Chapter 1 - Small Animal Nutrition Flashcards
1
Q
What does nutrient mean?
A
something essential that a plant or animal obtains from the environment for growth and maintenance of life
2
Q
Nutrients are?
A
chemicals but rarely used because it implies that something is artificial
3
Q
What are the 3 types of nutrients?
A
protein, carbohydrate, and fat
4
Q
Protein, fat, and carbohydrate are what?
A
nutrients that supply energy
5
Q
What are the six classes of nutrients that are important for life substenance?
A
Water, carbohydrates, proteins, fats, minerals, vitamins
6
Q
What is the most important nutrient?
A
water
7
Q
What percent of animal body weight is water?
A
50% to 70%
8
Q
What are macronutrients?
A
used by body for energy production (protein, fat and carbohydrates)
9
Q
Proteins are?
A
- large molecules made up of chains of smaller compounds called amino acids
- used as structural components of organs and tissues
- functions as enzymes, hormones, and are carriers of other molecules
- lost from body through breakdown (catabolism), metabolic processes, skin and hair loss, and waste products
- need to consume regularly to make up for losses
10
Q
Proteins consists of?
A
essential fatty acids and nonessential fatty acids
11
Q
True or False
Protein is not stored in the body and is an important part of the daily diet.
A
True
12
Q
What are micronutrients?
A
have many functions but do not provide energy (vitamins and minerals along with certain supplements found in pet foods)
13
Q
What is water needed for in the body?
A
- to carry nutrients through the blood supply
- chemical reactions
- temperature regulation
- provides shape and structure to organs
14
Q
What is dehydration?
A
a decrease in amount of water present in the body
15
Q
Water requirements differ in dogs and cats, but what is the rule of thumb for daily minimum water requirements?
A
milliliters of water per day is equivalent to kilocalories per day
16
Q
hemoglobin is?
A
a protein that transports oxygen to tissues - a source of energy
17
Q
What is dietary protein (DP)?
A
digested in the stomach and intestines to smaller compounds such as amino acids and peptides - then absorbed from intestines into the bloodstream
- some DP are excreted in feces
18
Q
What is highly digestible means?
A
most of amino acids are absorbed
19
Q
What is low digestibility?
A
means that a larger proportion of dietary protein is excreted not absorbed
20
Q
Fats are?
A
- Lipids (consists of fats and oils)
- simple and complex molecules with many functions
- synthesized in the body from building blocks
- must be provided by diet (called essential fatty acids)
- provide and store energy
- make up cell membrane structure
- act as signaling agents and hormones
- form important compounds such as cholesterol
21
Q
A basic neutral fat consists of ?
A
a chain of glycerol with 3 fatty acids attached ( a triglyceride)
22
Q
Fatty acids are classified in several ways?
A
- short, medium and long
- saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated
23
Q
What are the essential fatty acids for both dogs and cats
A
dogs - linolenic acid and alpha-linolenic
cats - linolenic acid and alpha-linolenic and arachidonic acid (dogs can synthesize this from other fatty acids)
24
Q
Fats are found in ?
A
most types of food including animal tissue (meats, fish) and plants (vegetable oil)
25
How are fats digested?
starts in stomach and intestines to smaller compounds including individual fatty acids and monglycerides. Then compounds are absorbed into intestinal cells - then repackaged into structures called chylomicrons
26
What does chylomicrons contain?
triglycerides, lipoproteins, cholestrerol and other compounds
27
Where are chylomicrons transported?
in the lymphatic system to bloodstream - then broken down by liver and other tissues
28
True or False
| All cells in body use some of the fatty acids with the excessive amount stored as fat (adipose tissue)
True
29
What are carbohydrates?
- sugar/starches (dietary carbs)
| - source of glucose - used as building blocks for other nutrients\
30
Simple carbohydrates include?
- glucose
- sucrose (table sugar)
fructose (sugar found in fruit)
31
Complex carbohydrates include?
