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PROTEIN
WATER

In order for the human body to survive and perform at its optimal best it requires a range of nutrients.

This information serves as a guideline to get you started on a new healthier you , I urge you through this challenge to keep on learning and researching thing you do not know or understand. - David John Thornhill 

 

 

Water is a colourless, clear and tasteless liquid under normal circumstances.Liquid water is essential to life and therefore is the most important and essential nutrient. Water is obtained by drinking and by eating food and is mainly lost through perspiration, respiration and urination.Water contains no calories. Water is the basis for the fluids of the body. Water makes up more than two-thirds of the weight of the human body. All the cells and organs need water to function.Water is the basis of blood, saliva and the fluids surrounding the joints. Water regulates the body temperature through perspiration; it also helps prevent constipation by moving food through the intestinal tract as well as eliminating waste from the body through filtration by the kidneys.

Protein is one of the basic components of food and makes all life possible. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. All of the antibodies and enzymes, and many of the hormones in the body are proteins; they provide for the transport of nutrients, oxygen and waste throughout the body. They provide the structure and contracting capability of muscles. They also provide collagen to connective tissues of the body and to the tissues of the skin, hair and nails.

Proteins contain 4 calories per gram. The types of proteins you should be eating include:

 

  • Poultry: chicken, duck

  • Red meat: any quality lean meat like beef, game, ostrich, lean or extra lean beef mince

  • Other meats: pork, lamb, ham (Buy the leaner cuts as these meats can be quite fatty)

  • Fish: most fish are lean but the fattier fish are high in healthy fats

  • Fish: Hake, Tuna, salmon and types of canned fish i.e. Tuna

  • Shellfish: mussels, oysters, prawns, crayfish

  • Dairy: choose mostly low fat dairy products Milk or powdered milk (choose mostly skim milk or low fat optionsLow fat cottage cheese and natural yoghurt (incl. benefits of bacterial cultures to improve gut health) Cheeses and other dairy products (cheeses are very high in fat, try choosing softer cheeses)

  • Eggs: (egg whites are pure protein, egg yolks contain fat and protein)

  • Vegetable protein are often "incomplete" so best to add dairy/meat or eat a variety of them 

  • Raw Nuts & Seeds: (These are also high in healthy fats and contain carbohydrate)

  • Grain Protein: (Many grains e.g.: wheat’s, rice, etc. contain significant amounts of proteins)

  • Bean/Vegetable Protein: (Soybeans are a good protein source, but other beans also contain protein)

  • Protein supplements: these are available in powders/bars/drinks

  • Whey Protein: (a fast digesting milk protein)

  • Casein Protein (a slow digesting milk protein)

  • Soy Protein: (derived from soybeans)

  • Egg Protein: (primarily the protein albumin, this is a slow digesting protein)

  • Vegetable Proteins: (can be found in the form of wheat, peas)

Fats / Oils: All olive oils ideally should be cold pressed, extra virgin and of high quality. Fatty acids are what we more commonly call "fats". There are potentially hundreds of different fatty acids, but just a few dozen that are commonly found in the foods we eat. 

Nutritionists commonly classify dietary fat as either saturated, monounsaturated, or polyunsaturated, based on the number of double bonds that exist in the fat's molecular structure. For each of these three classes, there exist a large number of different chemical variations. These include the EFA's or Essential Fatty Acids. 

Fats are required to produce and build new cells. They are a source of energy and are critical in the transmission of nerve impulses and brain function and development. They are also involved in the synthesis of other essential molecules such as hormones.

 

Fats contain 9 calories per gram.

