Abstract
Nutrition is an important factor in the aetiology and management of several major causes of death and disability. The nutritional status of a person is the result of a balance between the intake and the requirement of nutrients. Optimal nutritional status is achieved when sufficient nutrients are consumed to support day-to-day body needs. This status promotes growth and development, maintains general health, support activities of daily living, and assists in protection from diseases. Several variables can influence the intake of food: economical, emotional, developmental and cultural factors, dietary patterns, unbalanced self-imposed diets, anorexia, bulimia, etc. The intake of food also varies in relation to many physiological situations, such as growth, pregnancy, breast-feeding and physical activity. Dysphagia, dyspepsia, malabsorption, loss of nutrients (vomit, diarrhoea, wounds, fistulas, drainage, etc.), alterations in metabolic and nutritional requirements, and drug interactions can be present in different pathological situations.
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