- starches
- glycogen (stored in body)
- certain fibers
32
Dietary carbohydrates are digested to ____ and other simple molecules. Absorbed mainly in the ______ tract.
glucose
| intestinal
33
What regulates blood glucose levels and keeps in normal range?
insulin and glucagons from pancreas
34
Excess glucose stored in liver and muscle tissue as ____ and can be converted to fat for _____ - _____ storage.
glycogen
| long-term
35
Is fiber a nutrient?
no
36
What is fiber?
- has different functions and characteristics
- present in many foods
- positive effect on health
- resists digestion by enzymes in stomach & small intestine
- some types are fermented by bacteria in large intestine (often called soluble fiber)
- other types pass into feces unchanged (insoluble fiber)
- found in plant sources of food
37
Vitamins are classified into 2 groups, what are they?
fat-soluble (A, D, E, & K) and water soluble (B & C)
38
Where can fat-soluble vitamins be stored?
in the body and may accumulate to toxic levels
39
Water-soluble vitamins have limited _____ and are excreted _____, making toxicity much less likely.
storage
| rapidly
40
An animal that stops eating would become deficient in _____- _____ vitamins much sooner than _____-_____ vitamins.
water-soluble
| fat-soluble
41
What are vitamins?
they are organic molecules found in animal and plant tissue, and some can be synthesized in the body (or produced in labs)
42
True or False
| Vitamin requirements differ between humans, dogs, and cats.
True
43
What are minerals?
they are inorganic elements that make up "ash" a term found on pet food labels that refers to everything left over in a diet after combustion
44
What are minerals necessary for?
for metabolic processes and to provide structure (such as calcium making up bone)
45
Some minerals are required in the diet in larger amounts called?
macrominerals
46
Other minerals are required in the diet in smaller amounts called?
microminerals
47
Both deficiencies and excesses of ____ can be harmful to health.
minerals
48
A supplement added to pet foods is antioxidants, what is this?
substances that delay or prevent oxidation (breakdown) of other compounds or structures such as cell membranes
can be a possible health benefit
49
Carotenoids, also a supplement is what in pet foods?
found in colorful vegetables and act both as provitamins (partially converted to vitamin A in the body) and as antioxidants.
50
Choline, also a supplement is what in pet foods?
a compound that acts like a B-vitamin but usually is synthesized in the liver rather than being required in the diet. However, can be an essential nutrient.
51
L-carnitine found in pet foods is what?
a vitamin-like compound, found in animal tissue (meat) and synthesized in the body. However, can be added to pet food for effects on health.
52
True or False
| Animals eat mainly to satisfy energy requirements, not for specific nutrients.
True
53
In the U.S., the usual measure of energy is ?
the kilocalorie (kcal), other countries kilojoule (KJ) is used
54
One calorie is defined as?`
energy needed to increase the temperature of 1 gram of water from 14.5 ⁰C to 15.5 ⁰C
55
Why is a kilocalorie used instead of a calorie?
because a calorie is too small of a unit
| 1 kcal = 1000 calories) in discussions of nutrition and energy
56
To convert Kcal to KJ what must you do?
divide by 0.239
57
To convert KJ to Kcal what must you do?
multiply by 4.184
58
True or False
| When talking with clients you should use calories to mean the same thing as kcal.
True
59
When the word calorie is used to mean kilocalorie, it is what?
capitalized Calorie means kilocalorie or large calorie. Use a lowercase "c" when meaning calorie or small calorie
60
To keep track of where the energy goes in the body, a series of measurements can be made. Gross energy is what?
all of the potential energy available in a food or diet; it is measured by bomb calorimetry (burning the food to see how much heat is produced)
61
What is it called when some energy is lost in feces, and subtracting fecal energy from Gross Energy (GE) results in?
digestible energy (DE)
62
More energy is lost in urine and gases produced by the body, & subtracting that from DE results in?
```
Metabolizable energy (ME)
ME is the most common estimate of how much energy (kcal) is supplied by pet food
```
63
What is a good measure of what is available to the animal for body functions and is the most common estimate of the amount of energy available from pet foods?
metabolizable energy
64
What results from the measurement of how much energy is used for digesting, absorbing, and using food?
