Optional Activities

SCI/220 Version 8 Human Nutrition

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In this document, you will find supplemental activities that can be used to enhance the learning experience of your students. These activities can benefit students by providing extra practice with the material, leading to a greater depth of understanding of the weekly content.

Although the activities are not assigned points, you can provide them as additional opportunities for students to participate in the classroom through peer collaboration. Please note that these activities are optional and do not have to be used in the classroom.

If you decide to use them, provide your class with the activities for the week by directing them in-class or posting them in the Classroom, depending on the learning modality.

As a facilitator, you can choose from the following practices:

 Select one or more of the listed activities.  Create your own activities.  Use the activities to begin a class discussion.  Assign the activities individually to each student.  Divide the classroom into Learning Teams or groups to collaborate on the activities.  Instruct each Learning Team or group to share their findings from the activities with the entire class. Week One Depending on the learning modality, provide your class with the optional activities for the week by directing them in class or posting them in the Classroom.

1. Pantry Poisons

Divide into teams of three. In this activity, you learn to read labels or locate nutritional information through other sources. The activity also increases awareness of the benefits of healthy foods. Additionally, this activity helps you appreciate the relative content of protein, lipids, carbohydrates, fiber, and micronutrients in various foods.

Examine three different items from either your pantry or a fast food chain’s associated nutritional charts.

Turn to the ingredients section and look up on the Internet all of the ingredients you do not recognize to find out what they are and if there are any risks associated with ingesting it.

Next, look and see how many types of sugar are added to each product. Sugars are barley malt, beet sugar, brown sugar, buttered syrup, cane juice crystals, cane sugar, caramel, corn syrup, corn syrup solids, confectioner’s sugar, carob syrup, castor sugar, date sugar, demerara sugar, dextran, dextrose, diastatic malt, diatase, ethyl maltol, fructose, fruit juice, fruit juice concentrate, galactose, glucose, glucose solids, golden sugar, golden syrup, grape sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, invert sugar, lactose, maltodextrin, maltose, malt syrup, maple syrup, molasses, muscovado sugar, panocha, raw sugar, refiner’s syrup, rice syrup, sorbitol, sorghum syrup, sucrose, treacle, turbinado sugar, and yellow sugar.

 Do you think there is overuse of sugar in products? Why do you think this is the norm? Please explain.  Which of the ingredients have associated health concerns? What are they?  Why would the food industry use these ingredients if they are potentially harmful?  Why do you think these ingredients are used? Please explain.

2. Digestion Problems

Divide into teams of two, one taking the pro side and the other the con side. Research the effects of gluten in the diet and answer the following questions.

 Are humans able to digest gluten? Why or why not?  Why are gluten allergies rising in the US?  Are there any connections between gluten and autoimmune diseases? If so, in what conditions?  Would you make any dietary changes after this research? Why or why not? If so, what kind?

3. Natural Flavoring

Pair up in teams of two, one on the side of the food industry and the other against. Consider the following;

Cestrum is a secretion from a beaver to scent-mark their territory. Cestrum is used in “high-class” perfumery for “refined leathery nuances.” It is also reportedly used in some incense, and to contribute Optional Activities 4 SCI/220 Version 8 to the flavor and odor of cigarettes. In food, cestrum is used to flavor candies, drinks, and desserts such as puddings.

 Is calling this “natural flavoring” misleading the public? Why or why not.  Why would the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approve such an ingredient for human consumption?  Is this honest labeling? Why or why not? Would you rather know exactly what is added to your food? Optional Activities 5 SCI/220 Version 8 Week Two Depending on the learning modality, provide your class with the optional activities for the week by directing them in class or posting them in the Classroom.

1. Too Many Macronutrients

Divide the class into four equal teams.

 Assign each team one of the following macronutrients: carbohydrates, lipids, protein, and fiber.

o Direct teams to identify and list common foods that contain too much or too little of that macronutrient. o Ask teams to identify the negative consequences of eating too little or too much of those foods.

 Have each group select a volunteer to share the team’s findings with the class in approximately 5 minutes.  Use this activity to begin a class discussion on the implications of eating the foods identified.

2. Artificial Sweeteners

Divide the class into groups. This activity addresses critical thinking regarding artificial sweeteners.

 Have groups perform a search, either online or at their local grocery store, for two products containing the following:

o Saccharin o Aspartame o Sucralose

 Have each group discuss the effects of artificial sweeteners on health.  Lead a discussion based on what each group finds. Optional Activities 6 SCI/220 Version 8 Week Three Depending on the learning modality, provide your class with the optional activities for the week by directing them in class or posting them in the Classroom.

