Chapter

A
Nutrition

AN
G
Food is needed by all living organisms mainly for growth and repair.
N
Several organisms need food to maintain body temperature as well. A
variety of substances are taken as food by organisms from single celluar
LA
organisms like amoeba to the complex multicellular organisms like the
human body. Even within the human body the cells require a wide variety
of substances as food to carryout their functions. The mode of acquiring
TE

food varies from organism to organism.

You have studied in the previous classes about how different organisms
get their food. Let us recall them.
• What are autotrophs? How do autotrophs get their food?
T

• What are heterotrophs? How do heterotrophs get their food?

ER

Let us study about autotrophic and heterotrophic modes of nutrition

and find out why most plants are called as autotrophs.
Autotrophic Nutrition
SC

We know that autotrophs are the organisms capable of using light

energy to synthesize chemical compounds. They acquire nutrients like
mineral salts and water from the soil as well as some gases from the air.
They are capable of producing complex compounds like carbohydrates,
proteins and lipids from these very simple substances. These compounds
produced by autotrophic plants are utilized for providing energy to most
of the living organisms.
Most of the food that we eat is obtained from plants. Even if we depend
on animal products, we would find that those animals usually depend on
Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 1
 plants for their food. But how do plants carry out their life processes?
Scientists have been working for centuries to find out how plants carry
out their life processes. We know that among all the life processes, the
process of photosynthesis makes plants “The universal food providers”
for all living organisms.
You have studied something about photosynthesis in your earlier
classes. Investigations into plant life processes might have started long
ago. Actual experimentations to know about plant needs have been recorded

A
from 17th century. A scientist named Van Helmont established the role of
water by an experiment conducted by him for a period of 5 years. It took

AN
humankind another 300 years to arrive at the present definition of
photosynthesis.
• Can you name some raw materials needed for photosynthesis?
• What could be the end products of the process of photosynthesis?

G
Let us study the process of photosynthesis in detail.
Photosynthesis
N Photosynthesis is the process by which
LA
plants containing the green pigment
‘chlorophyll’ build up complex organic
oxygen
molecules from simple inorganic ones,
TE

using sun light as an energy source. The

sunlight process of photosynthesis is very complex.
Several reactions take place in this process
carbon dioxide and intermediate compounds are also
T

chlorophyll
formed. Scientists had tried to formulate a
simple equation to indicate the process. The
ER

water equation used widely is related to the one

proposed by C.B. Van Niel in 1931. His
Fig-1: Photosynthesis opinion was, “For each molecule of
SC

carbohydrate formation, one molecule of carbon dioxide and two

molecules of water are required. In this process, along with carbohydrate
one molecule each of oxygen and water are produced”.
Light
CO2 + 2H2O CH2O + H2O + O2
Chlorophyll
What would be the reaction to show that glucose (C6H12O6) is being
synthesized? Write down a balanced equation to show this.

(Refer the lessons Chemical equations, Carbon and its compounds in

your textbook of physical science class X).
2 X Class Nutrition
 C.B. Van Niel first worked on purple sulphur bacteria and found light
plays specific role in photosynthesis. Instead of H2O he used H2S as a
starting material. Here no oxygen is liberated during photosynthesis, instead,
it is sulphur. Later he envisioned a similar process of photosynthesis, in
plants. When glucose was observed to be a product of photosynthesis, the
following equation was proposed:
6CO2 + 12H2O Light C6H12O6 + 6H2O + 6O2
Chlorophyll

A
It is known that plants synthesize carbohydrates, the smaller and simpler
ones first and from these, the more complex ones like starch and cellulose.

