Fiducia TogetherNutrients
What food is made of, and what each part does in the body.
Please note: This page explains a word or a process in education. It is general information about the system, the law and the guidance in England — not advice about your child, your school or your exam. If a decision is going against you, get advice from one of the free services we link to before you agree to anything or miss a deadline. If you are revising, check your own exam board's specification: boards word things differently and yours is the one that marks you.
What it is
Macronutrients are protein, fat and carbohydrate. Micronutrients are vitamins and minerals. Water and fibre are also essential.
Where it applies
GCSE food preparation and nutrition, hospitality and catering, and health and social care.
How it works
Each has functions worth learning: protein for growth and repair, carbohydrate for energy, fat for energy and fat-soluble vitamins, calcium for bones and teeth, iron for haemoglobin, vitamin C for absorption of iron and for connective tissue.
Deficiencies have named consequences — anaemia, rickets, scurvy — which questions ask for.
How to use it in your work
Learn function AND source AND deficiency for each nutrient. Questions ask for all three.
For diet-planning questions, name the nutrient, the source you have included and the person's specific need. "Extra calcium from yoghurt, because she is a teenager still building bone density."
Use the Eatwell Guide by name when discussing balance.
Where to get help
Your teacher and your board's specification — these qualifications vary more between boards than the traditional GCSEs do, and much of the grade is coursework marked against stated criteria.
Revise this with a song
These are ours. We write revision songs because a lot of people remember a tune when they cannot remember a page, and because revising out loud in the kitchen beats staring at a highlighter.
- The Food Tech Song The food preparation and nutrition topics, set to music.
Where to read more
Last reviewed 2026-08-28 by Fiducia Together · Next review due 2027-08-28
Please note: This page explains a word or a process in education. It is general information about the system, the law and the guidance in England — not advice about your child, your school or your exam. If a decision is going against you, get advice from one of the free services we link to before you agree to anything or miss a deadline. If you are revising, check your own exam board's specification: boards word things differently and yours is the one that marks you.