Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.

Biology and Geology 3 ESO

UNIT 2.
FOOD AND
NUTRIENTS.

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

1
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

1) Food and nutrients.

1. Make a scheme about types of nutrients.
glucose,suc
simple
rose...
carbohydrat
es
complex starch, fibre

saturated
fats and
insaturates
membrane
biomolecul lipids
lipids
es
regulatory
hormones
lipids

proteins aminoacids
types of
nutrients
vitamins

water
inorganic
molecules
minerals

2. Make a scheme of the carbohydrates, explaining types of

carbohydrates, function, food which contains them, and examples of
each ones.

Sugars: energy-giving substances found in daily food as pasta,

bread, fruit...
Types:

 Simple carbohydrates: sweet, crystalline and soluble in

water.

o Monosaccharides: they are formed by a single

molecule, such as glucose (honey) and fructose (fruit)

o Disaccharides: they are formed by two molecules

joined, such as sucrose (white sugar) and lactose

(milk)

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

2
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

 Complex carbohydrates: they are neither sweet nor

crystalline. They are formed by many monosaccharides,

such as starch (potatoes and pasta) or fibre (vegetables

as lettuce and asparagus).

3. Make a scheme of the lipids, explaining types of lipids, function, food
which contains them, and examples of each ones.

They are insoluble in water and have an oily appearance.

They are classified into:

 Fats: high energy giving molecules. There are two types:

o Insaturated (oils): they come from vegetables and

are liquids.
o Saturated: they are got from animals and are solid
at usual temperatures.
 Membrane lipids (phospholipids): they form membrane in

cells and organelles.

 Regulatory lipids: they are intracellular and extracellular

messengers, such as hormones.
4. Explain what are proteins and aminoacids, and where can we find
them on diet.

Proteins are the most important biomolecules in the organism.

They are responsible for making structures and most of the cell

functions.

Proteins are complex molecules made up of aminoacids. There

are twenty different types of aminoacids.

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

3
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

Human beings can make 12 aa, and the other 8 are necessary

taken on diet. They are called essentials, because without them

our diet is not complete.

The food where proteins are abundant are meats (poultry,

beef, pork…), fish, milk products and eggs.

5. What is the function of minerals? Where can we find them on diet?

Minerals make part of bones and teeth. Their main function

is structural, but they are important in ionic balance too.

The most important source of minerals are vegetables and

fruit.
6. Explain osmosis process.

Activity 1.
7. Why is water important for us?

Water is important for us because most of the body substances

are water soluble, and thanks to the water they can move

“freely” in the cell letting biochemical reactions to take place.

Water is important for delivering substances and transport.

8. What are vitamins? Why is important to eat fresh food for vitamins?

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

4
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

Vitamins are a group of substances with the same function, but

very different from a chemical point of view. Their function is

complete protein structures to let them perform their function.

They are essential for body functions work right. A deficiency

in vitamins always produces an illness (hipovitaminosis). An

excess of them can produce illnesses (hipervitaminosis) but not

always, it depends on the vitamin.

Vitamins are very sensitive to temperature changes, for this

reason many vitamins are destroyed during food cooking. When

food is overcooked is poor on vitamins. For a good input in

vitamins is important to eat raw and fresh food.

9. Explain what are fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins, their

differences and examples of each ones.

Fat soluble vitamins are vitamins which can be solved in organic

substances but not in water. They are vitamins K, A, D and E.

They are stored in the liver. When the body has too much it can
produce an illness for hipervitaminosis, because they are not

easy to be expelled.

Water soluble vitamins can be solved in water. They are group B

(12 vitamins belong to group B) and vitamin C. When there

Activities 2, 3, 4, 9, 10.

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

5
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

2) Energy needs

10. Write the amount of energy provided by nutrients.

Carbohydrates: 4 Kcal/g

Fats: 9 Kcal/g

Proteins: 4 Kcal/g

11. What is the basal metabolic rate? What does it depend on?

It is the minimum energy needed by a body to maintain the

vital functions to survive (breathing, blood flow, etc). It is

expressed in Kcal per day, and it depends on sex, age, size
and body mass of the person. In an average person is around

1600 and 1800 Kcal/day.

