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Nutrition
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<p>Nutrition is the <a href="/facts/Biochemistry/fa2pWEBp">biochemical</a> and <a href="/facts/Physiology/fh25y2pQ">physiological</a> process by which an <a href="/facts/Organism/j8JkL09u">organism</a> uses <a href="/facts/Food/RgNq6NAK">food</a> and <a href="/facts/Water/0lkXnJPK">water</a> to support its <a href="/facts/Life/DNw7NUId">life</a>. The intake of these substances provides organisms with <a href="/facts/Nutrient/34bn4skK">nutrients</a> (divided into <a href="/facts/Macronutrient/34bn4skK">macro-</a> and <a href="/facts/Micronutrient/nwzKuSMQ">micro-</a>) which can be <a href="/facts/Metabolism/WxDrm8k5">metabolized</a> to create <a href="/facts/Food_energy/TtuzDgbX">energy</a> and chemical structures; too much or too little of an essential nutrient can cause <a href="/facts/Malnutrition/KasQy5MR">malnutrition</a>. <a href="/facts/Nutritional_science/zyX8zDBG">Nutritional science</a>, the study of nutrition as a <a href="/facts/Hard_science/JAPKoGQt">hard science</a>, typically emphasizes <a href="/facts/Human_nutrition/GntDW6oo">human nutrition</a>. </p><p>The type of organism determines what nutrients it needs and how it obtains them. Organisms obtain nutrients by consuming <a href="/facts/Organic_matter/t17tVCvk">organic matter</a>, consuming inorganic matter, absorbing light, or some combination of these. Some can produce nutrients internally by consuming basic elements, while some must consume other organisms to obtain pre-existing nutrients. All forms of life require <a href="/facts/Carbon/ukrgQexo">carbon</a>, <a href="/facts/Biological_thermodynamics/uQG6zfcK">energy</a>, and <a href="/facts/Water/0lkXnJPK">water</a> as well as various other <a href="/facts/Molecule/N9ljSfFq">molecules</a>. Animals require complex nutrients such as <a href="/facts/Carbohydrate/Geuuzxsf">carbohydrates</a>, <a href="/facts/Lipid/TdQR87HX">lipids</a>, and <a href="/facts/Protein/Jxmagu3E">proteins</a>, obtaining them by consuming other organisms. Humans have developed <a href="/facts/Agriculture/TGztqzJs">agriculture</a> and <a href="/facts/Cooking/YWVfGWD1">cooking</a> to replace <a href="/facts/Foraging/o2u7xmHD">foraging</a> and advance human nutrition. Plants acquire nutrients through the <a href="/facts/Soil/5Ddpr3QM">soil</a> and the atmosphere. Fungi absorb nutrients around them by breaking them down and absorbing them through the <a href="/facts/Mycelium/znB97XNn">mycelium</a>. </p>