AN
Plants are also capable of synthesizing all other compounds like proteins,
fats etc.
Animals are not capable of synthesizing carbohydrates and they have

G
to depend on plants for the same.
Can we state that photosynthesis is the basic energy source for most
of the living world? Why, why not?
N
Let us study how plants prepare carbohydrates through photosynthesis.
LA
Activity-1
Presence of starch (a type of carbohydrate) in leaves
TE

Let us take a leaf from a plant (soft and thin leaves and well exposed
to sunlight).
Arrange apparatus as shown in Fig-2(a). Take methylated spirit in a
test tube and put the leaf in it.
T
ER

beaker
water
SC

leaf iodine solution

methylated spirit
boiling tube
petridish
asbestos gauze
tripod stand
bunsen burner

Fig-2(a): boiling the leaf Fig-2(b): Iodine test

in methylated spirit

Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 3

 First boil the leaf in water then transfer this leaf into a test tube
containing methylated spirit. Boil this tube in a water bath. Chlorophyll
dissolves in spirit and the leaf becomes pale, due to removal of chlorophyll.
Take the leaf carefully from test tube by using a brush.
Spread the leaf in a petridish and add a few drops of iodine/ betadine
solution on it. Observe the leaf.
• What do you observe?
The presence of starch will be indicated by a bluish black colour.

A
• Do you think sunlight has a role in formation of starch?

AN
Factors (Materials) essential for the process of Photosynthesis
• What are the materials that you think would be essential for the
synthesis of carbohydrates in the process of photosynthesis?
(Hint: see the equation proposed by Van Niel)

G
• Do you think the equation tells us about all the materials involved?
Let us study how scientists experimented to find out about some of
N
the materials required for the process of photosynthesis.
LA
Water and Photosynthesis
In class VII we have already studied how Von Helmont found that the
water is essential for the increase of plant mass.
TE

He did not know about photosynthesis then. Later, it was found that
increase in plant body mass or material occurred due to the process of
photosynthesis. We shall study more about it in the following sections.
Air and Photosynthesis
T

Let us discuss an experiment on photosynthesis. This one helps us to

ER

find out about the role of air in the process of photosynthesis. It is

interesting to learn about the experiment which is one of the several
milestones in the gradual development of our understanding of
Photosynthesis.
SC

Joseph Priestley (1733-1804) in 1770 performed a series of experiments

that revealed the essential role of air on the growth of green plants
(photosynthesis was still not known to scientists at that time). You may
recall, Oxygen was discovered by Priestley in 1774. The name oxygen was
coined later by Lavoisier in the year 1775. Priestley observed that a candle
burning in a closed bell jar, soon gets extinguished. Similarly, a mouse
would soon suffocate in a closed space of the bell jar. He concluded that a
burning candle or an animal, both somehow, damage air. When he placed a
mint plant in the same bell jars, he found that the mouse stayed alive and

4 X Class Nutrition
the candle when lighted from outside continued (A) (B)
burning. Priestley hypothesized as follows: ‘Plants
restore the air what breathing animals and burning
candles remove’.
Do you find any relationship between candle,
rat, mint plant ? Discuss.
Priestley’s experiment confirmed that gaseous
(C) (D)
exchange was going on and plants were giving out a

A
gas that supported burning and was essential for the
survival of animals.

AN
But how do plants take in air and utilize carbon
dioxide for photosynthesis and oxygen for
respiration?

G
Fig-3: Priestley experiment

N
Massive amounts of gaseous exchange occur through the stomata
(usually present in leaves) as long as they are open .While plants also
LA
carry on gaseous exchange through loose tissues in the stems, roots etc.
Activity-2
TE

Carbondioxide is necessary for Photosynthesis (Mohl’s half

leaf experiment)
We need a destarched plant to start with. We need to keep the plant in
the dark for nearly three days to remove the starch (destarch). By placing
T

the plant in dark the starch is removed from the leaves.

ER

Arrange the apparatus as shown in the Fig-4.

• Take a wide mouthed transparent bottle.
bluish black
SC

(starch formed)
split cork

potted plant
wide mouthed
bottle

KOH
colourless (no starch)

Fig-4: Mohl’s half leaf experiment

Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 5
 • Put potassium hydroxide (KOH) pellets or potassium hydroxide
solution in the bottle. Potassium hydroxide absorbs carbon dioxide.
• Insert splitted cork in the mouth of the bottle.
• Insert one of the leaf of destarched plant (through a split cork) into
transparent bottle containing potassium hydroxide pellets/potassium
hydroxide solution.
• Leave the plant in sunlight.

