Each of the macronutrients—carbohydrates, proteins, and fats—plays various roles in the function of our bodies. In addition to their unique functions, all of the macronutrients supply calories. When we eat more protein, carbohydrate, or fat than we need to replenish what we have used, the excess is converted to and stored as fat. Calories are used to support all muscular activity, to carry out the metabolic reactions that sustain the body, to maintain body temperature, and to support growth. But when we consistently take in more calories than we use, we gain weight. Weight is maintained when energy (calorie) intake…
Author: Denbeigh
There is no one perfect food. We need an assortment of nutrients that can be obtained only by eating a wide variety of foods. What is it that our bodies need? Scientists have identified more than 40 different nutrients in food. These substances are essential for growth and for the chemical reactions and processes that keep us alive and functioning (metabolism). Except for an extremely small number of foods that consist almost entirely of one nutrient, the vast majority of the foods we eat are mixtures of many nutrients. Nevertheless, each group of foods included in the Food Guide Pyramid…
The six categories of the Pyramid are: Grain products (bread, cereal, rice, and pasta) Fruits Vegetables Milk products (milk, yogurt, cheese) Meats and other high-protein foods (lean meats, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, and nuts) Fats, oils, and sweets The shape of the Pyramid, widest at the base and narrowest at the tip, makes it easy to visualize the contribution that each group of foods should make to your overall eating plan when you follow the Dietary Guidelines. The emphasis of the Pyramid is on increasing the proportion of fruits, vegetables, and grains—those foods that form the base of the…
To appeal to our desire for lower-fat substitutes for our favorite high-fat foods, the commercial food industry has developed low- or lower-fat versions of many foods using various fat replacers. Until recently, fat replacers always consisted of proteins or carbohydrates, such as starches or gels, but the kinds of foods that could be prepared with these fat replacers were limited by their inability to withstand the high temperatures of frying. In 1996, after a long period of development, safety testing, and governmental review, the first non-caloric fat, olestra, was approved by the FDA for use in the manufacture of savory…
Milk products: Skim or low-fat milk, yogurt, low-fat or nonfat cheeses or cottage cheese. Meats and other high-protein foods: Lean meats, poultry, fish, eggs (3 to 4 yolks per week), cooked dry beans, peas, lentils, peanut butter, nuts, seeds, tofu. Vegetables Fresh or cooked vegetables, vegetable sauces, or juices. Fresh fruit (apple, apricots, banana, berries, dates, figs, grapefruit, grapes, guava, kiwi, mango, melon, nectarine, orange, pineapple), canned fruit, juices Grains: Whole-grain breads, bagels, English muffins, breakfast cereals (wholegrain, cooked, or readyto-eat), crackers, tortillas, pancakes, pasta, rice The Food Guide Pyramid was developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The pyramid…
Whole-grain bread products are labeled as whole grain, how much fiber will you find in the foods you eat? Whole wheat, or rye. In contrast, bread products labeled as made with wheat, cracked wheat, seven-grain, multi-grain, stoneground wheat, or any of several other names contain mostly refined flour and lack the health-promoting effects of a whole-grain product. The vitamins, minerals, and other compounds they contain contribute to their health-promoting effects. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (see Chapter 1, page 8) recommend that we obtain most (about 60%) of our calories from carbohydrates, preferably complex carbohydrates, in the form of foods…
The thousands of proteins that make up our bodies are assembled on demand from some 20 different amino acids. What are these amino acids, and where do they come from? The protein from the meat we ate last night is not directly incorporated into our muscles. The proteins in the foods we eat are digested first into small “peptides.” Some of these peptides are further digested into their constituent amino acids. Only amino acids and small peptides are actually absorbed by the small intestine into the bloodstream. They are then delivered to the liver, muscles, brain, and other organs, where…
Some foods contain sugar that has been added during processing. The following foods contain a large amount of sugar. The sugar content is shown in grams, and its equivalents in teaspoons are also given. Try to eat high-sugar foods less frequently or in smaller amounts. Check labels and compare similar foods—choose those that are lower in sugar content. Go easy on adding sugar to food. This can lead to an increased risk of bone problems as we grow older (see Chapter 3, Osteoporosis, page 67). The increase in sugar consumption also has been attributed to the increasing availability of low-fat…
The United States banking system differs from other industrialized countries. For instance, the United States has more banks per capita, and the banks possess fewer assets because the U.S. government imposed strict regulations. Early in the United States history, the public and government feared big banks, so state and federal governments passed regulations that forced banks to be smaller and encouraged a large number of banks to form. The United States, furthermore, has a dual banking system. A bank chooses a charter from a state government or from the U.S. federal government. A charter is a document that legally establishes…
This chapter introduces the financial system. Students will learn the purpose of financial markets and its relationship to financial institutions. Financial institutions connect the savers to the borrowers through financial intermediation. At the heart of every financial system lies a central bank. It controls a nation’s money, and the money supply is a vital component of the economy. Unfortunately, economists have trouble in defining money because people can convert many financial instruments into money. Thus, central banks use several definitions to measure the money supply. Furthermore, if an economy did not use money, then people would resort to an inefficient…