Brain And Dody As A Data Superhighway

As the center of the nervous system, the brain receives and processes all of the various stimuli that the body absorbs throughout the day. The traveling of this information through the synaptic relays is what allows humans to have feelings and thoughts. Together the mind and body form a complex system, and like any other system, it must be properly developed and well-maintained. In doing so, one component which must be considered is proper nutrition. The effect that nutrition has on both mental and physical health is exceedingly important. Nutrition is a key component for mental development, mood alteration, behavior, and physical health. It has been found that nutrition is important all throughout the lifep of an individual.

It affects people at every stage of their lives. People form eating habits, whether poor or healthy, based on many different circumstances. However, an attempt should be made to eat healthily, as certain foods contain nutrients that are essential to a person’s health. By examining the effects of these nutrients it can safely be concluded that nutrition is indeed extremely important to the health and well-being of both body and mind, and consumers should be educated as to its importance. Nutrition is important because of the way in which it affects development. Research has shown that nutrition can change the way in which a certain genetic factor is expressed by supplying the gene with specific molecules or nutrients which are required to express the full potential for development.

In other words, it is nutrition which controls how the brain and body develop. Without the proper Healthy Eating 5 nutritional stimulus, the physical development of both brain and body may be stunted and important traits will not be expressed. Nutritional Components Lipids, or fats, are essential to the proper development of the brain. This is because the brain is composed primarily of fatty tissue. Lipids in the brain “represent about 60% of its dry weight and more specifically they make up 80% of nerve cells. Fatty acids play an important structural role in membranes… such that communication both from and to the cell is facilitated”. The amount of lipids within the brain allows for the rapid transfer of impulses and data. This is what allows humans to process rapid thoughts and actions. Protein serves as the foundation of the body.

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German scientist Gerardus Mulder discovered the importance of protein in 1838. He found that it is protein that serves as the base of all living tissue. Protein is what makes up a person’s skin, muscles, fingernails, and even hair. Without adequate protein intake a person who is injured will not heal as quickly. Those who are athletes must be especially careful to get enough protein, as vigorous exercise tears down the muscles and protein is needed in order to rebuild and repair the damage. Protein is also important in allowing the brain to progress to a higher level of thought. A study of toddlers from Egypt and Kenya found that those who received a proper nutritional intake of protein engaged in symbolic play at an earlier stage. The level of protein is important to cognitive development at this young age because it gives the brain the energy it needs to grow and develop, as well as providing energy for physical stimulation.

Healthy Eating 6 Water is essential for life because it allows the body to process many key vitamins and minerals. The body contains more water than any other substance. The average body is composed of sixty percent water. Inside the body water carries the dissolved minerals into the cells and helps to maintain the balance of electrolytes. Without water the body would quickly cease to function as the cells would be unable to receive many of the nutrients they need. Vitamin A is a very important nutrient for the development and maintenance of the body. It serves a multitude of purposes and must not be overlooked. Vitamin A is best known for the role it plays in building good vision. Inside the retina of the eye there are small rods and cones which light bounces off when it enters the eye. The reflection of light breaks these rods and cones down, and it is vitamin A which helps them to regenerate.

If a person does not get enough vitamin A these rods and cones will eventually wear down, making it difficult to see properly in certain lighting. Secondly, vitamin A boosts the immune system. It serves much the same function as vitamin C in that it acts as an antioxidant to destroy free radicals in the body. It also plays a role in physical growth and cellular reproduction. Vitamin A is essential in cell differentiation. Differentiation is the process through which cells split and begin to perform different functions. Without the proper amount of vitamin A cells could not possibly perform their tasks properly. And without differentiation there would be no children, as the embryos would never form into a baby, and the lungs that allow a child to breathe would never form. Healthy Eating 7 Carotenoids are small nutrients which can convert to vitamin A under the proper circumstances. However, on their own they serve as a powerful antioxidant and boost the immune system.

Because carotenoids bind and remove free radicals from the blood they help protect the body from certain types of cancer. Eating fruits and vegetables rich in carotenoids can help individuals live a healthy life and avoid many dangerous diseases. The B vitamins, such as B12 and B6, are very important vitamins because they help keep the digestive system working properly. These nutrients are key components of the metabolic processes. Without these nutrients it would be impossible for people to properly digest their food. The B vitamins allow the body to digest other nutrients properly, and in doing so they allow people to gain the nutrition they need to function. One nutrient that is especially important for maintaining a healthy immune system is vitamin C. Vitamin C helps boost the body’s ability to fight off illnesses before they become a serious problem.