A
• After a few hours, test this leaf and any other leaf of this plant for
presence of starch, as mentioned in activity-1.

AN
• The leaf part which was exposed to the atmospheric air and light becomes
bluish-black, and the one inside the bottle containing potassium
hydroxide which absorbs carbon dioxide in the bottle remains

G
colourless. This proves that carbon dioxide is necessary for
photosynthesis.
N
Why was the plant kept in dark and then in sun light ?
Why did we test two leaves in this experiment?
LA
We have so far discussed the role of water and gases in the process of
photosynthesis. Scientist who had been working on these lines had observed
some other factors that affect the process of photosynthesis.
TE

Light and Photosynthesis

In Priestley’s time, scientists didn’t understand about energy, but later
on much was discovered about it. If energy is released when carbon dioxide
T

and water is formed by combining oxygen with carbon and hydrogen, then
what about the reverse?. What about forming oxygen again and putting it
ER

back in the air. Eventually, scientists learned that the energy situation would
also reverse. Oxygen formation would use up energy. That means if plants
form oxygen they have to get energy to make it possible. Where did the
SC

energy come from?

A Dutch scientist, Jan Ingenhousz (1730-1799), found the answer. He
studied the way in which plants form oxygen. In 1779, he noticed that it
happened only in the presence of light. In an experiment with the aquatic
plant, Hydrilla, he observed that in bright sunlight, small bubbles formed
around the green parts while in the dark they did not form. He also found
that the gas present in the bubbles was oxygen.
It was further confirmed when Engelman in the early 20th century
ingeniously detected the point of maximum rate of photosynthesis. He

6 X Class Nutrition
used a strand of algae and exposed it to different colours of light (the
colours that we see in a rainbow) Then he used oxygen sensitive bacteria
and found that they crowd around areas illuminated with red and blue rays
of light. This led to more studies on effect of light on photosynthesis, the
role of different coloured compounds called pigments in plants and the
utilization of light energy.

Lab Activity

A
Experiment to observe oxygen is evolved during photosynthesis
in the presence of light

AN
Materials required : Beaker (2), funnel (2), test tubes (2), Hydrilla
(any other acquatic submerged plant), black paper, bucket-full of water,
incense stick, match box.

G
Procedure
1. Arrange the apparatus as shown in the Fig-5 and make two identical
sets with water plant (like Hydrilla). N
2. Take the whole set under a bucket of water and invert a water filled
LA
test tube over the stem of funnel (This will help to retain the water
column in the test tube).
3. Take the set up out of the bucket and keep it under sunlight.
TE

4. Arrange the second set in the same way, cover it with black paper/
cloth. Keep them under shade.

You would see that in place of water there is air

T

that fills in the set up kept in sun. It is

actually a gas that will be collected in
ER

the test-tube. Observe the other set up oxygen

kept in dark. Is there any difference in
bubbles
the amount of gas collected?
SC

Test the gas in the test-tube by

inserting a glowing match stick or test tube
incense stick which would burst into beaker
flames. This shows the presence of
water
oxygen.
funnel
• What precautions do you need while
removing test tube from the beaker. Hydrilla plant

Discuss with your teacher.

Fig-5: Hydrilla experiment

Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 7

 Activity-3
Sunlight is necessary to form starch in green plants

A
AN
Fig-6: Black paper experiment

• Take a potted plant with destarched leaves. Remember the process of

destarching leaves mentioned in activity-1.

G
• Cover one of its leaves with black paper on which a design is cut. Fix the

•
N
paper on the leaf in such a manner that light does not enter the dark part.
Place this potted plant in sun light.
LA
• After few hours of exposure to bright sunlight, test the leaf which is
covered by black paper for the presence of starch.
• Which part of the leaf turns bluish-black? What about the remaining
TE

part?
• Observe the colour of leaf stained with iodine. Can you tell why it
is stained differently?
T

