Nutritional Needs Of Our Bodies (1961)

[Music] our health is closely related to our nutrition or to the foods we eat you may like corn a food that comes from a plant or perhaps chicken a food that comes from an animal the food value of both plants and animals depends upon six substances carbohydrates proteins fats vitamins minerals and water these substances are found in various amounts in animals and plants the foods we prepare from plants and animals also contain these substances we call these substances nutrients when we say we are eating a balanced meal we mean our meal contains proper amounts of all nutrients we often talk about nutrients in connection with four General groups of foods the dairy foods consist of milk and products made from milk nut meats and beans are sometimes included in the meat group consisting of red meat fish eggs and poultry made up of green and yellow vegetables fruits and tomatoes is the group of fruits and vegetables foods from wheat and grain make up the Breads and cereals group meals which are lacking in one or more nutrients provide a by these groups of foods may result in poor health as shown by these laboratory rats this healthy active rat has been fed a balanced diet containing all nutrients this small weak rat is in poor health proper amounts of nutrients are missing from its Foods this example illustrates why a balanced diet is necessary to supply proper amounts of nutrients for good Health the body needs nutrients for energy growth replacement and regulation what happens to nutrients in the body we know that our bodies like the bodies of all living things are made up of cells the smallest living parts of both plants and animals we're able to see these cells under a microscope these are blood cells these are fat cells cells such as these Make Up Bones all of the millions of cells in the body require nutrients nutrients to meet the body needs of energy growth replacement and regulation before the cells can use the nutrients in food the food must be digested within the body digestion changes food into liquid form this liquid is rich in nutrients which pass through the walls of the small intestine and are absorbed into the blood this scene shows the blood carrying nutrients through the body of a living animal a frog in every animal and in humans each cell receives nutrients from the blood the nutrients represented by the letter N move into the cells and are changed through a chemical process by combining with oxygen in the cell oxygen shown by the letter O combines with the chemicals in the nutrients this is oxidation during this process energy is released foods rich in carbohydrates are those which Supply the body most readily with energy among the foods which are the best sources of carbohydrates are foods from grains enriched breads breakfast cereal and flour potatoes and many fresh and dried fruits sugar honey and candies provide immediate energy but Supply little else fats are nutrients which are also good sources of energy foods rich in fats include lard butter margarine bacon vegetable oil nut meats and many cheeses proteins a third group of nutrients are found in nearly all foods but foods such as fish lean meat and poultry are high in protein many cheeses and eggs are also rich in protein and are called complete protein food gelatin and dry beans are also protein foods milk is a valuable protein food and furnishes almost all other nutrients while proteins in the body may be oxidized for energy they are more important for meeting the body need of growth all parts of the body especially the muscles need proteins in order to grow this is a highly magnified view of human muscle fibers made up of many cells muscle cells like all cells in the body break down and die all cells are replaced as living cells such as this one divide producing new cells this need of the Body for cell division and replacement requires proteins we've seen that cells make use of three groups of nutrients carbohydrates fats and proteins in addition the body requires three other substances usually grouped as nutrients water vitamins and minerals minerals are very important for growth especially for strong healthy bones and teeth the bones of all animals contain the mineral nutrients calcium and phosphorus these minerals give bones their hardness we'll remove the minerals from this chicken bone by soaking it for several hours in a strong acid after several hours the acid has turned dark as it has removed the calcium and phosphorus from the bone the bone is now washed with no minerals in it the bone is so soft that it bends easily we can see that calcium phosphorus and other minerals are important nutrients for keeping bones and teeth strong and healthy some foods especially rich in minerals such as calcium are milk and and cheese spinach broccoli and other greens the mineral phosphorus is found in many protein foods such as milk cheese broccoli spinach eggs and beef liver such Foods also Supply iron needed by blood cells so minerals provide the body with nutrients for growth and replacement especially for bone and blood cells another body need is that of Regulation the body regulates Itself by eliminating wastes circulating the blood digesting food and fighting diseases vitamins are the group of nutrients important to this need for regulation and fighting disease fresh uncooked foods are excellent sources of many vitamins because little was known about vitamins when they were first discovered they were named by letters as more is being learned about these nutrients they are being given more accurate scientific names for example for vitamin C ascorbic acid for three of the B vitamins the names nasin thamin and riboflavin proper amounts of vitamins make it possible for the body to regulate Itself by resisting disease still another nutrient especially important for the need of Regulation is water water aids in digestion and in transporting body wastes there is some water in most foods but drinking plenty of water every day is a good health habit we've seen that in order to build and maintain good health the body needs carbohydrates proteins fats vitamins minerals and water balanced meals will supply proper amounts of nutrients for Body Energy growth replacement and regulation good health depends upon good foods and good foods are those which provide for the nutritional needs of the body [Music]