 

  • Vegetable fat sources mostly high in mono and polyunsaturated fats and contain EFA's (essential fatty acids)

  • Flaxseed, hempseed, evening primrose, almond, canola, olive and most other plant oils

  • Whole raw nuts and seeds

  • MCT oils (these are fats derived from coconut oil, available as a supplement)

  • Animal fat sources high in mono and polyunsaturated and saturated fats and contain EFA's

  • Salmon, shellfish and other fatty fish/fish oils (fish are high in unsaturated fats and EFA's)

  • Dairy products (vary in fat content and can contain high levels of saturated fat)

  • Lean meat and poultry (even trimmed and skinless, these provide fat. Can be high in saturated fat)

Carbohydrates are the chief source of energy for all bodily functions and muscular exertion. They are necessary for the digestion and assimilation of other foods.

They help regulate protein and fat metabolism; fats require carbohydrates to be broken down in the liver.

They also provide some of the structural components necessary for the growth and repair of tissues. All carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram.

  • Simple carbohydrates small molecule carbohydrates or sugars

  • Sugar cane and sugar beets (the main commercial sources of sugar)

  • Fresh fruit and berries (these contain mainly fructose, a low GI sugar) Honey (honey contains a mix of glucose and fructose)

  • Milk (milk and milk products contain the sugar lactose)

  • Prepared sugars (glucose/fructose/lactose/maltose, etc. found in drinks or free form)

  • Complex carbohydrates, that breakdown to release sugars

  • Potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin and squash

  • Yams, parsnips and other root vegetables

  • Corn, oats wheat and other grains

  • Wholegrain flours, breads and pastas

  • Brans, “Weet Bix” and shredded wheat cereals

  • Basmati, brown and wild rice

  • Raw nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, couscous and other pulses

  • Vegetables such as carrots and pea

FATS
CARBOHYDRATES

NUTRITION

FIBRE

Fibre has no caloric value but is still classed as macronutrient Dietary fibres are large carbohydrate molecules. The key difference between fibre and other carbohydrates is that they are not broken down by the human digestive system.

 

  • Sources of fibre are:

  • Broccoli / cauliflower / cabbage / celery / lettuce / spinach / watercress Mushrooms / onions / carrots/ green beans / peas / asparagus / kale

  • Bean and vegetable sprouts / beetroot / leeks / cucumber / zucchini / aubergine

  • Tomato / capsicum / silver beet/ any other non-starchy vegetable

  • Frozen mixed vegetables

  • Any grain or grain product

  • Fruits, berries

  • Legumes

 

The most things to remember here is to eat the right foods, until you are satisfied and not stuffed, these will help you feeling stronger and more energised.

Read the nutrition label of a food from top to bottom.

Look at the number of calories per serving and examine the number of calories from fat. Junk food usually provides a large number of calories per serving, with the majority of the calories coming from fat. Healthy food should be low in calories and especially low in calories from fat. On a 2,000 calorie diet, you should consume less than 65 grams of fat a day.

 

Analyse the types of fat the food contains. Junk food is usually high in the bad types of fat -- trans and saturated. Less than 20 grams or 10% of your total calories should come from saturated fat.

 

Healthy foods have little to no trans and saturated fats.Study the amount of cholesterol and sodium in the food. For a daily diet of 2,000 calories, you should consume less than 300 milligrams of cholesterol and 2,400 mg of sodium. The higher the numbers, the more likely it's junk food.

 

Read the % daily values of dietary fibre, vitamin C, vitamin A, calcium and iron. These are good nutrients often absent or low in junk food -- less than 5 % of the recommended daily value for that nutrient is considered low. For a food to be rich in the nutrient, it must provide at least 20 % of the nutrient's recommended daily value.

 

Consider the food's overall content of nutrients such as fibre, calcium, iron and vitamins A and C. A healthy food doesn't have to be high in all of these nutrients. An orange, for example, provides 130 % of the daily value for vitamin C, but it only has 2 % of the daily value of vitamin A and no iron. Some healthy foods provide a lot of one nutrient, while others provide smaller amounts of a variety of nutrients.

 

Look up the sugar content and compare it to the food's ingredients list. Foods such as fruit have naturally occur.

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