• It will be observed that only the parts of the leaf, which could get light
through the cut out design, turns bluish-black showing the presence of
ER

starch.
Chlorophyll and Photosynthesis
Ingenhousz wanted to find out more about photosynthesis and carried
SC

out several other experiments. He proposed that only green plant parts
could carry out the process of photosynthesis.
What about plants having coloured leaves? How is it that new leaves
which look dark red in colour in several plants turn green? Do plants having
reddish or yellowish leaves also carry out photosynthesis? What made
plants carry out photosynthesis while even green coloured animals (like
some birds )could not? Questions like these remained challenges until
scientists could isolate the green coloured substance from plant parts and
study its nature.
8 X Class Nutrition
 Establishment of Ingenhousz’s proposition become possible in the
year 1817 due to the work of two scientists Pelletier and Caventou. They
obtained an extract of the green coloured substance and named it
‘chlorophyll’ (meaning green leaf).
It was also found that pigments in addition to chlorophyll, carotenoids
and phycobilins could also aid in the process of photosynthesis by passing
on the energy of sunlight trapped by them to chlorophyll.
Where does Photosynthesis take place?

A
• Try to name some parts where you think photosynthesis occurs.

AN
• Where is chlorophyll and other pigments present in the plant?
• Do you think the new reddish leaves of plants also carry out
photosynthesis?
The exact location of the photosynthetic part or a part containing

G
chlorophyll was not known till another six decades after the discovery of
chlorophyll. In 1883, Julius Von Sachs, observed that chlorophyll is found
N
in organelles within the cell. Such organelles were named as ‘chloroplasts’.
These are present in large numbers in the cells (around 40 – 100) of parts
LA
like the stomatal guard cells and ground tissues of green parts of the plant.
You have studied about Chloroplast in Class IX. Let us observe the
figure of TS of leaf showing Chloroplast in Palisade and Spongy
TE

Parenchyma (ground tissue).

cuticle
T

upper epidermis
ER

palisade parenchyma
chloroplast

}
xylem
Vascular bundle
SC

phloem
spongy parenchyma
air spaces
guard cell
lower epidermis
stomata
Fig-7: T-S of leaf cuticle

Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 9

 Do you know?
If a cell is broken up, the chloroplasts also break into pieces, so it becomes a very
difficult task to isolate them to study the different steps of photosynthesis.It was not
until 1954, that Daniel I. Arnon was able to break up plant cells so gently that whole
chloroplasts could be obtained for study in the lab.

membrane stroma thylakoid It has been found that the chloroplast is

stroma a membranous structure, consisting of 3

A
membranes. The inner most layer forms

AN
} granum stacked sack like structures called as grana.
It is believed to be a site for trapping of
solar energy. The intermediary fluid filled
grana thylakoid portion is called as stroma. It is believed to

G
be responsible for enzymatic reactions
Fig-8: T-S of chloroplast leading to the synthesis of glucose, which
N in turn join together to form starch.
LA
Substances found in chloroplast which capture sunlight are called
photosynthetic pigments. There are several types of photosynthetic
pigments involved in the process to produce organic molecules like
TE

glucose in plants.
Chlorophyll is such a pigment which contain one atom of magnesium.
It is similar in structure to the haem of haemoglobin (The iron containing
red pigment that transports oxygen in blood.). Two major kinds of
T

chlorophylls are associated with thylakoid membranes. Chlorophyll ‘a’ is

bluish-green in colour and chlorophyll ‘b’ is yellowish-green colour.
ER

Around 250 to 400 pigment molecules are grouped as light harvesting

complex or photosynthetic unit in each thylakoid. Such innumerable units
function together in chloroplasts of green plants in the process of
SC

photosynthesis.
During photosynthesis several events occur in the chloroplast some
of them are:
1. Conversion of light energy to chemical energy
2. Splitting of water molecule (photolysis of water)
3. Reduction of carbondioxide to carbohydrates
Light is required to initiate several events while several may continue
even in absence of it. That would mean, once light energy has been captured
it can help reactions to continue even in the dark. Light dependent events

10 X Class Nutrition
or reactions are called light reactions and it has been found to take place
in grana, while the rest are called light independent or dark reactions and
they occur in the stroma.
Mechanism of Photosynthesis
1. Light dependent reaction
In this reaction light plays a key role. A series of chemical reactions
occur in a very quick succession initiated by light and therefore the phase
is technically called the photochemical phase or light dependent reaction.

