Food and Health - Sources, Importance and the Need for A Balance Diet and Healthy Food Habits
An Introduction to Food and Its Importance
Living organisms need food to survive. It is the basic necessity. Food gives us energy to work, keeps us healthy, helps in body growth and helps in immunity development. We can eat both uncooked and cooked food.
Uncooked food are those that can be eaten raw, e.g. fruits and milk. Cooked foods are those that are prepared by applying heat. It makes them soft, tasty and easy to digest, e.g. rice and pulses. In this chapter, we will study about food, nutrition, balanced diet and healthy food habits.
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Sources of Food
Plants and animals are the main sources of food. For example - fruits and vegetables are obtained from plants. Milk, meat, chicken, eggs, and fish are obtained from animals.
Food and Nutrition
We eat a variety of food items such as rice, wheat (chapati), pulses (dal), fruits, vegetables, spices and edible oils. All of these food items contain essential and healthy substances known as ‘nutrients’ in them. Every food item has nutrients in different quantities.
Type of Nutrients
The five major types of nutrients are carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. In the given picture, you can see the different types of food items that are rich in respective nutrients.
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Importance of Nutrients
Nutrients are essential for proper growth and development of the body. Now, let us understand the importance of each nutrient one by one.
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Carbohydrates and Fats - Energy producers : These two nutrients provide our body with the energy to grow and work. Example - Rice, wheat, potato, sugar and butter.
Proteins - Body builders : They help in development and growth of the body. They also help to repair injured cells. Example - Pulses, eggs, milk, cheese, beans and fish.
Vitamins and Minerals - Body protective : These two nutrient groups help our body to fight infections and contribute to the formation of teeth, bones and blood. Example - Fruits, vegetables, milk and eggs.
Balanced Diet
There is no single food that contains all the nutrients in the desired quantities. Due to this reason, we need a balanced diet for the proper functioning of our body. A ‘balanced diet’ consists of proper proportions of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and water on a plate.
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Importance of Water and Dietary Fibre in Food
Dietary fibre is also known as ‘roughage’. It is obtained from plants, and particularly from fruits, vegetables and outer covering of pulses and cereals. It is the indigestible portion of food, which with water; helps in removing the wastes from the body and cleaning the digestive system. Water also helps to regulate the body temperature.
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Healthy Food Habits
For food to give us benefits, we should follow some healthy food habits.
Fresh fruits and certain vegetables should be consumed only raw in the form of salad, in order to get its maximum nutrients
Hard to digest foods should always be cooked. It makes them soft and easy to digest.
Fruits and vegetables should always be washed thoroughly before eating.
We should drink plenty of water to stay hydrated. Ideally, we should drink 7-8 glasses of water daily.
We should always wash our hands with soap and water before and after eating the meals.
We should not eat the food that has been kept in the open. It is because it could be exposed to several dust, germs and flies, which can cause diseases.
Benefits and Examples of Healthy Food
Eating healthy food keeps our eyes, teeth and skin healthy. Example - eggs, milk, vegetables.
Healthy food supports building muscles. Example - Milk, eggs, chicken, etc.
It supports brain development. Example - Green vegetables, apples, oatmeal, etc.
Healthy food helps in boosting the immune system. Example - Citrus fruits, garlic, ginger, almonds, etc
It also helps in strengthening the bones. Example - Dairy food items, nuts, tofu, etc.
Foods to Avoid
We should avoid eating ‘junk food’ because it does not have any nutrients. It is generally fried food and contains too many carbohydrates (calories), salt and oil. If we keep eating junk food rather than healthy food, we will become sick and diseased.
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Solved Questions
Cereals are rich in which type of nutrients?
Ans: Cereals are rich in carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are a type of energy giving food.
Why should we avoid eating junk food?
Ans: We should not eat junk food regularly because it does not contain any essential nutrients. Also, eating junk food can make us fat.
Which vegetarian food is obtained from animals?
Ans: The vegetarian food that is obtained from animals is milk.
Fun Facts
‘Milk’ is known to be the ‘complete food’ because it contains almost all the nutrients that the body needs.
Chocolate was once used as currency (money) by the Maya Civilisation.
The shelf life of pure honey is very long. It can last upto 3000 years.
Summary
In this chapter, we have learnt about food, its sources and importance. We also studied the types of nutrients present in food and their importance. Then, we discussed what is a balanced diet and what food should be avoided for eating. We also learnt the healthy food habits that everyone should follow.
Learning By Doing
1. Put each food item in the correct nutrient group.
2. Name five food items each that are obtained from plants and animals.
FAQs on Food and Health - Sources, Importance and the Need for A Balance Diet and Healthy Food Habits
1. Why is it important to cook food?
Cooking is important because it makes the food soft, tasty and easy to digest. It also kills germs.
2. What is the main cause of obesity? Mention some food items that lead to obesity.
Obesity means being ‘overweight’. When a person eats too much without doing any physical activity, he or she becomes obese. Mostly, eating too much junk food leads to obesity, but it is also caused by higher consumption of sugar, ghee, and butter.
