NUTRITION VOCAB

major function of small intestine

mucosal folds, villi and microvilli give a total absorptive area for the small intestine

• accomplished by 1 of 4 mechanisms:
• 1. active transport
• 2. passive diffusion
• 3. facilitated diffusion
• 4. pinocytosis or phagocytosis

movement of materials across a cell membrane occuring by means of chemical activity that alters membrane permeability

also: American Diabetes Association

• a protein made by the liver
• The main protein in human blood and the key to the regulation of the osmotic pressure of blood.
• (keeps the fluid from the blood from leaking out into the tissues)

normal range is 3.4 - 5.4 g/dL (grams per deciliter)

A serum albumin test measures the amount of this protein in the clear liquid portion of the blood.

-Test can help determine if a patient has liver disease, kidney disease, or if the body is not absorbing enough protein.

Decreased albumin may also be explained by malnutrition or a low protein diet.

• enzyme that helps digest carbohydrates
• produced mainly in the pancreas and the glands that make saliva.

normal range is 23 to 85 U/L (units per liter)

• Anabolism (constructive metabolism) and Catabolism (destructive metabolism)
• anabolism (those reactions that convert small molecules into large),
• and catabolism (those reactions that convert large molecules into small)