56.3 Nutrition

Question 1

What are some micronutrients?

Answer 1

Vitamin D and Folic acid

Question 2

Which vitamin is folic acid?

Answer 2

Vitamin B9

Question 3

How is vitamin D obtained?

Answer 3

primarily produced from cholesterol in a UV-catalysed reaction at the level of the skin (to form a vitamin D precursor that is converted to 25-hydroxycholecalciferol in the liver, and then to active 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol in the kidney depending on PTH levels)

Question 4

Why is adequate vitamin D important during pregnancy?

Answer 4

• Normal foetal skeletal development, tooth formation, general growth and development
• Deficiency associated with various disorders incl. pre-eclampsia, bacterial vaginosis, gestational diabetes, spontaneous abortions

Question 5

What are some characteristics of vit B9 (folic acid) deficiency?

Answer 5

• Spina bifida of foetus - since needed for proper neural tube closure
• Megaloblastic anaemia
• Diarrhoea
• Neurological Symptoms

Question 6

What is vitamin D essential for?

Answer 6

Healthy bones and teeth

Question 7

Which supplements are pregnant women advised to take?

Answer 7

Folic acid, vitamins C and D

Question 8

Why are folic acid supplements taken during pregnancy?

Answer 8

To prevent neural tube defects
*Aid in DNA synthesis and methylation patterns to allow normal neural patterning.

Question 9

What does insufficient vitamin D lead to in children and adults?

Answer 9

Rickets in children
Osteomalacia in adults

Question 10

What are the 5 main individual actions to prevent diet-related disease?

Answer 10

• Maintain a healthy weight
• Eat unsaturated fats (not saturated)
• Increase consumption of fruit and veg
• Limit free sugar intake
• Limit salt (sodium) intake

Question 11

What did the Aune et al. (2017) study on fruit and veg intake find for the association between fruit and veg intake and relative risk of CHD, cancer, and stroke?

Answer 11

• All: decreased relative risk

Question 12

Which diseases is diet strongly linked to?

Answer 12

• Type 2 diabetes
• Cardiovascular diseases
• Obesity
• Cancer
• Dental disease
• Osteoporosis

Question 13

Which key action leads to a successful reduction in type 2 diabetes?

Answer 13

Weight loss (green line)

vs placebo and metformin

Question 14

Which specific dietary risk factors were found to be the leading dietary risk factors for deaths in many countries? (Lancet systematic evaluation, 2017)

Answer 14

• High sodium intake
• Low intake of whole grains
• Low intake of fruits

Question 15

In this study (1994), the experimental group were fed a Mediterranean diet. Describe what the graph shows.

Answer 15

5 years after randomisation, people on the diet had significantly less cardiac deaths and non-fatal acute MIs than the control group.