Food Types And Nutrients And Their Usages

Food is any material used to provide nutrition to organisms, usually to supply energy. Food is generally of plant, animal, or fungi origin, and has necessary nutrients, including proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, or other minerals. The main function of food is to increase the life of a living being. This may be done in many ways, by providing energy, through digestion or absorption, by providing space for storage of food, by providing nutrients to the organisms for growth, and finally by use as a source of secondary nutrition after the original food has been consumed. In all ways, food is the source of energy of the living world.

There are two categories of food, the macronutrients and the fibres, each having specific functions that determine the amount of nutrition contained, in the same food, and the amount that is absorbed and used by the body. The macronutrients are carbohydrates, proteins, fats and the main vitamins and minerals, together with some important group of trace elements. The five categories are vegetable proteins and both complex and simple sugars, with some bioactive phenolics and dietary fibers added for good health. Foods contain mostly one of these, or a combination of them, but very occasionally, two or more of them are included.

Food intake is normally measured by total calories, which include all the calories needed for normal functioning of the body, in a day. This includes the calories needed by the organs and tissues to support their activity, which may be specific to a function, or to carry out of the energy needs of the body. When there is a deficit in the supply of certain macronutrients, a deficit in the consumption of food is called a hunger pang, and the sensation of hunger is stimulated by the sight of small amounts of food eaten. A balance between the demand and supply of calories is achieved through the regulation of the metabolism, resulting in a balanced food group and a healthy body weight.