Course Objectives: This course is for the students majored in food science or food safety to learn the basic of human metabolism, which is the fundamental for the future <Food and Nutrition> study, and further food research and development works.

Course Requirements: During the teaching, the students should master the following knowledge: human’s basic requirement of the food, the digestion system of human, carbohydrates, lipids and protein absorption and metabolism. They should understand the absorption and metabolism of other nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, water and dietary fiber. Additionally, students should learn the factors that can affect the speed of nutrients metabolism, and the interaction of human metabolism and the nutrients. The students should also learn the basic of the nutrient’s metabolism and the chronic diseases, know that different people have different requirement of the nutrients because of the change of the metabolism.

Course Contents:

1. Introduction (food nutrition, nutrients absorption and metabolism and the relationship of the organism).

2. Human digestion system and the function.

3. The absorption and metabolism of the three main nutrients that supply energy (carbohydrates, lipids and protein).

4. The other 4 kinds of main nutrients (vitamin, minerals, water, dietary fiber) digestion.

5. The characters of metabolic disorders and the mutation of the energy balance.

6. The key problems of the disease of digestive tract and the essential modification of the nutrients’ consumption.

7. The special population with special requirement of the nutrients.  

8. The different requirement of the nutrients in other non-metabolic disorders related diseases.

The other phytochemicals and function factors and the metabolism.

Credits: 2