NE - net energy
| subtract this amount from ME provides an estimate of how much is left over for metabolism.
65
What is the typical method used to estimate the energy content of pet food?
Modified Atwater factors - can be used to estimate the energy density (caloric content) of pet food & to determine how much energy is provided by protein, fat, and carbs by %
66
What is energy density?
refers to the kcal per unit of a food ingredient or pet food
67
What is energy expenditure(EE)?
refers to the need to use or spend energy to maintain normal body processes and to supply extra energy for increased demands such as exercise or maintaining body heat in cold weather
68
What equation is used to measure EE (energy expenditure?
Kleiber-Brody equation for resting energy requirement (RER) - used for a normal animal at rest in a thermoneutral environment with no additional activity or exercise
69
Why is protein necessary in the diet?
because it supplies nitrogen and amino acids
70
What is nitrogen required for?
replace losses in urine, feces, sloughing of epithelial cells, sweat, hair, and other secretions
71
What is the daily maintenance protein requirement based on?
the amount of nitrogen lost per day
72
Amino acids are used to do what in the body?
synthesize new protein and have many other functions
73
Amino acids are divided into 2 groups, what are they?
essential (indispensable) and nonessential (digestible)
74
Essential amino acids cannot be synthesized in the body and must come from the _____.
diet
75
Nonessential amino acids can be formed in the ____ if dietary intake is not adequate.
body
76
Conditionally essential amino acids, includes?
those that may be required in the diet during certain disease states or life stages
77
What is the amino acid required in the diet for cats but not for dogs?
Taurine
| healthy dogs are able to synthesize taurine from other amino acids
78
A nutrient is measured in units of?
mass such as grams, milligrams, or micrograms
79
As part of a food or diet, nutrients can expressed as a ____ instead of mass.
percentage
80
The recommended protein intake for an adult dog is?
2 g per kg body weight
| or less than 40%
81
Cats generally require at least ____ to ___ g of protein per kg of body weight.
3 to 4
| or less than 50% crude protein on a dry-matter basis
82
Percentage of protein, fat carbohydrate, and other nutrients may be expressed on an?
as-fed basis, dry-matter (DM) basis, and metabolizable energy (ME) basis. These values are not interchanageable
83
"As fed" refers to?
pet food directly from a bag, can, or package
84
"Dry matter" refers to?
pet food without the water content, and can be estimated by subtracting the moisture content as listed on the label.
85
"Metabolizable energy" basis refers to?
the three nutrients that supply energy (kcal) - protein, carbs, fat. The % is ME is a proportion of energy rather than weight
86
What would a deficiency of protein lead to for cats and dogs?
lead to poor growth and reproduction, reduced appetite, anemia, and poor hair coat. Over time, muscle and other tissues will be broken down, leading to muscle atrophy and decreased quantities of internal proteins such as albumin.
87
What does arginine deficiency cause?
a build up of ammonia in the bloodstream, leading to vomiting in dogs and even death in cats
88
Specific amino acid deficiencies lead to?
diseases
89
Methionine and cysteine deficiencies cause?
weight loss and skin disorders
90
In cats, taurine deficiency leads to?
blindness and heart failure or some types of liver disease
91
Excessive protein can lead to?
worsening of the disease
92
What is protein quality?
whether the amino acid components of the protein are suitable for the animal and in a form that is digestible and available for use.
Excess interferes with absorption
93
What affects protein quality?
Digestibility, fiber content (plant-based protein is less digestible than animal-based protein)
94
Dietary fatty acids can be classified in several ways?
carbon chain length, degree of saturation, and location of the first double bond in in the chemical structure (omega- or n-nomenclature
95
Carbon molecules are divided into what chain varieties?