Vitamin C is also an antioxidant that helps protect the body from free radicals in the cells, and by doing so it can reduce the chances that an individual will develop cancer or other life-threatening conditions. The beneficial characteristics of vitamin C for the immune system make it a very important nutrient for people to consume. Vitamin D is best known for its role in helping calcium protect the bones. The body can manufacture vitamin D using sunlight. Vitamin D may help with stability because it strengthens the bones. Vitamin D also helps to prevent Healthy Eating 8 rickets, a childhood disease in which the bones are weakened and deformed. The effect that a proper amount of vitamin D has on the bones makes this nutrient absolutely essential. Vitamin E is another important nutrient.

Eating foods rich in vitamin E can help to prevent and treat diseases such as anemia. This vitamin helps prevent these diseases by promoting the flow of blood in the body and proper blood cell development. Vitamin E helps keep the blood cells healthy, and in doing so enables the blood to continue moving freely to all parts of the body. Vitamin K is well known for helping clot the blood. Even a small injury could prove problematic if vitamin K did not promote clotting to prevent the loss of too much blood. Severe injuries could be potentially fatal without this nutrient. Vitamin K slows and stops bleeding, enabling injured people to survive long enough to receive treatment. Carnitine is a nutrient similar to some vitamins. This nutrient performs many functions essential to good health. Carnitine carries fatty acids through the bloodstream to the mitochondria where they are used in the citric acid cycle. This nutrient allows for the production of energy, and also cleanses the blood of any toxic components which it encounters.

In large doses it has been observed that carnitine can help reverse muscle atrophy. Pantothenic acid is a component of yeast. It is also an important nutrient which the human body needs to work the metabolic system. Without this coenzyme the body would not be able to process the fatty acids it needs to create energy. The amount of this Healthy Eating 9 nutrient which must be consumed is negligible, and there are few known cases of pantothenic acid deficiency. A nutrient which is important for development even before a person is born is folic acid. Proper nutrition is essential during the gestational period. Nutrients such as folate have some influence on cell differentiation and growth during the fetal stage, and help to influence the growth of the central nervous system.

Without a properly developed nervous system a child may be crippled or impaired for life. Folate is clearly a very important nutrient. A deficiency of folate during the stages of early pregnancy can be linked to the increased risk of giving birth to a child with physical defects. Before a child is born the nutrients which it receives come through its mother, and the window of opportunity for nutritional impact may be small. Folic acid is only exceedingly important until the spinal cord closes. The fetus needs this nutrient in order to properly develop its spinal cord. A lack of proper nutrition for the expectant mother can have devastating, lifelong consequences for her unborn child. Another mineral that is essential, yet has only a small time in which to make a difference is choline. Choline is necessary during the stage in which the fetus’ mind is being formed.

The small amount of time in which these nutrients have the opportunity to work makes it essential that the mother is conscientious about her intake of these nutrients before the opportunity passes. Choline is important as it influences the growth and change of stem cells, and alters the way in which the brain functions. Without this nutrient the stem cells cannot form into the various functioning parts of the fetus. Choline also helps Healthy Eating 10 “to maintain the structural integrity of cell membranes” (Insel et al., 2016). Without this vital nutrient the cell walls would collapse. One mineral which is often overlooked when considering health benefits is zinc. Zinc is a tremendously important nutrient. The American Dietetic Association stated that “zinc is critical to the proper function of more than 80 enzymes”.

This seemingly insignificant mineral is vastly important to the proper functioning of the body. Zinc is considered a trace element, yet its partnership with these enzymes makes it a nutrient which is essential for good health. Zinc is also a very important component of every living cell. Zinc helps to form the structure of the bodies’ cells, preventing them from losing their shape and collapsing. Without the structure that zinc provides for the cells it would be impossible for humans to function at the cellular level, and as a result they would not be capable of function as human beings. Fluoride is also considered a trace mineral. Fluoride is a mineral which is essential for the proper maintenance of one’s teeth. A proper intake of fluoride can help to prevent tooth decay and strengthen the enamel.

Proper care of our teeth is important. The amount of fluoride which needs to be consumed is negligible, but the benefits are immense. If one gets enough fluoride they can maintain good dental health into their old age and be able to continue eating nutritious food. Another trace mineral which is often overlooked, yet which is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies in the world is iodine. It is believed that areas which suffer severe iodine deficiency over a long period of time show a tremendous drop in intellectual ability, and also associated with iodine deficiency disorder is a lack of Healthy Eating 11 coordination and hearing impairment. The development of the brain segment which controls these functions is dependent on iodine. All of these problems can come about as the result of lacking one seemingly insignificant nutrient. In contrast, most of these problems can also be solved by iodine supplementation.

