The Interplay between Nutrients and Nutrition

Nutrients are the individual substances found in food that are essential for humans and animals to live and grow. Examples of these include vitamins, minerals, proteins, and carbohydrates. Diet plays a major role in determining the amount of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that the body needs to function properly. This is how diet is related to nutrition. Nutrition is the intake of food in relation to the dietary needs of the body.

It is a combination of a balanced diet and regular physical exercise that leads to good nutrition and good health. It is not just about energy adequacy, but also about nutrient diversity (Figure 1A). Therefore, good nutrition means consuming the right amount of nutrients for proper utilization to achieve optimal health. The nutritional transition, which involves a shift from traditional diets to modern diets with high energy density and low nutrient diversity, is associated with acquired metabolic syndromes. This highlights the importance of intrinsic and extrinsic factors in modulating and integrating nutrient metabolism and in determining the nutritional status of an organism. In conclusion, there is a strong relationship between nutrition and health.

It is important to choose the right foods to ensure that you live a healthy life. Good nutrition is essential for optimal health and wellbeing.