```
short chain - (2-6)
medium chain - (8 - 12)
long chain (14 - 24)
```
96
The first fatty acid found to be essential in animal diets is ?
linolenic acid acid (LA), which has 18 carbons and 2 double bonds, and is in the omega-6 series
97
Deficiency in LA leads to?
poor hair coat, skin infection, weight loss, decreased immunity, and other problems in dogs and cats
98
What is the most common type of fatty acid found in foods and include linolenic and alpha-linolenic acids (essential for dogs) and arachidonic acid (essential for cats) ?
Long-chain fatty acids
99
What is a key characteristic of lipids?
number of fatty acids/lipid molecule, degree of hydrogen saturation, and length of fatty acid chains
100
AA (arachidonic acid) deficiency may lead to?
impaired reproduction and growth
101
AA is only found in?
animal-origin foods
102
What are the 3 most common Omega-3 fatty acids?
alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), 18 cargons, 3 double bonds), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20 carbons, 5 double bonds, and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22 carbons, 6 double bonds)
103
Fish oil is extracted from?
menhaden, salmon, sardines, tuna and anchovies
104
Fish oil can be a beneficial supplement or additive to pet food through its?
antinflammatory effects
105
What is a condition called pansteatitis, what are the clinic signs and what is the treatment?
yellow fat disease - in animals results from excess dietary fat and deficient antioxidants.
Clinical signs are anorexia, depression, fever, and inflammation of subcutaneous fat
Treatment is dietary correction and supplemental vitamin E
106
Dietary carbohydrate is conditionally essential and is used mainly for _____.
energy
| Both cats and dogs can digest and absorb most types of carbs.
107
Fiber can be subdivided into _____ or _____ or _______ or ______.
soluble, or insoluble (based on ability to absorb water)
fermentable or nonfermentable (based on whether microbes in the lower intestinal tract can convert the compounds into gases and short-chain fatty acids)
108
The purposes of dietary fiber are to?
increase water and fecal bulk and to help regulate normal bowel transit time and function.
109
Various types of fiber are added to pet foods to aid in what?
beneficial effects on stool quality, for slower intestinal transit time, and to aid in satiety and weight loss, among other functions.
110
Why is Vitamin A necessary?
for formation and maintenance of the epithelium (skin, mucous membrances)
Also important for vision, growth, reproduction, and immunity
111
Excessive vitamin A can be?
toxic
112
Vitamin D is a necessary vitamin in the diet of dogs and cats because?
they cannot use sunlight to convert provitamin D
113
The major function of vitamin D?
to regulate absorption and mobilization of calcium in the body
114
A deficiency of vitamin D can lead to ?
rickets or osteoporosis (thin, brittle bones) and neurologic disorder
115
What is the main function of vitamin E?
antioxidant activity, meaning that it helps protect against cell damage by reactive oxygen and other free radicals
It is also a preservative in pet foods`
116
A deficiency of vitamin E leads to?
muscle disease, poor reproduction, and retinal degeneration
117
Two of the fat-soluble vitamins, ____ and ___ can cause toxicity with inappropriate diets or if supplemented.
A and D
118
Vitamin K is?
a unique fat-soluble vitamin in that it can be absorbed from dietary sources or synthesized by microbes in the large intestine of dogs and cats
119
Both plant and animal sources can supply vitamin ____ which functions mainly in the blood clotting system.
K
| also used in the production of osteocalcin, which helps to regulate bony growth
120
The main clinical sign of a deficiency in vitamin K is?
spontaneous bleeding
121
____ also called vitamin B1 was the first water-soluble vitamin to be discovered.
Thiamin
122
Thiamin is necessary for?
metabolic reactions and is not stored in the body
123
Deficiencies of thiamin lead to?
neruological and cardiac disease in dogs
Cats require 4 times more thiamin than dogs. They may display a characteristic ventroflexion of the head that may progress to seizures and death.