A
The light reaction takes place in chlorophyll containing thylakoids called

AN
grana of chloroplasts. Several steps occur in the light dependent reaction.
Step-I : The chlorophyll on exposure to light energy becomes activated
by absorbing photons. (Photon is a unit of light energy)
Step-II: The energy is used in splitting water molecule to release O2.

G
The reaction is known as photolysis (photo means light, lysis
means breaking). This was discovered by Robert Hill. Hence it
is also called Hill’s reaction. N
Hydrogen produced in photolysis is immediately picked up by special
LA
compound NADP (Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide Phosphate) to form
NADPH (Reduced NADP). Another energy rich compound ATP
(Adenosine triphosphate) is also formed at the end of the light reaction.
TE

2. Light independent reaction

This reaction does not require the presence of light and extension of
the phases after day time may occur in some plants. This is also called
dark reaction. But the term dark reaction does not mean that it occurs
T

when it is dark at night. It only means that these reactions do not depend
ER

on light. In the dark phase the hydrogen combines with CO2 by utilizing
ATP energy and produces glucose (C6H12O6). This synthesis occurs in a
number of steps using certain special intermediate compounds and
enzymes. Finally glucose may be converted into storage product starch.
SC

Plants are capable of surviving under a range of situations, from very

hot, dry and brightly lighted conditions to wet, humid and dimly lighted
condition. The requirement of light and other factors varies from one plant
to another.
Heterotrophic Nutrition
In the living world all organisms are capable of surviving under different
conditions and acquring their food in different ways. We have studied about
organisms that can capture light to produce their food. These are
autotrophic in nature. While those that can not are heterotrophic.
Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 11
 How do organisms obtain their nutrition
Depending on the type and availability of food organisms can adapt to
a range of strategies of food intake and use. Some organisms break down
pseudopodia
the food materials outside the body and then absorb it. For example, mold,
yeast, mushrooms etc. which are called saprophytes. Some other organisms
derive nutrition from plants or animals without killing them. This type of
food particle parasitic nutritive strategy is used by a wide variety of organisms like
Cuscuta, lice, leeches and tape worms. Others take in whole material and

A
break it down inside their bodies. What can be taken in and broken down
depends on the bodys’ design and it’s function.

AN
food vacuole
Since the food and the way it is obtained differs, the digestive system
is also different in various organisms. In single celled organisms, like
nucleus amoeba the food may be taken in by the entire surface but as the complexity
of the organism increases, different parts become specialized to perform

G
Fig-9(a):
Nutrition in different functions.
Ameoba
N
For example amoeba [fig-9(a)] takes in food using temporary finger
like extensions (pseudopodia) of the cell surface which fuse
LA
Food
over the food particle forming food vacuole. Inside the food
vacuole vacuole, complex substances are broken down into simpler
ones. Then diffuse into the cytoplasm. The remaining
TE

undigested material is moved to the surface of the cell and

Oral
groove
thrown out. In Paramoecium [fig-9(b)], which is also a
Formation
unicellular organism the cell has a definite shape. Food is taken
of food
vacuole
in at a specific spot. Food is moved to the spot by the movement
T

of cilia which covers the entire surface of the cell, where the
Anal pore
food is ingested (cytostome).
ER

Parasitic nutrition in Cuscuta

Fig-9(b): Dodder (genus : Cuscuta) is a leafless, twining, parasitic plant belongs
SC

Nutrition in to morning glory family (Convolvulaceae). The genus contains about 170
Paramoecium twining species that are widely distributed throughout the temperate and
tropical regions of the world.
The dodder plant contains no chlorophyll. Cuscuta reflexa has been
found to have very little amount of chlorophyll hence it absorbs food through
haustoria. Haustoria are root like structures that penetrate the tissue of a
host plant and may kill it. The slender, string like stems of the dodder may
be yellow, orange, pink, or brown in colour. Its leaves are reduced to minute
scales. Its flowers, in nodule like clusters, are made up of tiny yellow or

12 X Class Nutrition
white bell-like petals.
The dodder’s seed germinates, forming an anchoring root,
and then sends up a slender stem that grows in a spiral fashion
until it reaches a host plant. It then twines around the stem of the
host plant and forms haustoria, which penetrate through it. Water
is drawn through the haustoria from the host plant’s xylem, and Fig-10: Haustoria
in cuscuta
nutrients are drawn from its phloem.

