Nutrition, diet and health
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All 12 Flashcards — Nutrition, diet and health
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Question
What is an essential nutrient?
Answer
A nutrient the body **cannot make** for itself, so it **must come from the diet** (e.g. vitamin C, vitamin D).
Question
What is a balanced diet?
Answer
A diet containing **all the nutrient groups in the correct proportions** to meet the body's needs.
Question
What is malnutrition?
Answer
Poor health from a diet with **too little, too much, or the wrong balance** of nutrients (under- OR over-nutrition).
Question
State one role of vitamin C (ascorbic acid).
Answer
It is needed to make strong **collagen** for skin, gums and blood-vessel walls.
Question
What deficiency disease results from a lack of vitamin C?
Answer
**Scurvy** — weak connective tissue, bleeding gums and slow wound healing.
Question
What is the role of vitamin D?
Answer
It is needed to **absorb calcium** from food into the blood.
Question
Why does a lack of vitamin D cause abnormal bones?
Answer
Less calcium is absorbed → too little calcium for bone → bones are **not hardened properly** → soft, deformed bones (**rickets**).
Question
Outline the chain from a high-fat diet to coronary heart disease.
Answer
Saturated fat → raises **cholesterol** → **plaques** in arteries (atherosclerosis) → coronary arteries **narrow** → less **oxygen** to heart muscle → **CHD / heart attack**.
Question
What is atherosclerosis?
Answer
The build-up of **fatty plaques** in artery walls, which **narrows** the arteries.
Question
Why is obesity a health risk?
Answer
It raises blood pressure (**hypertension**) and is linked to **type-2 diabetes** and **coronary heart disease**.
Question
Why is a large bag of potato chips a nutritional concern?
Answer
It is **high in fat, salt and energy** but low in vitamins, minerals and fibre — contributing to obesity and high blood pressure.
Question
Name the two opposite forms of malnutrition.
Answer
**Under-nutrition** (too little → deficiency diseases) and **over-nutrition** (too much → obesity, CHD).
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Topic 3.6 hub
Integration of body systems
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