmental Health
 Outdoor Air Quality
 o Poor air quality is linked to premature death, cancer and long-term damage to respiratory and
cardiovascular system
 Surface and Ground Water
o Drinking and recreational water contamination by infectious agents or chemicals can cause mild and
severe illness
 Toxic Substances and Hazardous Wastes
o Reducing exposure is fundamental to environmental health
 Homes and Communities
o People spend most of their time at home, work, or school. Some of these may expose people to:
 Indoor Air Pollution
 Inadequate heating and sanitation
 Structural problems
 Electrical and Fire hazards
 Lead base paint hazards
 Infrastructure and Surveillance
o Preventing exposure to environmental hazards relies on many partners including state and local
health departments, personnel, surveillance system, education are important resources for
investigating and responding to disease
 Global Environmental Health
o Water quality is important in global challenge

Energy Issues in Environmental Health

Climate Change:
- This is projected to impact sea level, patterns of infectious diseases, air quality, severity of natural disasters
such as floods, drought and storms
Disaster preparedness.
- This includes planning for human health needs and the impact on public infrastructure such as water and
roadways
Nanotechnology.
- This offers improvement to:
- Disease prevention, detection and treatment
The built environment
- Features that impact human health such as influencing behaviors, physical activity patterns, social
networks, access to resources
Exposure to unknown hazards.
- Every year, hundreds of new chemicals are introduced in the market. It is presumed that some these
chemicals may present new, unexpected challenges to human and their safety should be evaluated
Blood lead levels.
- As of 2007, approximately 4M houses or buildings have children living in those who are potentially being
exposed to lead. This can affect child’s cognitive function

It is defined as an agent which has the potential to cause harm to a vulnerable target.
Safety
- Unsafe working conditions
that can cause injury, illness
and death.
This is the most common
hazards in the workplace.
- This includes:
 anything that cause spills
or tripping such as cords
running across the floor
or ice.
 anything that cause falls
such as working from
heights, including
ladders, scaffolds, roofs
or raised work area.
 Unguarded machinery
and moving machinery
parts that a worker can
accidentally touch
 electrical hazards like
frayed cords, missing
ground pins, improper
wiring.
 confined spaces.
Ergonomic hazards
- When the type of work, body
positions and working
conditions put a strain on the
body.
- Short term exposure may
result in sore muscles the
next day or in the days
following exposure.
- This includes:
 improper adjusted work
station and chairs
 frequent lifting
 poor posture
 awkward movement
especially if they are
repetitive
 Having to use too much
HAZARD
Six categories of workplace hazards
Biological
-Exposure to harm or disease
associated with working with
animals, people or infectious
plant materials.
Includes:
 work in schools
 day care facilities
 Emergency response
 Nursing home
 Various outdoor
occupation.
 This include things like:
- blood or other body
fluids
- fungi/molds
- bacteria and viruses
- plants
- insect bites
- animal and bird
droppings
Chemical hazards
-When a worker is exposed to any -Hazards that can cause stress and strain.
chemical preparation in the
workplace in any form- solid,
liquid or gas.
Some are sensitive to
chemicals and even solutions
that can cause illness, skin
irritation or breathing
problems.
-Beware of:
 liquids like cleaning
products, paints, acids,
solvents especially if
chemicals are in
unlabeled container
 vapors and fumes that
come from welding or
Physical hazards
-Any factor within the environment that
harm the body without necessarily
touching it.
-Includes:
 radiation (ionizing and non-ionizing),
microwaves, radio waves
 High exposure to sunlight/ ultraviolet
rays
 Temperature extremes- hot or cold
 constant loud noise
Work organization hazards
This is associated with workplace issues
such as workload, lack of control and or
respect
-This includes:
 workload demands
 workplace violence
 intensity and or pace
 respect
 flexibility
 control about things or say about
things
 social support or relations
 sexual harassment
 force exposure to solvents
 Vibration  Gases like acetylene,
propane, carbon
monoxide and helium
 flammable materials like
gasoline, solvents,
explosive chemicals
 pesticides
How to manage hazards
There is a need to know what work activities may pose risks in the workplace and do whatever is possible to
eliminate or minimize those risks.
STEPS
1. Identify hazards. Find out what cause harm.
2. Assess risks. Understand the nature of the harm that could be caused by the hazard, how serious it could
be and the likelihood of it happening.
3. Control risks. Implement the most effective and reasonably practicable control measures.
4. Review your control measures. This is to ensure they are working as planned.