A
Nutrition in Human Beings

AN
Human digestive system is very Mouth
complex in nature. Different parts are Salivary gland
involved and perform different functions Oesophagus
by using various digestive juices and Stomach

G
enzymes. Pancreas
Liver
Let us observe the figure of digestive
system.
The alimentary canal is basically a long
N
LA
Large intestine
tube extending from the mouth to the anus.
Small intestine
We can see that this tube has different
parts. Various regions are specialized to
TE

Rectum
perform different functions. Anus
Fig-11: Digestive system
• What happens to the food once it
enters our body?
T

We eat various types of food which pass through the same digestive
tract. It is to be converted to substances small enough to be utilised by
ER

our body. This needs various processess that can be studied as follows.
Passage of food through alimentary canal or gut
Food is cut and crushed by our teeth in the
SC

mouth and mixed with saliva to make it wet and salivary duct
slippery lump called bolus (This process is called
as mastication). This bolus is suitable to pass
through oesophagus. Saliva is secreted by three palate salivary
pairs of salivary glands. Saliva mainly contains an uvula glands
tongue
enzyme amylase (ptyalin) which helps in the
breakdown of complex carbohydrates to simple epiglottis
ones. This process of breaking down of complex
Fig-12: Location of some
substances into simple substances with the help of
salivary glands
enzymes and their absorption into the body is
Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 13
 called digestion. The tongue helps in mixing the food and pushing it into
the next part. The lower jaw also helps in this process.
We can find out the effect of salivary amylase on carbohydrates to
observe what might be happening in our mouth.

To know the chemical nature of the saliva perform the

activity-7 of co-ordination in life process of this text book.

The soft food mixed with saliva passes through oesophagus or food

A
pipe by wave like movements called peristaltic movement to the stomach.

AN
At the stomach, food gets churned with gastric juice and HCl rendering
the medium acidic. Now the food is in semisolid condition. The digestion
of food goes on as most of the proteins are broken down
into smaller molecules with the help of enzyme pepsin.

G
peristaltic wave oesophagus
Food in the form of a soft slimy substance where

stomach
N
some proteins and carbohydrates have already been
broken down is called chyme. Now the food material
LA
passes from the stomach to the small intestine. Here the
ring like muscles called pyloric sphincters relax to open
the passage into the small intestine. The sphincters are
TE

bolus responsible for regulating the opening of the passage such

that only small quantities of the food material may be
Fig-13: Peristaltic movement

passed into the small intestine at a time.

T

The small intestine is the longest part of the alimentary canal. Its
proximal part is called duodenum. It is the site of further digestion of
ER

carbohydrates, proteins and fats. It receives the secretion of liver and

pancreas for this purpose. These juices render the internal condition of the
intestine gradually to a basic or alkaline one.
SC

Fats are digested by converting them into small globule like forms by the
help of the bile juice secreted from liver. This process is called emulsification.
Pancreatic juice secreted from pancreas contains enzymes like trypsin
for carrying on the process of digestion of proteins and lipase for fats.
Walls of the small intestine secrete intestinal juice which carry this
process further that is small molecules of proteins are broken down to
further smaller molecules. The same is the condition with fats.
Carbohydrate digestion that started in the mouth and did not occur in the
stomach, resumes now as the medium gradually changes to an alkaline
one and the enzymes become active for carbohydrate breakdown.

