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IPRS, Inc.
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Nutrition refers to the food requirements for living organisms. Food is not only the basics of proteins (as from meat and certain plant products), carbohydrates (sugar for energy) and lipids (the raw materials for forming certain hormones and forming the phospholipids for membrane structures); but also essential vitamins and minerals. Fundamental chemicals required for synthesis of proteins (amino acids) nucleotides (for DNA and RNA), lipids ( for membranes and storage) and carbohydrates (as an energy source and basic hydrocarbons. In addition need elements and trace elements that are involved in various biochemical reactions. Need vitamins and minerals often in a catalytic role but also as a basic requirement in a key compound. Need water in one form or another for most of the reactions that occur in the organism. Not only is water the "universal" solvent for supporting biochemical reactions; but it can also be a source of nutrients. In particular if water comes from natural sources as wells and rivers, it is likely to have various minerals present, predominantly calcium, magnesium and iron. It may also have some sulfur and nitrogen compounds from agricultural run-off. In many parts of the world water provide a significant proportion of the necessary calcium and magnesium in the diet. Nutritional needs change with age and life conditions. Pregnancy is one life condition where there are likely to be substantial changes in nutritional needs. See the discussion on global initiatives and Maternal Health for details. Resource Information The Oregon State University Linus Pauling Micronutrient Information Center has fact sheets about many of the vitamins and minerals here: http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals/magnesium/ Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC) at the National Agricultural Library (NAL) for USDA. Our Web site (http://fnic.nal.usda.gov ) provides many credible food and nutrition resources. You can find reports or lists of the foods containing magnesium on the USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory Nutrient List webpage (titled Reports by Single Nutrients): http://www.ars.usda.gov/Services/docs.htm?docid=22114. This can also be accessed by clicking on “Food Composition” on our Web site. You can view the reports sorted either alphabetically by food description (click on “A”) (https://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12354500/Data/SR24/nutrlist/sr24a304.pdf) or in descending order by nutrient content (click on “W”) (https://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/12354500/Data/SR24/nutrlist/sr24w304.pdf) in terms of common household measures (e.g., one cup). For more information on some of these specific nutrients, including many of the vitamins and minerals, please visit the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements facts sheets webpage here: http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Magnesium-HealthProfessional To search for publications you can use AGRICOLA which is a primary source for agricultural information. From the NAL home page (http://www.nal.usda.gov/index.shtml) click on “Search the NAL Catalog (AGRICOLA)” which is located on the right hand side of the page under “I Want To…” Here is a direct link: http://agricola.nal.usda.gov/ . For assistance using the database please refer to this page: http://agricola.nal.usda.gov/help/quicksearch.html . References ------------------------------------------------- This page is under development. Links to major topics only are live. -------------------------------------------------
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Basic Research
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