Course Catalogue

Sport and Exercise Sciences

This module aims to provide an understanding of the nutritional requirements of population groups throughout the life-course, considering the nutritional needs of mothers and infants; children and adolescents; adults and the ageing population; as well as the nutritional concerns and priorities for other groups such as vegetarians/vegans; poverty and different cultures. The module will also discuss the major diet-related diseases and enable students to demonstrate an understanding of the evidence linking diet to disease and health. Students will have the opportunity to enhance their practical techniques of nutritional assessment, advanced communication skills and food preparation.

Outline Syllabus:Nutrition through the life cycle: Foetal programming and maternal nutrition; Nutrition in Infancy, growth curves; Nutrition in childhood, infant and child feeding surveys; Nutrition in adolescence, dietary assessment; Nutrition and adult health, non-communicable disease; Nutrition and the older adult, sarcopenia, nutrition and the ageing immune system, nutrition and infectious disease risk. Nutrition in specialist populations: Vegetarian/vegan nutrition; Low-income groups; Ethnic minority groups; Restricted diets.

Module Overview:
This module aims to provide an understanding of the nutritional requirements of population groups throughout the life-course, considering the nutritional needs of mothers and infants; children and adolescents; adults and the ageing population; as well as the nutritional concerns and priorities for other groups such as vegetarians/vegans; poverty and different cultures. The module will also discuss the major diet-related diseases and enable students to demonstrate an understanding of the evidence linking diet to disease and health.

Additional Information:The Association for Nutrition (AfN) competencies covered in this module include: CC1e How nutrients are used by the body (either human or animal) consequences of deficiency and assessment of nutritional status. CC1g Nutrient analysis: calculating nutrient contents of foods, feeds and diets of an individual or group of individuals or animals, justifying choice of a method of dietary assessment for a specific stated purpose CC1i Nutrition in health and disease, consequences of an unbalanced diet for either human or animal systems. CC1j Nature of common conditions that require dietary manipulation or can affect physical activity, such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, cancer etc. for either human or animal systems. CC1k How nutritional needs change with age, gender, physical activity, lifestyle etc. for either human or animal systems. CC3c Factors that affect an individual’s, communities’ and population groups’ nutritional needs and practices for either human or animal systems. CC3d Religious and cultural beliefs and practices that impact on food, nutrition and health CC3e Consideration of financial/social and environmental circumstances on diet and nutritional intake. CC3f Theories and application of methods of improving health, behaviour and change for either human or animal systems. CC3i Ability to design/formulate a diet to meet a specification appropriate for a stated situation an individual, human or animal, or group of humans or animals. CC4h Ability to integrate knowledge and understanding from a variety of sources to identify or propose solutions in one of the following areas: Improvement of human health or improvement of the welfare and/or productivity of animals or improvement of food production and sustainability.