14 X Class Nutrition
 Activity-4
Studying the enzymes chart
Let us study the chart showing different enzymes and digestive juices
and their functions.
Table-1: Digestive enzymes
S.No. Enzyme/Substance Secreted by Secreted into Digestive juice Acts on Products
1 Ptyalin Salivary glands Buccal cavity Saliva Carbohydrates Maltose

A
(salivary amylase)
2 Pepsin Gastric glands Stomach Gastric juice Proteins Peptones

AN
3 Bile Liver Duodenum Bile juice Fats Emulsification
(No enzymes) (breaking
down of large
fats into small

G
globules)

Pancreatic juice Carbohydrates Maltose

4
5
Amylase
Trypsin
Pancreas
Pancreas
N
Duodenum
Duodenum Pancreatic juice Proteins Peptones
LA
6 Lipase Pancreas Duodenum Pancreatic juice Fats Fatty acids
and glycerol

7 Peptidases Intestinal glands Small Intestine Intestinal juice Peptides Amino acids
TE

8 Sucrase Intestinal glands Small Intestine Intestinal juice Sucrose Glucose

(Cane Sugar)

• Name the enzymes which act on carbohydrates?

T

• Which juice contains no enzymes?

•
ER

What are the end products of fats?

• What are the enzymes that act on proteins?
Transport of the products of digestion from the intestine into blood
(through the wall of intestine) is called absorption. Internally, intestinal
SC

wall has a number of finger like projections called Microvilli. The villi
increase the surface area for absorption. Blood vessels and lymph vessels
are present in the form of a network in the villi.
Products of digestion are absorbed first into the villi and from here
into the blood vessels and lymph vessels. Thus after maximum absorption
of food in the small intestine the rest passes into the large intestine. Here
most of the water present is taken up from this material. This material is
then expelled through the anus which is the last part of the alimentary
canal. This passage of undigested material from the body by the way of
anus is called defecation. Food that passes out of the anus still contains
Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 15
 considerable amount of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, roughages or
fibres of either carbohydrates or proteins. We will learn some more points
about the coordination of digestive system with other systems in the
chapter coordination in life processes.
Flow chart of human digestive system
• What do you think about the necessity of the process of digestion?
• What are its major steps?

A
Food Mouth Buccal cavity Pharynx

AN
Stomach Oesophagus

G
Liver N Small intestine Large intestine
LA
Anus Rectum
Pancreas
TE

Health aspects of the alimentary canal

The human alimentary canal usually functions remarkably well
T

considering how badly we treat it on occasions! Sometimes it rebels, and

we either feel sick or have indigestion.
ER

Vomiting is the body’s method of ridding itself of unwanted or harmful

substances from the stomach. The peristaltic movements of the stomach
and oesophagus reverse their normal direction and the food is expelled.
SC

There are many causes of vomiting, but one of the most common is over
eating, especially when the food contains a high proportion of fat. Vomiting
also occurs when we eat something very indigestible or poisonous.
When we have a greenish vomit usually called as ‘bilious’ or ‘liverish’,
we get a bitter taste and it is often the result of having over eaten. The liver
is unable to cope with the excessive fat and we get a feeling of nausea.
Indigestion is a general term used when there is difficulty in digesting
food. Healthy people can usually avoid problems related to digestion by:
16 X Class Nutrition
 a) having simple, well balanced meals
b) avoiding taking violent exercise soon after eating food
c) Drinking plenty of water.
d) Intake of fibre rich food to avoid constipation.
A serious condition of indigestion is caused by stomach and duodenal
ulcers. The cause of this may be the kind of diet, an infection or habit. You
have studied about recent researches in the peptic ulcers caused by some

A
bacteria in class-VIII.

AN
Diseases due to malnutrition
Food helps to maintain life processes. Our diet should be a balanced
one which contains proper amount of carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins,

G
mineral salts and fats. Two third of world population is affected by food
related diseases. Most of them are facing various diseases due to lack of
N
balanced diet. It is very important to discuss about food deficiency diseases.
LA
Eating of food that does not have one or more than one nutrients in
required amount is known as malnutrition. Poor health, willful starvation,
lack of awareness of nutritional habits, socio-economic factors are all the
TE

reasons for malnutrition in our country.

