1. Medical Assisting Chapter 49
PowerPoint® to accompany
Medical Assisting Chapter 49
Second Edition
Ramutkowski  Booth  Pugh  Thompson  Whicker
Chapter 49
Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display.

2. Nutrition and Special Diets
Objectives:
49-1 Explain why a medical assistant needs to understand the role of diet in health.
49-2 Describe how the body uses food.
49-3 Explain the role of calories in the diet.
49-4 Identify the seven basic food components and explain the major functions of each.
49-5 List the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

3. Nutrition and Special Diets
Objectives (cont.)
49-6 Explain how the Food Guide Pyramid can be used to plan a nutritious, well-balanced diet.
49-7 Describe a test used to assess body fat.
49-8 Identify types of patients who require special diets and the modifications required for each group.
49-9 Identify specific modified diets that may be ordered to treat or prevent certain conditions.

4. Nutrition and Special Diets
Objectives (cont.)
49-10 Describe the warning signs, symptoms, and treatment of eating disorders.
49-11 Describe techniques the medical assistant can use to effectively educate different types of patients about nutritional requirements.

5. Introduction Nutrition is a five part process:
Intake
Digestion
Absorption
Metabolism
Elimination
You will gain the knowledge needed to recognize the signs of illness related to diet.
Nutrition is the process of how the body takes in and utilizes food and other sources of nutrients.

6. Role of Diet in Health
You need to know what effect food has on health.
You will work closely with the rest of the medical team to ensure patients understand the role of diet and how they adhere to prescribed diets.

7. Daily Energy Requirements
The human body requires the nutrients in food for three purposes.
To provide energy
To build, repair, and maintain body tissues
To regulate body processes
You will need to understand the relationship of food to good health and how the body uses food.

8. Metabolism
Sum of all the cellular processes that build, maintain, and supply energy to living tissue.
Anabolism – substances such as nutrients are changed into more complex substances and used to build body tissue.
Catabolism – complex substances are broken down into simpler substances and converted to energy.

9. Role of Calories
The amount of energy a food produces in the body is measured in kilocalories.
A calorie – amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kg of water by 10 C.
Foods differ in number of calories
Calories – used to measure the energy the body uses during all activities and metabolic processes.

10. Seven Basic Food Components
Proteins
Complete
Incomplete
Carbohydrates
Simple
Complex
Fiber
Lipids
Vitamins
Minerals
Water

11. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Proteins: Essential nutrient for building and repairing cells and tissues.
When ill: Helps maintain the body’s water balance.
Assists with antibody production and disease resistance.
Helps maintain body heat.

12. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Carbohydrates:
Provide two-thirds of a person’s daily energy needs.
Provides heat
Help metabolize fats
Reserves protein for uses other than supplying energy
Healthy Carbohydrates

13. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Fiber:
Does not supply energy or heat to the body.
Increases and softening the bulk of the stool, promotes defecation.
Absorbing organic wastes and toxins.
Decreases the rate of carbohydrate breakdown and absorption.
Sources of Fiber

14. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Lipids, dietary fats, and fat related substances:
Each gram of fat contains 9 calories (twice as many as proteins and carbohydrates).
Important components of cell membranes, nervous tissue, and some hormones.
Essential for growth and metabolism.
Stores energy in the form of body fat.
Insulates and protects organs.
Provides a feeling of fullness.
Which of these are unsaturated fats?

15. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Vitamins:
Essential for normal body growth, maintenance, and resistance to infection.
Helps the body use other nutrients and assists with various body processes.

16. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Minerals:
Helps build and maintain body tissues and carry on life functions.
What important mineral is found in these foods?

17. Seven Basic Food Components (cont.)
Water:
Contributes to 65% of the body weight.
Essential to the body’s normal functioning.
Help maintain the balance of fluids.
Lubricates the body’s moving parts.
Aids in digestion.
Flushes out wastes.
Regulates body temperature through perspiration.

18. Dietary Guidelines
Suggestions for the types and quantities of food people should eat each day.
US Dept of Agriculture and US Dept of Health and Human Services.

19. Dietary Guidelines (cont.)
Variety of foods
Balance the food with physical activity
Eat plenty of grains, vegetables, and fruits
Keep food low in fat
Moderate sugar intake
Moderate salt and sodium
Moderate alcoholic intake

20. Food Guide Pyramid
Use the Food Guide Pyramid to explain nutritional guidelines to patients.
Know how much of a food equals a serving.
Provides a general guideline
Does not provide exact information about
what to eat.
Nutrition varies from person to person
Click for Pyramid

21. Food Guide Pyramid Milk, yogurt, and cheese Fats, oils, and sweets
Meat, poultry, fish, dry beans, eggs, and nuts
Vegetables
Fruit
Bread, cereal, rice, and pasta

22. American Cancer Society Guidelines
Eat more high fiber foods
Eat plenty of dark green and deep yellow fruits and vegetables.
Eat plenty of broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, kohlrabi, and cauliflower.
Be moderate in salt-cured, smoked, and nitrite- cured foods.
Cut down on total fat intake.
Avoid obesity.
Be moderate in use of alcohol.

23. Assessing Body Fat
Skin fold test- measures thickness of fold of skin with a caliper.
Taken on triceps, elbow, and midway between the shoulder.
Optimal percentage of body fat differs between men and women.
Aging usually changes the ratio a bit because of muscle tissue being replaced by fat.

24. Apply Your Knowledge
What are three functions of water?

25. Apply Your Knowledge -Answer
What are three functions of water?
Helps to maintain the balance of fluids
Lubricates the body’s moving parts
Aids in digestion

26. Modified Diets Adjustments in diet may involve:
Restricting certain foods
Emphasizing particular foods
Changing daily caloric intake
Changing the amount of specific nutrient
Changing the texture of foods
Altering the number of daily meals

27. Specific Nutritional Needs
Patients with:
Allergies
Anemia
Cancer
Diabetes
Hypertension
Heart disease
Patients with:
Lactose sensitivity
Patients who are:
Pregnant
Overweight
Children

28. Specified Modified Diets
Used to treat or prevent certain conditions.
Specific modified diets include changes for:
Texture
Nutrient level
Frequency
Timing of meals
Exclusions

29. Get help if signs appear.
Eating Disorders
Extremely harmful eating behaviors that lead to health problems:
Anorexia nervosa – starve themselves
Bulimia – binge and purge
Get help if signs appear.

30. Patient Education
Teach patients about the role that nutrition plays in helping them to prevent specific medical conditions.
Teach patients how to be wise consumers by reading food package labels.
Be able to answer questions about diets and nutrition.

31. Your Role in Patient Education
Remember the following factors when doing education about nutrition:
Psychological and lifestyle factors
Patient’s age and family circumstances
Disease and disorders
Patient’s psychological condition
Remind patient to eat healthfully

32. Apply Your Knowledge
A young female patient arrives at the clinic showing a 15 pound weight loss in the last two months. Her weight is 10 pounds under the average weight for her height. She states she “feels great.” What should you do?

33. Apply Your Knowledge -Answer
A young female patient arrives at the clinic showing a 15 pound weight loss in the last two months. Her weight is 10 pounds under the average weight for her height. She states she “feels great.” What should you do?
Document the weight loss and report it to the physician. She may be suffering from anorexia nervosa or bulimia, two types of eating disorders that require psychotherapy.

34. Medical Assistant Summary
You will play a major role in educating patients about special diets and helping them implement dietary changes.
You need to know the basics of metabolism and the role of calories in the diet.

35. End of Chapter
End of Chapter