What is Nutrition ? What first comes to mind
when asked this question ? Is it healthy eating and proper diet ? Is it getting fit and active ?
For most of us , we are surrounded with a narrow idea of ‘ Nutrition ,’ which is associated primarily with diets , exercise , weight loss and beauty enhancements .
This is not surprising , as the media and popular culture have reduced ‘ Nutrition ’ to merely a means to “ get healthy ”. This is not entirely false ; since healthy food lies at the heart of ‘ Nutrition ’; it is the common bond that holds together the integral , diverse and seemingly endless elements that make up ‘ Nutrition ’. However , our hope , in this article and throughout this Issue , is to define ‘ Nutrition ’ in all its complexities by going beyond the limited notion of our current understanding .
Our definition of ‘ Nutrition ’ can be paralleled to the notion in physics called ‘ The Theory of Everything ’.
Put simply , it is a theory that is thought to explain all the fundamental physical forces in the universe and its interconnectedness . Similarly , we propose ‘ The Nutrition of Everything ’. A notion that is meant to expand ‘ Nutrition ’ as interconnected elements that make up and affect our lives .
Like fundamental physical forces , the elements of ‘ Nutrition ’ are numerous and multifaceted .
Nevertheless , we can identify four main elements I would like to highlight :
( 1 ) pediatrics ( 2 ) aging ( 3 ) policy ,
( 4 ) genetics .
Pediatrics and aging are aspects of ‘ Nutrition ’ that most people immediately think of , as it plays a role from the moment of birth until death . The effect of diet beginning at birth is critical in determining the quality and length of life . Over our lifetimes , ‘ Nutrition ’ heavily dictates how we can live a long and healthy life . It is often concerned with our daily diet , weight loss or weight gain regimens , and natural beauty enhancements .
On a larger scale , ‘ Nutrition ’ is involved in chronic disease prevention and treatment , where diet is linked with global epidemics such as cardiovascular disease , diabetes and cancer .
The third prong of ‘ Nutrition ’ is public policy . Policy informs institutions of evidencebased research and developments that endeavour to strengthen and improve population health . Governments create regulations based on policy considerations . Although often not initially associated with ‘ Nutrition ’, it is a key aspect for systemic improvement in the health of the population .
Issue 3 | Nutrition of Everything | 2