Clinical Nutrition Manual

1. INTRODUCTION

Nutrition refers to the processing of nutrient materials, principally food, and assimilation of
nutrients for growth, maintenance of health and reproduction. It is a basic need that changes
throughout the life-cycle and along the continuum of wellness and illness. In the context of
human nutrition, nutrition is characterized by six process stages namely, ingestion, digestion,
absorption, transport, assimilation, and excretion. Of interest therefore, is chemical composition
of food and interactions of nutrients as well as culture, attitudes and behaviors’ that influence
dietary patterns. To this extent, the scope of nutrition practice and science is universally viewed
from the perspectives of clinical nutrition and public health nutrition.

Clinical nutrition practice has emerged as an important discipline in modern medicine. It entails
the use of diets and nutrients in prevention of diseases and as an essential component of the
medical treatment. The practice is founded on knowledge relating to diagnosis of actual or high
risk of diet-related diseases and diseases that affect intake, absorption and metabolism of
dietary constituents. Overtime, with increasing evidence on the relationship between nutrition
status and risk of several diseases and disorders, the nutrition and infection cycle, knowledge
on synergistic and antagonistic drug-nutrient reactions, role of optimal nutrition and patient
recuperation, clinical nutrition service is now globally recognized as an essential component of
health care system and its operations. In this regard, it is noteworthy that the nutraceuticals
industry has grown exponentially during the last decade and the need for clear guidelines on
their application as curative and rehabilitative care services in the local context is required.