Step #3: Applying Menu Planning Ideas (Page 4)

Nutritional Considerations

When planning your menu, you must have a basic understanding of nutrition. Because your bodies need varieties of foods in order to function and to be healthy. You want to proved a nutritious food and well-balanced menus. You must make our food that will please our family and guests. You want to present attractive, flavorful foods as well as foods that are nutritious. In addition, with a concern for fitness and health, you want to make your menus nutritiously balance.

Nutrients

Nutrients are certain chemical compounds that are present in foods and that fulfill one or more of the following functions:

a. Supply energy for body functions
b. Build and replace cells that make up body tissues
c. Regulate body processes

There re six categories of nutrients

a. Carbohydrates
b. Fats
c. Proteins
d. Vitamins
e. Minerals
f. Water

Fiber (Strictly it is not a nutrients, but it is necessary for healthful body functioning)

Calories

A calorie is a unit of measurement used to measure energy. (It’s defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1° C.) You use calorie to measure how much energy certain foods will supply. Today, many feel that it is something to avoid. However, without sufficient food energy you could not live.

Carbohydrates, proteins, and fat can be used by the body to supply energy.

1 gram of carbohydrate supplies 4 calories.

1 gram of protein supplies 4 calories.

1 gram of fat supplies 9 calories.

Kinds of Nutrients and their importance

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the most important source of food energy. Starches are complex carbohydrates. You find them in such foods as grains, bread, peas, and beans, and many vegetables and fruits. Sugars are simple carbohydrates. You will find them in sweets, and to a lesser extent, in fruits and vegetables.

Most authorities believe that complex carbohydrates are better for you than simple carbohydrates. This is partly because starchy foods also have many other nutrients, while sweets have few other nutrients. Also, there is some evidence that a lot of sugar in the diet may contribute to heart and circularly dieses.

The term fiber refers to a group of carbohydrates that cannot be used by the body. Therefore, fiber supplies no food energy. However, it is important for the proper functioning of the intestinal tract and the elimination of body waste. In addition, there is evidence that sufficient dietary fiber helps prevent some kinds of cancers. Fruits and vegetables, especially if raw, and whole grains supply dietary fiber.

Page 4 of 6