Medical Signing Lesson 06 Lifeprint.com

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CONSUME: The concept of "consume" when discussing nutrition is generally expressed as "EAT."

The sign is often modified by using both hands alternately and a bit larger movement that moves past the mouth and down a short distance as if showing the food going down the esophagus.

CALORIES: In 1890, the USDA appropriated the term "calorie" for a report on nutrition. A calorie was defined as the unit of heat required to raise 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius.

Substances that provide calories:

PROTEIN: The sign for "protein" is to circle a "P" handshape. In some contexts some people may choose to sign MEAT.

CARBOHYDRATE: The sign for "carbohydrate" is to spell C-A-R-B.

FAT: There is a version of the sign "FAT" that means overweight. When discussing "fat" as a food type I recommend you spell just spell: F-A-T.

ALCOHOL: The sign for "alcohol" is the same general sign that is used for "whiskey."

PROTEIN CARB FAT ALCOHOL

Protein has 4 calories per gram.

Carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram.

Fat has 9 calories per gram.

Alcohol has 7 calories per gram.

METABOLISM: The sign for "metabolism" is done by holding both hands in "5"- handshapes palm back in front of the chest. Move the hands down, out to the side, up, and back in toward the center a bit.

Memory aide: Think of the sign for metabolism as representing the movement of blood around inside of your body.

Some people may use the two-handed sign "BURNING" to mean "metabolism.”

But when discussing nutrition and diet I prefer to apply the "BURNING" sign for the concept of “burning calories."

"Energy that we use for “shipping and handling” (processing) of fuels in our body is known as the thermogenic effect of food and is equal to approximately 10% of daily caloric intake.

For every 100 fat calories you expend around 3 calories in absorption and metabolism.

For every 100 carbohydrate calories you consume, your body expends 5 to 10 in absorption and metabolism.

For every 100 calories of protein calories you consume, your body needs 20 to 30 for absorption and metabolism."

3,500 calories equals about 1 pound (0.45 kilogram) of fat.

You need to burn 3,500 calories more than you take in to lose 1 pound of fat.

If you cut 500 calories from your typical diet each day, you will lose about 1 pound a week (500 calories times 7 days = 3,500 calories).

"Energy density is the number of calories (energy) in a specific amount of food.

High energy density means that there are a lot of calories in a little food. Low energy density means there are few calories in a lot of food."

Your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) is responsible for approximately 60 to 70% of your total energy expenditure.

"Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) have found that eating five or more servings of white rice per week was associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

In contrast, eating two or more servings of brown rice per week was associated with a lower risk of the disease.

Replacing 50 grams of white rice (just one third of a typical daily serving) with the same amount of brown rice would lower risk of type 2 diabetes by 16%.

The same replacement (of white rice) with other whole grains, such as whole wheat and barley, was associated with a 36% reduced risk."

Greenland Eskimos, prior to the 1980s had perhaps the lowest prevalence of both heart disease and diabetes on the planet.

A 25-year study found that only one out of the 1,800 people monitored developed diabetes.

Their diet: almost entirely fat and protein, and only about 3 percent carbohydrates.

There are more than a dozen types of saturated fat.

Humans predominantly consume three types of saturated fat:

stearic acid, palmitic acid, and lauric acid.

Stearic acid is converted to a monounsaturated fat called oleic acid in your liver.

Carbohydrate is stored in your muscles and liver as glycogen. Each gram of carbohydrate is stored with about 3 grams of water.

Fat requires only about 1 gram of water for each gram of fat stored.

Our muscles and liver only store up to around 500 grams of glycogen.