Macronutrients and Micronutrients: Vitamins and Minerals

1. Macronutrients and Micronutrients:Vitamins and Minerals 1

2. Micronutrientsand Macronutrients Micronutrients are substances required in very small amounts (mg or μg) and that mainly function as co-factors of enzymes ( < 0.005% body weight). Examples include: Vitamins Trace minerals (Fe, Cu, F, Zn, I, Se, Mn, Mo, Cr, Co and B). Macronutrients are chemical substances that are required in relatively large amounts (> 0.005% body weight). Examples include proteins, fats, carbohydrates and minerals (Na, Mg, K, Ca, P, S, and Cl). 2

3. MicronutrientsVitamins and Minerals Vitamins and minerals are essential for the maintenance of good health and the prevention of a number of diseases. Vitamins are generally organic molecules Minerals are inorganic substances usually in ion form 3

4. MicronutrientsVitamins Vitamins are naturally occurring organic compounds that are essential to metabolic or other functions in the body. Most vitamins cannot be synthesized by the body. They must be supplied in the diet. Vitamins are usually classified as water soluble or fat soluble 4

5. MicronutrientsMinerals Minerals are inorganic and are found in the soil and water absorbed by plants or eaten by animals. The human body requires substantial amounts of minerals on a daily basis to ensure proper functioning of the organs, bones, tissue and immune system. Minerals may be classified as macro-minerals or trace minerals 5

6. Macro-minerals Trace Minerals Minerals 6

7. Macro-minerals Trace Minerals Minerals 7

8. Minerals 8

9. Minerals 9

10. Vitamin Characteristics • Each vitamin has one or more specific purposes. • Vitamins are essential to life processes. • Vitamins are generally used by the body with very minimal changes • Vitamins are usually required in only small amounts • Most vitamins cannot be synthesized by the body directly 10

11. Important Vitamins 11

12. Classification of Vitamins • Vitamins can be classified as either • Water soluble • Fat soluble. • Water soluble vitamins are generally involved in the cellular metabolism of energy supplying nutrients. • Fat soluble vitamins often have very specialized functions 12

13. Water Soluble Vitamins • Water soluble vitamins usually contain hydrogen attached to electronegative atoms such as oxygen or nitrogen. • They easily form hydrogen bonds with water molecules. • Water soluble vitamins do not accumulate in the body, so regular supplies are necessary 13

14. Water Soluble Vitamins • Examples of water soluble vitamins Vitamin C Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) 14

15. Fat Soluble Vitamins • Fat soluble vitamins have long nonpolar hydrocarbon chains or rings. • Common fat soluble vitamins include • A, • D, • E, • F • K. 15

16. Fat Soluble Vitamins • Fat soluble vitamins usually accumulate in tissues and are not leached out quickly. • Unlike water soluble vitamins, an excess of a fat soluble vitamin can be just as harmful as a deficiency 16

17. Examples of Fat Soluble Vitamins • Vitamin D 17

18. Examples of Fat Soluble Vitamins Vitamin K 18

19. Vitamin C- Sources • Vitamin C is found in many fresh fruits and vegetables. • It contains several polar groups, making it very water soluble. • Cooking vegetables in water tends to leach the vitamin from the food. • Cooked foods also contain less vitamin C, since it is also easily oxidized and hence destroyed in the cooking process. 19

20. Vitamin Functions • Involved in the biosynthesis of the protein, collagen, found in connective tissues such as cartilage, ligaments, and tendons • Aid in healing wounds and helping to prevent bacterial infections. 20

21. Vitamin C Functions • Massive doses of vitamin C have often been thought to help in the prevention of the common cold, • There is NO reliable evidence to show that this is true 21

22. Vitamin C Deficiencies • Scurvy or Scorbutus. • Symptoms include • swollen legs, • rotting gums, • and bloody lesions. • Common among sailors in the 18th and 19th centuries who spent a long time at sea without fresh fruits and vegetables 22

23. Vitamin A Vitamin A is also known as retinol The long chain hydrocarbon structure of vitamin A means that the vitamin is essentially non-polar. Hence it is fat soluble rather than water soluble. 23

24. Vitamin A Sources • Commonly found in cod liver oil, green vegetables, and fruit. • Carrots indirectly serve as a source of vitamin A since they contain b carotene which the body readily converts to vitamin A 24

25. Vitamin A Functions • Vitamin A is fat soluble. • It is not readily broken down by cooking. •  Role in aiding in night vision. 25

26. Vitamin A Functions • Retinol is oxidized to retinal, which combines with the protein opsin to form rhodopsin. • Rhodopsin is the active agent which converts light signals to electrical impulses that the optic nerve transmits to the brain Retinol Retinal 26

27. Vitamin A Deficiencies • A deficiency in vitamin A results in night blindness. • The most serious deficiency results in a condition known as Xeropthalmia, a severe form of conjunctivitius or blindness. 27

28. Vitamin D - Sources • Vitamin D is commonly found in fish liver oil as well as egg yokes. • Unlike other vitamins, the body synthesizes vitamin D in the skin through the action of ultraviolet light on 7-dehydrochlosterol Like vitamin A, the long chain Hydrocarbon structure makes vitamin D fat soluble 28

29. Vitamin D Functions • Vitamin D is an important regulator of calcium metabolism. • It is involved in the uptake of calcium and phosphate ions from food into the body. • It is necessary for the proper formation of bone structures and teeth. 29

30. Vitamin D • A serious deficiency in vitamin D results in a condition known as Ricketts. • Ricketts is characterized by bone softening an malformation. Child with Ricketts and two years after treatment  30

31. Vitamin D • Vitamin D is destroyed by bleaching agents that are often used in the manufacture of purified white flour 31

32. Micronutrient Deficiencies Vitamin Deficiency Diseases • Retinol (Vitamin A)  xerophthalmia / night blindness • Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C)  scurvy or scorbutus • Calciferol (Vitamin D)  rickets. • Niacin (Vitamin B3) pellagra • Thiamin (Vitamin B1) beriberi Pellegra Beriberi • Mineral Deficiency Diseases • Iron — anemia • Iodine — goiter Goiter 32

33. Macro-nutrient Deficiencies Macronutrient deficiencies diseases in chlidren often result from a lack of protein Kwashiorkor is a specific wasting away often occurring in infants at weaning. It results from a lack of protein in the diet Marasmusis a wasting away of the body tissues from the lack of calories as well as protein in the diet. The child is fretful rather than apathetic and is skinny rather than swollen with edema. Kwashiorkor Marasmus 33

34. Nutritional Deficiencies Proposed approaches to combating nutritional deficiencies world-wide include: • Providing food rations that are composed of fresh and vitamin- and mineral-rich foods. • Adding nutrients missing in commonly consumed foods. • Genetic modification of food. • Providing nutritional supplements. • Providing selenium supplements to people eating foods grown in selenium-poor soil. 34