The nutrients are elements that are essential for our body’s health. These elements can be classified according to the different specifications. Nutrients can be classified in accordance to their function, to their chemical property, to their essentiality, and to their concentration.
Nutrients can be classified according to their function in the body. Different nutrients have different functions. Foods such as proteins, fats and carbohydrates are called as body-building food. They are the nutrients that form body tissues. Proteins make up the 20 % or 1/5 of the total body weight. Fat nutrients make up another 20 % or 1/5 of the body weight while the carbohydrates make up about 1%.
Vitamins and minerals are the nutrients that function to regulate body processes. The minerals make up the 4% of the body weight and the vitamins make up about 28 grams of the body weight considering that they are not really a part of the structural components of the body. The Carbohydrates, the fats and the protein are considered as calorie nutrients while the vitamins as well as the minerals are considered as non-calorie nutrients. There is another element that is abundant in the body, this is the water, and it makes up the 2/3 or about 66% of the entire weight of the body.
Another nutrient classification is according to its chemical properties. In this classification, the nutrients are further classified into organic and inorganic. Those nutrients that contain the element of carbon are called as organic nutrients, while those nutrients that do not contain carbon element are called as inorganic nutrients.
Nutrients can also be classified according to their essentiality. It refers to the nutrients essential contribution in the physiological functioning of the body. The nutrients are all essential and important, they only differs on their functions on different body parts.
The next one is the nutrients classification according to their concentration. There are many nutrients but they are not needed in the same amount. There are certain nutrients that are needed by the body in a large amount and there are those nutrients that are needed in small amount. All of these nutrients in small or in large amount functions significantly in providing good health for our body. The nutrients that exist in large amount are called as macronutrient; these nutrients are usually measured in grams. Nutrients that exist in small amounts are called as micronutrients; these nutrients are usually measured in milligrams or micrograms.