Understanding the Science Behind Nutritional JargonNutritional Terms and Phrases Explained
Nutritional Terms and Phrases Used For Food Ingredients Explained
Eating healthily can be a battle in itself trying to understand the nutritional jargon that gets batted around. The first step to smart nutrition is learning the terms that are essential to understanding what exactly you are eating and how your choices affect your health. Below are a few terms that FunkyFemale think will benefit you when deciphering the ingredients listed on store bought foods.
Antioxidants; getting enough antioxidants may be essential in preventing chronic diseases, including heart disease and cancer. Antioxidants can be found in foods such as broccoli and carrots, green tea has antioxidant qualities and is recommended.
Body Mass Index (BMI): A healthy BMI range is between 19 and 25, it is a number that shows the relationship between height and weight, you can find your BMI by taking your weight in pounds and dividing it by your height squared, then multiply this number by 703. Higher numbers are associated with being overweight and lower numbers, underweight. The BMI has one draw back, it does not distinguish between fat and muscle weight.
Cholesterol: Enters the body in two differing forms, ‘bad’ cholesterol which can clog arteries and ‘good’ cholesterol which actually helps to remove cholesterol from the arteries. Cholesterol is a fat found in animal based foods and is also produced by the body itself. For a health cholesterol level your HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) level should be at least 40mg/dl or higher.
Fat: There are 4 groups of fat, categorised on how saturated they are with hydrogen
Polyunsaturated – found in corn oil, contains less hydrogen and lowers cholesterol
Monounsaturated – found in olive oil and canola, they contain one area that has not been saturated with hydrogen. Helps to lower cholesterol
Trans fat – is mostly man made and can be found in cookies, cakes, chips (fried). Raise blood cholesterol levels
Saturated – Have been completely saturated in hydrogen atoms and are not healthy as they raise our blood cholesterol levels, our bodies do not require them for proper nutrition. Saturated fats can be found in animal products and full fat dairy products.
Fibre – Helps to stabilise blood sugar levels, lowers cholesterol, keeps the digestive system functioning and possibly reduces the risk of some types of cancer. There are two types of fibre, soluble fibre, which dissolves in water and forms gels that help to stabilise blood sugar levels and lower cholesterol, found in oats, barley fruits and veg such as apples, potatoes and citrus fruits. Insoluble fibre, as suggested does not dissolve in water and takes longer to digest. Foods high in insoluble fibre are whole wheat, whole grains, cereals, seeds and the skins of many fruit and veg.
Folate (Folic Acid/Folacin) – Especially important vitamin for women who are trying to get pregnant, inadequate amount soft hid B vitamin could cause birth defects. Folates is found in leafy green veg, beans and grains.
Functional food – An added ingredient to a product that is beneficial to health. For example, orange juice is fortified with calcium to maintain healthy bones.
Organic – Food that has been cultivated without the use of man made pesticides. In the case of meat the animal has been reared without antibiotics or growth hormones, fed organic food and able to live out doors.
Phytochemical – A chemical found naturally in plants that has health protecting qualities and the ability to stop cancer causing compounds from damaging the human body.
Phytoestrogen – Found mostly in soy foods, this chemical is said to mimic estrogen and is considered healthy as it may reduce the risk of some types of cancers
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