In Albania children who suffered from iodine deficiency showed a marked improvement in the ability to process information after receiving iodine supplementation for a period of time. There was also a large improvement in coordination and vision after having received the iodine supplements. This shows that the problems caused by a deficiency are not always permanent. Instead these problems can sometimes be treated with proper nutrition to produce great improvements. Benton states that the supplementation “improves cognitive and motor function…and improves somatic growth (2008). Another important nutrient which many people overlook is copper. Copper serves as part of the electron transfer chain and helps produce the skin pigment melanin. Copper is also essential in the production of collagen and elastin. Collagen and elastin are connective tissues which give the skin resilience and elasticity.

The role of copper in producing this tissue helps protect the skin from being damaged by outside forces. Manganese is a trace mineral which is present in small quantities throughout the body. Manganese is used to construct cartilage in bones and skin, and it is “concentrated primarily in the bone, liver, pancreas, and brain”. Manganese is important because it helps the body heal from injuries. This nutrient allows new skin to form and bones to heal. Healthy Eating 12 Sodium is a mineral which often brings to mind negative connotations. Many people know of the link between sodium and high blood pressure, but they often forget that a certain amount of sodium is necessary for proper bodily function. Sodium is essential to the proper function of the nerves and muscles throughout the body. Sodium helps the body absorb other nutrients and regulates the level of acidity within the body.

It is not difficult to get enough sodium for the body to function properly, but people need to realize that balance is the key to proper nutrition. Chloride is a nutrient found in some fruits and vegetables. This nutrient does not work inside the body cells but rather shifts about in the bloodstream. The major function of chloride is to destroy harmful bacteria which enter the stomach or bloodstream. Without this nutrient, humans would become ill much more frequently than is normal. Magnesium is one of the most prevalent minerals in the body. It can be found in almost any unrefined food source, but food is stripped of much of the magnesium content when it goes through the refining process.

The body uses magnesium as a catalyst for more than 300 enzyme reactions throughout the body and for the contraction of muscles. Without this mineral the body would simply cease functioning at the cellular level, meaning it would completely shut down. Selenium is an element of many proteins in the body. Selenium is used as a component of the thyroid hormone as well as an antioxidant, and it is best known for its use in preventing damage to cell membranes. As an antioxidant selenium binds highly reactive free radicals to prevent them from causing damage to the cells and setting off a chain reaction among other free radicals.

Healthy Eating 13 Cognitive Development One area of development in which nutrition plays a very important part is the development of the mind. There are many diverse areas relating to cognitive development which are influenced by nutrition. According to Bonnie Kaplan nutritional status affects factors such as social stimulation, mood, behavior, and physical development of the brain . The area in which nutrition has the greatest effect is the physical development of the brain and body, which relate to numerous other factors that affect cognitive development. Nutrition has a tremendous impact on children. The development of a child’s mind is very important, and proper development is dependent on proper nutrition. Nutrition is particularly important during early childhood.

The brain is undergoing a major growth spurt during this time period, thus increasing the body’s demand for nutrients. Children require a nutritionally balanced diet in order to meet the demands of their growing brain. Without the necessary intake of nutrients the brain will be stunted in its growth, which may possibly lead to mental impairment or retardation. It has been said that “although all nutrients play a role in brain development some are critical, because they play important roles and are more likely to be deficient”. One nutrient that is crucial for proper brain development is iron. Iron is a key component in hemoglobin, which transports oxygen through the bloodstream. Without proper levels of oxygen the brain cannot grow and function properly.

According to specialist Neil Gordon a deficiency of iron in early childhood causes oxygen deprivation of the brain, which can result in a lack of memory and learning impairment (2003). Healthy Eating 14 Iron deficiency also contributes to a lack of mental stimulation. According to psychologist Pierre Guesry iron deficiency decreases the strength of the body’s muscles. This lack of muscle strength makes it difficult for iron deficient children to participate in social activities and physical games. The result is a lack of stimulation that significantly slows the process of brain development and decreases the amount of enjoyment that the child gains from participation in social events. A study done of children who were adopted from China found that “improved nutrition and psychosocial stimulation lead to gains in height, weight, and head circumference

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