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By: Ikedi Ani-okoye

Protein, Carbohydrates

Protein is the basic building block of the human organism. It is responsible for building and maintaining tissue fabrics like muscles and organs. Since the body continually uses up protein, eve need to replenish it constantly by what we eat. This is not diffiadt since proteins are found in both animal and vegetable products.

The protein we take in our food is broken down by digestion into its separate elements, the amino acids. There are over 20 amino acids, eight of which the body is incapable of producing itself, known as essential amino acids. Of :ourse we need not worry about whether we eating the essential amino acids; we do This automatically through our mixed diet. the industrialised countries there is no deficiency due to shortage of protein, as there is in developing countries.

Any deficiency arises from the lack of species vitamins and minerals. There are standard values covering pro-ein requirements. Adults need around 0. 89 protein per kilogram bodyw~ight every day. Children, pregnant mothers and old people require more. Ofour total daily food intake 10 or 20 per cent at the most should consist of protein. As a rule of thumb, this protein should be made up of animal and vegetable proteins in equal proportions.

Many dieticians recommend that we eat only one-third animal and two-thirds vegetable protein. On no account should one live entirely on meat or fish, milk products or eggs, but we should include cereal products and pulses. Even vegetables contain small amounts of essential amino acids. But it is not only the protein content that we must consider but the value of that protein as well.

Protein value The closer the composition of the protein in Food to that in the human body, the better is its nutritional value. Protein that contains all eight essential amino acids in exactly the ratio the body requires to build up body protein is known as 'High value protein'. Animal protein from meat, fish, milk products and eggs is extremely high in value for its composition is the same as body protein. Vegetable protein, on she other hand, is generally of lower value since it contains a lower proportion of essential amino acids and is often very unlike human protein. Essential amino acids may be low in some forms ofprotein but present in greater quantities in other proteins.

lf these are eaten together, they complement each other, so by combining vegetable protein edith other sources of protein you get high value protein. An example still illustrate this: milk is a value food and so is cereal, so by combining a milk product like cheese with wheat get an even higher protein value. The same is true of a breakfast muesli of yogurt and wheat flakes, or a slice of wholemeal bread topped with cheese.

You will see from the table below that meat or Esh are not essential to healthy eating, although the body generally finds it easier to make body protein out of animal protein. By properly combining various vegetable proteins your body will get all the essential amino acids it needs.Vegetarian meals usually Have she advantage of being lower in Eat and cheaper too. Some further examples are beans on toast, or brown rice with nuts and vegetables.

Carbohydrates

If you follow the NACNE guidelines on the proportion of fat and protein in your diet, then it follows that 50 to 60 per cent of total calorie requirement should be composed of carbohydrates. Carbohydrate is the main constituent of most vegetable foodstuffs. It can be divided into three groups: first the least soluble, starches, wKch are the most difficult to digest; secondly, soluble sugar which passes quickly in the bloodstream, and thirdly, cellulose (fibre), which is insoluble and indigestible.

Starchy products such as in cereals (rice, wheat, barley, oats, rye) and in starchy root crops (potatoes, yams and cassava) are essential for a healthy diet. Starches are graduaUy broken down by the body into sugar and it is the slowness of the process which gives the welcome feeling of being
full.

Digestion begins edith the saliva in the mouth. When we eat the easily soluble sugars we get an immediate full feeling, but one that does not last since the body has nothing more to do. In addition, carbohydrates use up the body's Yitamin B1. Wholemeal bread is rich in tiles vitamin, so in this case digestion brings no vitamin loss. It is quite different with pure sugar.

lt is simply a source of calories which supplies no vitamins but, in fact, robs the body of them. A shortage of vitamin B1 also has the effect of making the body store any carbohydrate it does not use as fat. So a lot c)fsugar in your diet not only does you no good, it can do actual harm.