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Farm Raised Fish | Fish farming uses various methods to grow or breed fish in enclosed environments. In general, avoid carnivorous farmed fish like shrimp, salmon and tuna, which often require wild fish feed a nonsustainable farming practice. Farm-raised fish live in enclosed tanks so keepers can monitor water pollution, but some fish, like salmon, have high PCBs, antibiotic, dioxins, and mercury levels. Plus, fish and their waste can escape the farming area, harming the surrounding wildlife and habitat. The"Seafood Watch" recommends sustainable options such as inland-raised fish, like tilapia, catfish, and trout, and shellfish that require no supplemental feeding, like oysters, clams and mussels.
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Fat | A major source of energy in the diet, fat helps the body absorb fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamins A, D, E, and K. Some kinds of fats, especially saturated fats and trans fatty acids, may raise blood cholesterol and increase the risk for heart disease. Other fats, such as unsaturated fats, do not raise blood cholesterol. Fats that are in foods are combinations of monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and saturated fatty acids.
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Fatty Acids | Fatty acids are individual isomers of what we more commonly call fats. There are potentially hundreds of different fatty acids, but just a few dozen that are commonly found in the foods we eat. The names and chemical configurations of the most common fatty acids are identified on Nutrition Data's "Fatty Acid"page.
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Fiber | Insoluble fiber?is the coarse part of a plant that doesn?t dissolve in water, which adds bulk to stool and moves toxins out of the colon. Find it in whole wheat and whole grain products and vegetables like Brussels sprouts, turnips, and cauliflower. Soluble Fiber, also found in plants, binds to dietary cholesterol to help the body eliminate it and reduce?LDL levels. Its?functions?also include easing IBS symptoms and other digestive problems. Oatbran, barley, legumes, and citrus are all?good sources. |
Flexibility | The range of motion possible at a joint. Flexibility exercises enhance the ability of a joint to move through its full range of motion.
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Flexion | The bending of a joint so that the bones forming the joint are brought closer together.
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Folate | See Vitamin B9.
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Folic Acid | See Vitamin B9.
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Food Access | Ability to obtain and maintain levels of sufficient amounts of healthy, safe, and affordable food for all family members in various settings including where they live, learn, work and play. Food access is often measured by distance to a store or the number of stores in an area; individual-level resources such as family income or vehicle availability; and neighborhood-level indicators of resources, such as average income of the neighborhood and the availability of public transportation. |
Food Categories | Method of grouping similar foods in their as-consumed forms, for descriptive purposes. The USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has created 150 mutually exclusive food categories to account for each food or beverage item reported in What We Eat in America (WWEIA), the food intake survey component of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (for more information, visit: http://seprl.ars.usda.gov/Services/docs.htm?docid=23429 . Examples of WWEIA Food Categories include soups, nachos, and yeast breads. In contrast to food groups, items are not disaggregated into their component parts for assignment to food categories. For example, all pizzas are put into the pizza category.
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Food Groups | A method of grouping similar foods for descriptive and guidance purposes. Food groups in the USDA Food Patterns are defined as vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy, and protein foods. Some of these groups are divided into subgroups, such as dark-green vegetables or whole grains, which may have intake goals or limits. Foods are grouped within food groups based on their similarity in nutritional composition and other dietary benefits. For assignment to food groups, mixed dishes are disaggregated into their major component parts. |
Food Hub | A community space anchored by a food store with adjacent social and financial services where businesses or organizations can actively manage the aggregation, distribution, and marketing of source-identified food products to strengthen their ability to satisfy wholesale, retail, and institutional demand. |
Food Pattern Modeling | The process of developing and adjusting daily intake amounts from food categories or groups to meet specific criteria, such as meeting nutrient intake goals, limiting nutrients or other food components, or varying proportions or amounts of specific food categories or groups. This methodology includes using current food consumption data to determine the mix and proportions of foods to include in each group, using current food composition data to select a nutrient-dense representative for each food, calculating nutrient profiles for each food group using these nutrient-dense representative foods, and modeling various combinations of foods and amounts to meet specific criteria. (See?USDA Food Patterns.) |
Fortification | As defined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the deliberate addition of one or more essential nutrients to a food, whether or not it is normally contained in the food. Fortification may be used to prevent or correct a demonstrated deficiency in the population or specific population groups; restore naturally occurring nutrients lost during processing, storage, or handling; or to add a nutrient to a food at the level found in a comparable traditional food. When cereal grains are labeled as enriched, it is mandatory that they be fortified with folic acid. |
Fortified Foods | Foods such as breakfast cereals and breads may be fortified with vitamins and minerals, i.e. vitamins and minerals are added to the food after processing, often to replace those lost during the manufacture process. Some vitamins that may be present in fortified foods, such as D3, are not suitable for vegans as they are derived from animal sources. |