88 Unit 2 Nutrition and Food Choices Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Poor Nutrition Healthy eating plans identify the amounts and types of food individuals should consume to obtain the nutrients needed for good health. These plans have been developed to help in- dividuals avoid the problems associated with poor nutrition, or malnutrition, which includes both undernutrition and overnutrition. Undernutrition When people do not receive the needed nu- trients from the food they eat, they experience undernutrition. This means they take in too few nutrients for health and growth. Healthy eating is especially important for children and teenagers, since the body under- goes considerable growth and development during these life stages. Undernutrition can lead to growth problems children who don’t receive enough nutrients may never reach their full height. Undernutrition can also lead to serious and even life-threatening problems, including brain damage, impaired vision and blindness, and bone deformities. Undernutrition during pregnancy affects the health of the fetus. When a woman who is pregnant doesn’t consume sufficient nutrients, fi the growing fetus may not receive enough nu- trients to develop properly. Overnutrition Although many people think about poor health in terms of not getting enough nutrients, poor health can also be caused by consum- ing too much of some nutrients. This type of overnutrition is often caused by people eat- ing too many foods that contain high amounts of added sugar, solid fat, sodium, or refi carbohydrates, or simply too fined many calories. Foods high in solid fats, added sugars, refi grains, and sodium are fined believed to contribute to a variety of health conditions. For instance, evi- dence suggests that as an individual’s sodium intake decreases, so does his or her blood pressure. Maintaining a normal blood pressure reduces the risk of heart and kidney diseases. undernutrition a condition in which the body takes in too few nutrients for health and growth overnutrition a condition in which the body takes in too much of some nutrients or too many calories Advertisements for Unhealthy Foods t f U h Health in the Media The average child watching children’s television programming sees an estimated 10,000 TV commercials for food products in a year. Unfortunately, most of these advertisements are for foods with poor nutritional content. • about 91% are for foods or beverages that are high in fat, sodium, or added sugars (foods with “empty calories”) • nearly 60% are for products that exceeded the criteria for added sugars • about 20% exceeded other guidelines, including those for total fat, saturated plus trans fat, and sodium • none of the advertisements are for beverages that meet nutritional guidelines Not surprisingly, children who see advertisements for unhealthy food on TV are more likely to want to eat high-fat and high-sugar foods. Researchers in one study showed children an episode of a popular cartoon. Some children saw fi ve minutes of commercials for toys before the cartoon, while another group saw fi ve minutes of commercials for snacks and fast food. After watching the cartoon, researchers gave the children a list of various food items and asked them to choose which ones they would like to eat. The children who saw the food commercials were more likely to pick unhealthy foods than children who saw the toy commercials. Thinking Critically 1. Present a convincing argument for reducing the number of unhealthy food advertisements shown on television. Cite evidence from the study mentioned above and this chapter. Incorporate your argument into a letter to your congressperson asking him or her to support these efforts. 2. Generate a list of strategies that could be used to avoid the infl uence of these advertisements.