124
Riboflavin (b2) is involved in many biochemical reactions and is needed for?
energy metabolism
125
Niacin (B3) (black tongue disease) causes what when there are deficiencies?
can lead to reddening and ulceration of the tongue and mucous membranes, diarrhea, and neurologic disease
126
Pryridoxine (vitamin B6) is needed as a?
coenzyme for many enzymatic reactions
127
A deficiency of pyridoxine may lead to?
anemia, kidney disease, and neurologic disorders
128
Cobalamin (vitamin B12) is synthesized only by?
microorganisms
129
Cobalamin is found in ____ products, not in _____ food sources and functions in metabolic reactions.
animal
| plant
130
Deficiencies of Cobalamin lead to?
weakness, poor growth, anemia, and bone marrow disease.
131
Pantothenic acid is found in most sources and functions as a component of?
coenzyme A in energy metabolism
Deficiencies are rare
132
Folic acid or folate is used as a?
cofactor in many metabolic reactions
133
Deficiencies of folic acid are?
rare and cause anemia and poor growth
134
Biotin is not a true ____ in that it is synthesized in the intestinal tract by microorganisms and is also found in many food sources.
vitamin
135
Choline is synthesized in the liver but sometimes is included among the ___ vitamins.
B
136
Ascorbic acid, or Vitamin ___, is an important water-soluble nutrient but is not necessary in the diet of dogs and cats.
C
| also serves as an antioxidant
137
Water-soluble vitamins include?
B complex and C
138
There are ____ minerals that are essential for dogs and cats.
12
139
Essential minerals are often divided into 2 groups, what are they?
macrominerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride) and
microminerals, also called trace minerals (iron, copper, zinc, manganese, selenium, iodine)
140
The basic difference between macrominerals and microminerals in formulating pet diets is?
macrominerals are measured in gram amounts and microminerals are measured in milligrams amounts
141
What is the most abundant mineral in the body, making up much of the skeleton and teeth?
calcium
142
What else is calcium needed for?
muscles, nerves, and blood clotting, and acts as a cellular messenger.
143
A deficiency of calcium can lead to?
loss of bone structure (rickets) and pathologic fractures
144
Excessive calcium leads to?
osteochondrosis and other skeletal abnormalities.
145
What is the second most abundant mineral in the body?
phosphorus - most is found in the bone, but muscle and tissue have P as a structural component.
146
Deficiencies of phosphorus lead to?
rare with signs of poor appetite and poor growth along with bony abnormalities
147
What does magnesium serve as?
a cofactor in many enzyme systems and is used in metabolic reactions
also a part of bone an tooth structure
148
Magnesium deficiencies can cause?
musculoskeletal and neurologic problems
149
Excessive magnesium have been linked to?
urinary stone formation in cats (although urine pH has greater influence
150
Sodium is found in?
bone, body fluids, and tissues
151
The major function of Na is to?
regulate body water and acid-base balance.
152
A dietary deficiency of Na can cause?
loss of water, dehydration, and acid-base disruption
153
Excessive Na can be harmful in certain?
medical conditions such as heart failure and kidney disase
154
What mineral is found mainly in intracellular fluid, with small amounts in bone, connective tissues, and plasma?
potassium
155
Potassium is involved with?
acid-base regulation, nerve transmission, and enzymatic and metabolic reactions
156
Vitamin deficiency of K lead to ?
neurologic disease, especially ventroflexion of the head, along with weakness, poor growth, and cardiac abnormalities
157
What helps maintain osmolality of extracellular fluids and is involved in acid-base regulation?
chloride
158
Chloride is added to?
table salt - sodium or other minerals such as potassium and calcium
159
Deficiencies in Chloride are?
rare and result in fluid balance and acid-base alterations
160
What is a component of hemoglobin and found mostly in red blood cells?
iron (Fe)
161
____ tissue (myogloin) and other cells contain Fe
Muscle
162
The main function of Fe are?
to bind and transport oxygen, and it plays a role in enzymatic reactions
163
Deficiencies in Fe are?
anemia (microcytic hypochromic), weaknes, and poor growth
164
Excess of Fe can be?
toxic and may cause gastrointestinal signs and death
165
What functions in many metabolic reactions and enzyme systems?
copper
