\Chapter 1: Nutrition — Foundation

Importance in health and wellness.

Vitamins and their importance in health and wellness were discovered in the early 1900s by European doctors. The research and scientific discoveries in the field of dietetics and nutrition continue to this day. With the introduction of the nutrition field in the late 19th century, nutrition experts have been employed in hospitals to monitor troops, schools to ensure balanced meals for youth, and as a major aspect of the fitness and general health industries.

Awareness: of how nutrition affects the health of each individual grows, the economic and demographic status, life stage, and energy requirements must all be considered. Topics like human energy systems, the digestive system, metabolism, and the human cell are critical for a nutrition coach to understand.

How Humans Select Food:

• Sight; eyes provide the first impression of food, such as the shape, color, shine, texture, size, and presence of defects. The color of foods contributes to their appeal to the consumer as well.
• Smell; the smell is based on two: olfactory system and volatile molecules.

OLFACTORY SYSTEM:

Used for smelling.

VOLATILE SYSTEM:

Small, vaporized particles.

• Taste; is typically the most influential sense. Every human has between 9,000 and 10,000 taste buds, but they diminish over time.

TASTE:

The perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with a taste receptor cell in the oral cavity.

Through taste, humans can discern bitter, sour, sweet, salty, and umami (savory).

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UMAMI:

One of the five categories of taste in food corresponds to the flavor of glutamates, especially monosodium glutamate.

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• Feel; Texture and mouthfeel as they consume it drive the way humans select foods. While this sensation is unique for everyone. For example, if someone does not like the texture of a tomato, it may taste “bad” to them. However, the texture of tomato paste (simply pureed tomato) may not bother them, and this taste is palatable. The consistency of food describes its firmness or thickness and goes hand in hand with food texture.

MOUTHFEEL:

The physical sensations in the mouth are caused by food or drink.

PALATABLE:

Pleasant to taste.

CONSISTENCY:

The firmness or thickness of food.

• Flavor; The flavor is not sensory like a tool, and a combination of taste, sight, smell, and mouthfeel.
• Functional food; Foods selected, produced or consumed for reasons beyond calorie and nutrient content.
• Modified Foods; Foods modified through enhancement, enrichment, or nutrient fortification.
• Conventional Foods; are simple, unmodified whole foods like vegetables and fruits. These foods have been linked to reduced cancer and chronic disease risk, heart health, and urinary tract function. Examples include: broccoli, tomatoes, and kale.
• Medical Foods; are defined as foods intended to be ingested under the supervision of a physician for specific dietary management of a disease or condition. Examples include: canned or bottled supplements for the treatment of diabetes or liver disease.

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• Specialty Dietary Foods; are defined by the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act with three distinctions:

1. Support a dietary need from a physiological, physical, or pathological condition.
2. Supply vitamins, minerals, or other ingredients with the intent of increasing intake.
3. Support a dietary need by being a sole item in a diet (lactose free, gluten free, or similar).