12. What are structural needs? And functional needs?

Structural needs are the essential substances the body needs

for building and repairing structures in the body. Proteins are

the most important nutrients for this role, but fats have this
function too.

Regulatory and functional needs are the nutrients needed by

the body to perform the metabolic reactions effectively.

Vitamins and minerals are the most important nutrients for it.

Activities 17, 18, 19, 21, 22

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Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

6
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

3) Diet

13. Describe in your own words, a balanced diet. What are the most
usual food and the least?

A balanced diet is a diet compound by different groups of

nutrients in the right proportion between them, namely, 60%

carbohydrates, 30% fats and 10% proteins. It must have a

quantity of minerals and vitamins big enough.

The carbohydrates must be mainly polysaccharides, such as

bread and pasta. Unsaturated fats, as oils, are healthier than

saturated, and the protein source is better if we take fish and

poultry than eggs and red meat because of the cholesterol.

Do not forget drink 2-2’5 liters of water to help your body to

work right and eliminate waste products.

The most usual food must be bread, pasta and vegetables, and
the least abundant must be pastry, sweets and red meats.
14. What are the advantages of Mediterranean diet?

Mediterranean diet is based on vegetables, fruit and fish, and

the main source of fats is olive oil, which is extremely

beneficious in different ways. It is a diet poor in saturated

fats, red meats and sweets, possibly the most harmful groups of

food for our health and circulatory system.

15. What is malnutrition? And poor nutrition? Name some illnesses
caused by each one.

Malnutrition is when the amount of food is not enough to satisfy

body’s needs.

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

7
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

Types: wasting (caquexia) and kwashiorkor (kwashiorkor), due to

a serious lack of food.

Activities: 26, 27, 28 and 35.

4) Food preservation.

16. Why is food preservation necessary?

Because food is made by organic matter; this is used and

transformed by other microorganisms, changing them and

performing the spoil of it.

17. Make a summary about types of food preservation. Explain uses
and examples of each one.

a) Cooling: low temperatures reduce action of enzymes.

a. Refrigeration (few degrees above 0 ºC)

b. Freezing (0 to -18 ºC)

c. Deep freezing (-35 to -150 ºC)

b) Heating: heat destroys enzymes
a. Sterilization: 110ºC. It destroys microorganisms.

b. UHT: 135 ºC for a few seconds

c. Pasteurization: 72 ºC for 15 seconds

c) Drying: eliminates water in food to stop decomposition.

d) Vacuum packing: remove the oxygen and aerobic

microorganisms cannot survive and enzymatic reactions do

not take place.

e) Irradiation: destroys enzymes and microorganisms

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

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 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

f) Smoking: substances form burning wood smoke destroys

some microorganisms. Dehydration produced in this process

help to the preservation.

g) Preservatives: large amounts of sugar or salt kill the

microorganisms by osmosis. That happens in salmon, cod,

jam..
Activities 43 and 44.

5) Dietary habits.

18. Make a summary table about problems in diet in developed and

developing countries.

Developed countries illnesses

High calorie intake Diabetes

Cholesterol and saturated fats Circulatory problems

Refined food low in fibre Constipation

Much protein rich food Problems in liver and kidneys

Developing countries illnesses

Poor conditions during handling and Infectious diseases and food

preserving food poisoning

Malnutrition Wasting and kwashiorkor

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

9
 Unit 2. Food and Nutrition.
Biology and Geology 3 ESO

19. Sum up advantages and disadvantages of genetically modified food.

Advantages Disadvantages

Cheaper food Some components causes

More profitable allergies

Genetically modified organisms

are stronger than wild
Richer in nutrients than the
varieties, and that could cause
original
the extinction of the wild

ones.

Activities 50, 54 and 55.

REVISION ACTIVITIES: 1, 2, 4 and 6.

Antonio Jesús Moreno Quintero

Colegio Guadalete. Attendis.

10