Malnutrition may be-
1. Protein malnutrition,
T

2. Calorie malnutrition,
ER

3. Protein calorie malnutrition.

Let us observe harmful effects of malnutrition in children.
1. Kwashiorkor disease: This is due to protein deficiency in diet.
SC

Body parts become swollen due to accumulation of water in the Fig-14: Kwashiorkor
intercellular spaces. Very poor muscle development, swollen legs,
fluffy face difficult to eat, diarrhoea, dry skin are the symptoms of
this disease.
2. Marasmus: This is due to deficiency of both proteins and calories.
Generally this disease occurs when there is an immediate second
pregnancy or repeated child births. Lean and weak, less developed
muscles, dry skin, diarrhoea, etc., are the symptoms of this disease.
Fig-15: Marasmus
Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 17
 Obesity: Apart from the deficiency diseases mentioned above, the
constant intake of high calorific food may lead to a condition called
obesity. In this condition a person gains extra fat and becomes
Fig-16: Obesity
overweight. Obese children may suffer from problems related to
cardiovascular, renal, gallbladder etc.
Vitamin deficiency diseases
Vitamins are organic substances. They are micro nutrients

A
required in small quantities. Actually vitamins are not synthesised in
the body, we do not generally suffer from vitamin deficiency. The

AN
source of vitamins to our body is through two ways. One is diet and
Fig-17: Pellagra other is bacteria present in the intestine that synthesises and supplies
vitamins to the body.

G
Vitamins are classified into two groups. One is Water soluble vitamins
(B-complex, vitamin C) and other is fat soluble vitamins (vitamin A, D, E
N
and K). If food we take doesn’t contain vitamins in right proportion, it can
lead to vitamin deficiency disorders. Let us study the following chart
LA
showing vitamins available sources and deficiency diseases.
TE
T
ER
SC

18 X Class Nutrition
 Table-2: Vitamins

Vitamin Resources Deficiency Symptoms

diseases
Thiamin (B1) Cereals, oil seeds, vegetables, Beri beri Vomitings, fits, loss of appe-
milk, meat, fish, eggs. tite, difficulty in breathing,
paralysis.

Riboflavin (B2) Milk, eggs, liver, kidney, green Glossitis Mouth cracks at corners, red
leafy vegetables. and sore tongue, photophobia,
scaly skin.

A
Niacin (B3) Kidney, liver, meat, egg, fish, Pellagra Dermatitis, diarrhoea, loss of

AN
oil seeds. memory, scaly skin.

Pyridoxine (B6) Cereals, oil seeds, vegetables, Anaemia Hyper irritability, nausea,
milk, meat, fish, eggs, liver. vomiting, fits.

G
Cyanocobalamin Synthesised by bacteria Pernicious anaemia Lean and weak, less appetite.
(B 12 ) present in the intestine.
N Diarrhoea, loss of leucocytes,
LA
Folic acid Liver, meat, eggs, milk, fruits, Anaemia problems related to mucus in
cereals, leafy vegetables. the intestines.

Pantothenic acid Sweet potatoes, ground nuts, Burning feet Walking problems, sprain.
TE

vegetables, liver, kidney, egg.

Biotin Pulses, nuts, vegetables, liver, Nerves disorders Fatigue, mental depression,
milk, kidney. muscle pains.

Ascorbic acid (C) Green leafy vegetables, citrus Scurvy Delay in healing of wounds,
T

fruits, sprouts. fractures in bones.

ER

Retinol (A) Leafy vegetables, carrot, Eye, skin diseases Night blindness,
Tomato, pumpkin, papaya, xerophthalmia, cornea failure,
mango, meat, fish, egg, liver, scaly skin.
milk, cod liver oil, shark liver
SC

oil.

Calciferol (D) Liver, egg, butter, cod liver oil, Rickets Improper formation of bones,
(sunshine vitamin) shark liver oil, sun rays stimu- Knock-knees, swollen wrists,
late the formation of vitamin delayed dentition, weak
D from the sub-cutaneous fat. bones.

Tocoferol (E) Fruits, vegetables, sprouts, Fertility related Sterility in males, abortions in
sunflower oil. disorders females.

Phylloquinone (K) Green leafy vegatables, milk, problems related to Delay in blood clotting, over
meat, egg. Blood clotting bleeding.

Free distribution by T.S. Government 2020-21 19