TCE Food and Nutrition past exams 2021–2025, by year and topic

The rest of the syllabus

Question-level mapping for these areas is still being verified. Every official paper covering them is in the year table above.

• Energy balance, basal metabolism and interpreting energy data — What energy balance describes · BMR is a baseline, not the whole daily requirement · Calculating energy from macronutrients · Energy density and nutrient density answer different questions · Using energy requirements without turning an estimate into a diagnosis · Building a complete energy-analysis response
• Carbohydrates, fibre and explaining food substitutions — Classify carbohydrates without ranking foods by one label · Digestible carbohydrate provides energy through a sequence of processes · Dietary fibre acts through several mechanisms · Glycaemic index is not the amount of carbohydrate in a serve · Read sugar and fibre information on the same comparison basis · Explain a carbohydrate substitution with a mechanism and a limitation
• Dietary fats, essential fatty acids and blood lipoproteins — Use chemical structure to distinguish fat types · Fat has several necessary functions · Essential fatty acids must come from the diet · Lipoproteins transport lipids in blood · Interpret trans-fat and saturated-fat evidence carefully · Evaluate the replacement, the portion and the whole menu
• Protein functions, essential amino acids and complementary sources — Protein is a family of molecules with different functions · Essential amino acids define an important nutritional requirement · Use complete and incomplete protein terminology with care · Complementary sources work within an overall dietary pattern · Calculate protein amounts and distinguish energy from requirements · Evaluate a protein recommendation in its food context
• Folate and vitamin D: functions, sources and life-stage interpretation — Classify vitamins without assuming they supply energy · Explain folate through cell division and early development · Choose and handle folate-containing foods thoughtfully · Vitamin D and calcium have related but different roles · Check vitamin D sources and the correct reference category · Integrate micronutrient evidence in a menu analysis
• Minerals in oxygen transport, bone, thyroid and fluid regulation — Iron supports oxygen transport and energy metabolism · Food source and meal composition affect iron absorption · Calcium has skeletal and regulatory functions across life · Iodine supports thyroid hormone and has a specific fortification pathway · Sodium and potassium support fluid balance, nerves and muscles · Analyse mineral data without confusing servings, units or health status
• Water balance, non-nutrient compounds and safe food handling — Water is an essential nutrient with highly variable requirements · Hydration evidence needs more than one dramatic sign · Non-nutrient food components can still affect health and behaviour · Food spoilage and food contamination are related but different · Control potentially hazardous food with cumulative time and temperature · A food-safety plan connects hazard, control and verification
• Using NRVs, nutrient density and food-label data responsibly — Each Nutrient Reference Value answers a different question · Reference values require the correct group, timescale and uncertainty · Energy density and nutrient density describe different ratios · Nutrition Information Panels support comparison and intake estimates · Dietary analysis combines food data with pattern-level evidence · Build a recommendation as a transparent evidence chain
• Dietary patterns, chronic-disease risk and proportionate prevention — Chronic disease develops through interacting risks, not one meal · Cardiovascular risk involves blood lipids, blood pressure and dietary pattern · Type 2 diabetes risk concerns glucose regulation and insulin resistance · Body weight data require energy context and respectful interpretation · Population statistics need denominators, definitions and dates · Prevention recommendations should act on more than information
• Designing ethical nutrition research and interpreting dietary evidence — A research question determines the method and claim · Ethical nutrition research protects people throughout the data lifecycle · Dietary assessment methods produce different kinds of error · Validity, reliability, bias and confounding must be distinguished · Analyse dietary data transparently before drawing conclusions · Evidence appraisal connects method, result and recommendation
• Comparing nutritional requirements across the life course — Requirements change with growth, body size and physiology · Infancy and childhood combine rapid growth with small food capacity · Adolescence adds puberty, bone accumulation and changing independence · Pregnancy and lactation involve specific nutrients, not eating for two · Older adulthood changes energy needs, function and risk of inadequate intake · A life-stage comparison must remain evidence-based and practical
• Using the ADGs, AGHE and NRVs to analyse and modify food patterns — Food selection tools answer different questions · A two-day analysis needs quantities, frequency and pattern · Nutrition labels support product comparison when denominators match · Recipe analysis starts with yield and edible quantity · Balanced eating patterns differ from restrictive diet trends · Recommendations should be prioritised, measurable and justified
• How body signals, senses, beliefs and habits shape food selection — Hunger, appetite and satiety are related but distinct · Sensory properties influence expectations and acceptance · Food allergy and intolerance affect choice through different mechanisms · Values, beliefs and attitudes guide interpretation of food · Habits, emotions and self-concept organise repeated choices · Food choice is a system of interacting influences
• Culture, community, markets and the development of Australian food patterns — Culture and tradition shape meaning, skills and shared practice · Australian food culture has Indigenous foundations and colonial disruption · Lifestyle, work and community alter time, place and company · Regulation, marketing and media construct the choice environment · Affordability, availability and resources constrain feasible choice · Integrated case analysis avoids single-cause explanations
• Using Tasmania's health-promotion framework to plan and evaluate action — Working in Health Promoting Ways is a Tasmanian framework · Partnerships and engaging people redistribute knowledge and power · Evidence-informed practice combines research, local data and experience · Equity and supportive environments address unequal opportunity · Systems change embeds conditions beyond a short campaign · Campaign evaluation separates process, impact and outcome
• Using food labels and evaluating nutrition marketing — Australian food labels combine mandatory and voluntary information · The Nutrition Information Panel supports two different comparisons · Claims have defined meanings and evidence requirements · Health Star Ratings are a comparison aid with a defined scope · Marketing works through product, price, placement and promotion · A complete label critique integrates law, numeracy and audience
• Food security, supply chains and interventions in Australia and developing countries — Food security requires availability, access, utilisation and stability · Distribution links production with reliable household access · Australian food insecurity is mainly an access problem for many households · A developing-country intervention should combine immediate and durable strategies · Strategies work best when technology, education, policy and aid reinforce each other · Interventions need indicators, counterfactual thinking and ethical evaluation
• Evaluating sustainable food systems from farm to household — Ecological sustainability protects the resource base of food systems · Production practices can build soil, water and biodiversity resilience · Processing, packaging and cold chains involve linked trade-offs · Food-waste prevention follows a hierarchy · Dietary patterns influence production demand and environmental pressure · Sustainability evaluation compares at least three multi-strategy examples
• Assessing innovation, regulation and trade-offs in future food systems — Emerging technology should be judged by problem, evidence and context · Gene editing and genetic modification require precise descriptions · Controlled environments trade land and water control for capital and energy · Precision fermentation and cellular agriculture change production pathways · Digital traceability and artificial intelligence depend on data quality · Technology evaluation integrates food security, sustainability and health
• Planning, conducting and communicating a defensible food-and-nutrition investigation — A focused question determines the investigation design · Methods must match the question and produce valid evidence · Ethical practice continues from recruitment to data destruction · Analysis preserves denominators, uncertainty and data quality · Communication should let an audience trace evidence to conclusion · Evaluation and reflection turn one project into better practice