1- Food has always been one of my favorite topics and past times. Besides eating there are several reasons that Scouts have several opportunities to learn about food in their advancement. Our bodies take multitudes of chemicals to operate. Water, Minerals, Metals, Amino Acids, Sugars (both complex & simple), and Fiber.
A- Water we already know about. Things like milk, sodas, and such take more water to digest than that drink has in it. Clean water – plain & simple.
B- Many essential metals and minerals are needed to activate enzyme molecules with important jobs in the body. And metals also have many other essential roles as well.
Calcium builds bones and teeth; activates enzymes throughout the body; helps regulate blood pressure; and helps muscles to contract, nerves to send messages, and blood to clot.
Chromium helps maintain normal blood sugar levels and helps cells draw energy from blood sugar.
Copper assists with metabolizing fuel, making red blood cells, regulating neurotransmitters, and mopping up free radicals.
Iron helps make hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying chemical in the body’s red blood cells) and myoglobin (a protein in muscle cells). Iron is essential for activating certain enzymes and for making amino acids, collagen, neurotransmitters, and hormones.
Magnesium like calcium builds bones and teeth. It also helps to regulate blood pressure and blood sugar and enables muscles to contract, nerves to send messages, blood to clot, and enzymes to work.
Manganese helps form bones and helps metabolize amino acids, cholesterol, and carbohydrates.
Molybdenum activates several enzymes that break down toxins and prevents the buildup of harmful sulfites in the body.
Potassium balances fluids in the body and helps to maintain a steady heartbeat and to make muscles contract and may benefit bones and blood pressure.
Sodium balances fluids in the body, it helps send nerve impulses and it makes muscles contract.
Zinc helps blood clot, helps make proteins and DNA, bolsters the immune system, and helps with wound healing and cell division.
C- The trace minerals are just as vital to our health as the major minerals, but we don’t need large amounts. Minerals in this category include copper, fluoride, iodine, and selenium.
D- Major minerals, which are used and stored in large quantities in the body, are calcium, chloride, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and sulfur.
E- We get them from our diet. The minerals come from rocks, soil, and water, and they’re absorbed as the plants grow or by animals as the animals eat the plants.
F-Where / How can we get these into our bodies: Examples…
- Calcium: Yogurt, cheese, milk, tofu, sardines, salmon, fortified juices, and leafy green vegetables such as broccoli and kale (but not spinach or Swiss chard, which contain binders that lessen the absorption of Calcium).
- Iron: Red meat, cooked soybeans, pumpkin seeds, cooked lentils, turkey, and fortified bread, and breakfast cereals.
- Magnesium: Almonds, green vegetables such as spinach and broccoli, soybeans, peanut butter, sunflower and other seeds, halibut, whole-wheat bread, and milk.
- Potassium: Raisins, baked potatoes (with the skin), tomatoes, cooked black beans, plain low-fat yogurt, bananas, and spinach.
Thanks to: Harvard Medical School
W- Have you ever seen a pine tree sew?
X- I heard they do needle point.
2: Amino acids come in 2 groups: The first group comes from an outside source – ie: food. The second source is made inside of our bodies. It takes amino acids in our food to make proteins in our bodies.
“It might be easier to say how your body doesn’t use proteins. Proteins help keep fluids and acids in balance; they transport oxygen to your cells; act as antibodies, enzymes, and hormones; and feed vitamins and minerals to your cells.
Proteins such as collagen and keratin build bones, hair, skin, and teeth. They work as the maintenance crew on tissues such as blood vessels. Other proteins take your body’s energy and use it to contract your muscles and divide cells.
The proteins that facilitate chemical reactions are called enzymes. Proteins also carry messages throughout the body. Hormones such as insulin, for example, regulate blood glucose levels. [(Note: Insulin is a protein chain of 51 amino acids.) – GF]
Protein molecules also form the antibodies that fight infection due to viruses or bacteria. At the same time, they help your body maintain a proper fluid balance between its three fluid compartments:
- Extracellular, or outside the cells
- Intracellular, or within the cells
- Intravascular, or within the blood
If the fluid in these compartments goes out of balance, the body ceases to function properly. This includes both fluid levels and the pH of said fluids. A pH of 7.4 is neutral. As that number drops, acidity rises and vice versa. Your body works to keep blood pH as close to 7.4 as possible.” From Clancy Medical Group.
2B- Sources for Amino Acids: Milk, Dairy, Nuts, Seeds, Peas, Beans, Peanut butter ( glad that is on the list), Eggs, Chicken, Lamb, Soybeans, Fish, Shellfish, Beef, Eggs, Turkey, & Pork. There are also combinations of vegetables that also make up full proteins out of amino acids – rice & beans.
Y- Why did the new Scout put sugar in her pillowcase?
Z- So she would have sweet dreams.
3- Energy for the human body comes from sugars. Simple sugars are easily broken down by the body and turned into available energy. Complex sugars are call carbohydrates. The body breaks these down in the process called metabolism. Simple sugars come from sugar and fruit. Complex carbohydrates are things like rice, & potatoes.
A- Why did the Scout put sugar on his fries?
B- He wanted sweet potatoes.
4- Fiber in our diet helps the body in many ways. Fiber is found mainly in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes (beans). It is probably best known for its ability to prevent constipation. But foods containing fiber can provide other health benefits as well, such as helping to maintain a healthy weight and lowering your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and some types of cancer.
High fiber foods: Whole grain foods, Beans, Vegetables (raw is usually better), Nuts, and Seeds. Some fruits like apples and bananas.
5- One secret to good health is regular exercise and a diverse/balanced diet.
C- What did the sugar bowl say to the salt & pepper?
D- “What’s shaking?”
6- Transistor, Transistor, Transistor, …
What class of electronic components uses a voltage or current signal to control current flow? Transistors
Which of these components can be used as an electronic switch or amplifier? Transistor
Which of the following electronic components can amplify signals? Transistor
Which of the following could be the primary gain-producing component in an RF power amplifier? Transistor
What is the term that describes a device’s ability to amplify a signal? Gain
Thanks to: Dan Romanchik KB6NU, (Ham Radio) Technician Study Guide
BBQ is on my food list,
Gaither