The basic principles of nutrition are simple. There are several types of nutrients, that is chemical substances with specific nutritional properties.
Proteins are the most essential of them, the so-called building blocks of our bodies. Our bodies are made of them. Proteins are large molecules, or macromolecules, composed of several amino acids. When an amino acid cannot be produced by the metabolism of the body but has to be present in the diet, it's called essential amino acid. Each animal species has different types of essential amino acids. For example, taurine is an amino acid which is essential for cats but not for humans. In the human species, there are 8 essential amino acids.
Carbohydrates are another fundamental group of nutrients. Sugars and starchy foods are high in carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are the substances which provide energy for our bodies to burn quickly. The excess is then stored in fatty tissues.
Fats or lipids are the third type of fundamental nutrients. To know more about fats and a healthy consumption of them in a diet, go to the specific page on Fats.
Our diets have to contain all of these three groups. Besides, they have to provide what is known as micronutrients, that is vitamins and minerals, so called because they can be useful in small amounts.
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