1. What’s on Tap

Divide the class into groups. Have each member perform the following and discuss the questions as a group:

Take any bottled water and pour yourself a glass, then take a second glass and fill it with tap water. Take a drink of the bottled water, then follow it with the tap water.

 Did one of them taste poorly? Which one? Why do you think it had an aftertaste, if any?  What do you think is added to the tap water? Why would it be added?  What health concerns could there be for those additives?

2. Vitamin Supplements

Divide the class into groups. This activity informs you about vitamin supplements and the possible benefits and drawbacks of using them. Have each member research the type and amounts of micronutrients in a multivitamin, then discuss the questions as a group and share with the class:

 Is the vitamin supplement designed for a certain age group or gender? If so, which?  Which benefits does the manufacturer claim the user will obtain by taking the supplement?  Would taking the supplement daily raise the user above recommended daily amounts of any micronutrients? If so, which ones? In what ways might that be problematic?  What are some possible short- and long-term effects of taking this supplement?  What are some possible short- and long-term effects of not taking this supplement? Optional Activities 7 SCI/220 Version 8 Week Four Depending on the learning modality, provide your class with the optional activities for the week by directing them in class or posting them in the Classroom.

1. MSG

Pair up in teams of two, one on the side of the food industry and other against. Consider the following:

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is known as a flavor enhancer in the food industry. In actuality, it is a chemical that targets the pleasure centers of the brain and tricks you into thinking the food you are eating tastes good. MSG acts much in the same way as cocaine does in the brain.

The FDA claims that consuming MSG does not cause any health concerns, however; regular consumption of MSG has been linked to obesity, eye damage, headaches, fatigue, disorientation, and depression. Additionally, according to the FDA, MSG Symptom Complex can involve symptoms such as numbness, burning sensation, tingling, facial pressure or tightness, chest pain or difficulty breathing, headache, nausea, rapid heartbeat, drowsiness, and weakness.

The food industry commonly uses alternative names for MSG such as glutamine acid, glutamate, monopotassium glutamate, calcium glutamate, monammonium glutamate, natrium glutamate, yeast extract, anything “hydrolyzed”, any “hydrolyzed protein,” calcium caseinate, sodium caseinate, yeast food, yeast nutrient, gelatin, textured protein, soy protein, soy protein concentrate, soy protein isolate, whey protein, whey protein concentrate, whey protein, isolate, vestin, and ajinomoto.

 Why would the FDA allow the food industry to use such a potentially harmful chemical in processed food?  Why would the food industry want to use such a potentially harmful chemical in the food it produces?  You see many products on the supermarkets shelves that say “No MSG” but when you turn to the ingredients list, one of the other names for MSG is listed. Is this misleading? Why would the food industry do such a thing?  Could the use of MSG be contributing to the obesity epidemic in the US? Why or why not?

2. Planning Committee

Divide the class into groups. Have each member perform consider the following and discuss the questions as a group:

o If you were invited to offer advice to your town’s planning committee, what recommendations would you make to help promote physical activity among members of your community? o What recommendations would you make for the middle school to encourage physical activity and health eating among the students and staff? o What changers to the school lunch program would you recommend? Optional Activities 8 SCI/220 Version 8 Week Five Depending on the learning modality, provide your class with the optional activities for the week by directing them in class or posting them in the Classroom.

1. Baby Food

Divide the class into teams of two and have them consider the following.

Many people object to infant formula manufacturers advertising their products in developing nations. Do you feel it is appropriate to promote the use of formula in developing nations? Why or why not?

Chelsea, a vegan, has just found out she is pregnant. What nutrient deficiencies are common for vegans and for pregnant women? What supplements would you recommend that Chelsea take during her pregnancy?

2. What Lives on Your Plate

Divide the class into groups. Have each group consider the following scenarios and answer the questions:

1. After 67 people became ill from consuming food at a company picnic, investigators determined that the green salad, the egg salad, and the turkey slices were all contaminated with Campylobacter.

 Invent a scenario that would explain how all three became contaminated.  What steps would you take to ensure this doesn’t happen again?

2. A restaurant decides not to replace an old dishwasher, even though it no longer heats the water above 135 degrees Fahrenheit.

 What are the potential risks associated with the decision?  How else could the restaurant sanitize the dishes?  Should the restaurant be shut down?

3. Think organic food is expensive?

Divide the class into teams of two and have them consider the following:

 KIT KAT: $9.49/pound  Soda: $8.89/gallon  Potato chips: $8.45/ pound

Discuss the following questions and share findings with the class:

 Is pastured, organically fed chicken with no pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or genetically modified organisms at $4.99/lb really that expensive?  Calculate how much money you spend on junk food on a daily basis and determine its nutrient density.  How many empty calories do you consume on a daily basis?