The Role Of Food Quality And Food Quantity In An Individual's Nutrition

There are a variety of contributing factors as to why two diets with the exact same caloric count could result in different amounts of fat loss, but there are three that are the most significant. The first factor being that the two diets are inherently different and therefore the individual’s body would react to each diet uniquely and produce different amounts of fat loss. The overall caloric count of the diets could be the same but for all we know one of the diets could be a ketogenic diet and the other diet could be a carnivore diet. So, depending on what each diet consists of as far as macronutrient ratio, food quality, food quantity, or any other specific dietary obligations or restrictions, an individual’s body would produce different amounts of fat loss.

The second factor that needs to be taken into account is the individual’s activity level because that plays an important complimentary role to a diet. If this individual lives a fairly sedentary lifestyle without regular exercise, then the amount of fat loss would be minimal because he or she is not burning very much fat to use as energy. On the other hand, a fairly active individual who exercises regularly would show a higher amount of fat loss because he or she is burning higher amounts of fat to use as energy.

The third factor that also needs to be taken into account is the individual’s goal. If the goal is solely to lose fat then the diet would reflect that with as much fat losing components as possible whereas if the goal is to lose fat while gaining muscle then the diet would also have muscle gaining components in it.

The answer to whether food quality or food quantity is more important to an individual’s nutrition is simply that it depends. It depends on factors like physiology, lifestyle, goal, and context. Looking at and understanding an individual’s physiology can help determine whether food quality or food quantity would be more important to their diet. For instance, an individual with a fast resting metabolic rate would be able to support a high food quantity diet because he or she can internally process it relatively quickly. A sedentary or active lifestyle could also play a role in whether food quality or food quantity would be more important for someone’s nutrition. Someone who does not exercise regularly would have to compensate by relying more on food quality in a nutrition plan whereas someone who exercises regularly would not have to rely so much on food quality compared to that individual who does not exercise on a regular basis. One’s nutritional goals also have an effect on whether food quality or food quantity would be more important. If the goal is to detox, then it would be wise to rely on the quality of the food to ensure that the goal is achieved. However, if the goal was to prepare for a high-intensity endurance competition, then the quantity of the food would be important because that individual would need to load up on carbohydrates.

Lastly, the context of an individual’s life would affect whether food quality or food quantity would be more important. For example, an athlete that is in season might rely on more of a food quantity diet to use as fuel for energy expenditure in competition whereas an athlete that is not in season might rely on more of a food quality diet to repair the muscle and tissue that was damaged from competing. Avocado and margarine are both made up of unsaturated fat, but the difference between them is that margarine has trans-fat and avocado does not have trans-fat. The trans-fat in margarine is what allows it be ok if it gets left out and it is also the lack of trans-fat that contributes to why an avocado will turn brown if it gets left out. A trans-fat is made when liquid oil, like the partially hydrogenated soy-bean oil in margarine, is turned into a solid fat. In order to make a trans-fat, a process called hydrogenation has to occur. During hydrogenation, hydrogen is added in order to react with an existing organic compound.

In the case of margarine, the added hydrogen reacts with an organic hydrogen-depleted fatty acid chain by attaching to it. By attaching to the fatty acid chain, the chain becomes complete and is now considered stable meaning that there are no longer any weak bonds that can easily be broken down and metabolized. This stability keeps margarine from going bad when it is left out because the oxygen in the air cannot come in and break the bond to start the oxidation reaction. An avocado does not have this stability because it has weak, easily broken bonds from missing hydrogens. Since avocados do not go through hydrogenation they cannot get the necessary hydrogens they need that would make those weak bonds strong.

Therefore, the bonds easily get broken down and metabolized which leads to the oxidation reaction of the avocado that causes it to go brown. However, citric acid is an antioxidant that slows down the process of oxidation and keeps it green for a longer period of time.