Scribd
Upload
70 views

Nutrients and Food Testing

Humans need to consume a balanced diet containing carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, fiber, and water. The document discusses testing foods for the presence of these seven classes of nutrients through simple chemical reactions and observations. Students are instructed to research each nutrient, conduct food tests using various solutions, and record their observations in a results table. The lesson concludes with a short quiz to assess understanding of the key nutrients.

Uploaded by

Thanigaivelan A/L Arumugam [Student]
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
70 views

Nutrients and Food Testing

Humans need to consume a balanced diet containing carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, fiber, and water. The document discusses testing foods for the presence of these seven classes of nutrients through simple chemical reactions and observations. Students are instructed to research each nutrient, conduct food tests using various solutions, and record their observations in a results table. The lesson concludes with a short quiz to assess understanding of the key nutrients.

Uploaded by

Thanigaivelan A/L Arumugam [Student]
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 17

Starter Task:

Think, Pair, Share


Think about the following questions for one minute before you discuss
your thoughts with your group. Be ready to share your ideas with the
class:
• Why do we need food?
• How does your body process the food you eat?
Lesson 1 - Nutrients in Food
1 - To be able to list the seven classes of nutrients
2- Able to identify nutrients using food tests
Seven Classes of Nutrients
Humans need to consume a balanced diet which contains a variety of
different types of food. The main nutrients the body needs are:
• Carbohydrates for energy;
• Proteins for growth and repair;
• Fats to store energy;
• Vitamins to keep the body healthy.
• Minerals to keep the body healthy
• Fibre to keep food moving easily through the digestive system
• Water needed to maintain the correct fluid levels in the body
Nutrients task
Use your textbooks and the internet to research each of the seven
nutrients. You need to find out:
1. What they are used for in the body
2. Good sources of each of each type of nutrient

When you are finished, stick the sheet into your science book and
then start to research how we can test for these nutrients
What are Carbohydrates?
• Starchy foods contain carbohydrates which are made of long chains of
identical small sugar molecules.
• The long chains of carbohydrates are broken down into the smaller
sugar molecules by the body.
• The small molecules from carbohydrates are used by the body to
release energy and make the body work.
one sugar
carbohydrate molecule
molecule
Testing food for sugars
• Chop or crush a small amount of the food
• Place in a labelled boiling tube
• Add a little bit of water
• Shake / stir it well
• Add benedicts solution until the mixture
looks blue
• Place in a water bath for five minutes
• If sugar is present the colour will change to
green (small amount) or red (large amount)
Testing food for starch
• Place a small amount of
food on a white tile or a
solution of the food
into a test tube
• Add a drop of iodine
• If the iodine turns
blue / black you have a
positive result
What are Proteins?
• Proteins, like carbohydrates, are made of long chains of small
molecules. In proteins, these small molecules are not identical.
• Proteins are made up of chains of small molecules called amino
acids. There are over 20 different kinds of amino acid.
• Proteins are used by the body for growth and repair.

protein
molecule one
amino
acid
Testing for Protein
• Place a small sample of food in the bottom of a
test tube
• Add 1 -2 cm3 Biuret reagent to the food  sample
• Shake well and allow the mixture to stand for 5
minutes
• Observe any color change
• Purple / Pink colour shows a positive result
What are Fats?
• Fats are made up of fat molecules which contain fatty acids and
glycerol.
• Fat molecules have to be broken down by the body so that they can
be used for energy storage.
• Fats are also used by the body to keep heat in and to make cell
membranes.

fat
molecule fatty
acids

glycerol
How can we test for fats?
• We can rub our food against some filter paper
• If the paper goes translucent (see through) when it is dry it
is a sign of fats being present
How can we test for fats?
• Fats can dissolve easily in ethanol
solution but not with water so we can
also use a test called the ethanol
emulsion test
1. Dissolve the sample in ethanol
2. Add the ethanol & fat mixture to
water
3. If the solution turns milky (an
emulsion) fats are present
Your turn…
You have been given samples of the following solutions:
• Starch
• Sugar
• Fat
• Protein
You have also been given access to solutions of iodine, benedicts
solution, biuret reagent, ethanol, filter paper and a water bath.
You need to choose the right test for each nutrient, carry out the test
and record your observations
Results table
Nutrient Description of the test Your observation

Starch

Sugar

Protein

Fat
Nutrients Quiz
1. List the seven key nutrients (C, P, F, V, M, F, W)
2. List three good sources of carbohydrates
3. What happens if we eat too many carbohydrates?
4. What are proteins used for?
5. Who needs to eat lots of protein and why?
Prep
• Eat something…
• Save the food packet and bring it with
you to Friday’s lesson!
• One condition… it must have a label
that looks a bit like this:

You might also like