Balance diet and its important

 

What is a Balanced Diet?

A diet that contains all the essential nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, fats, minerals, and water in correct proportion is called a Balanced Diet. Following are some of the important points about a balanced diet:

1. A balanced diet is important for the normal growth and development of our body.

2.  A balanced diet can be achieved by eating a variety of food items since there is no single food item with the correct amount of all the essential nutrients.

3. The quantity of nutrients in a balanced diet always differs with age, sex, and physical activities taken by an individual. Hence, eating a balanced diet requires a certain amount of knowledge and planning.

4. The basic composition of a balanced diet is highly variable as it changes from country to country depending upon the availability of food items.

5. The nutrition group of ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) has recommended the composition of a balanced diet for Indians. This includes cereals (like rice, wheat, jowar), pulses, roots and tubers, fruits, milk, and dairy products, fats and oils, sugar, and groundnuts. They also recommended an intake of meat, fish, and eggs for non-vegetarians.

What are food groups?

Foods are conventionally grouped as:

1. Cereals, millets and pulses

1. Vegetables and fruits

1. Milk and milk products, egg, meat and fish

1. Oils & fats and nuts & oilseeds

However, foods may also be classified according to their functions .

MAJOR NUTRIENTS	OTHER NUTRIENTS
ENERGY RICH FOODS	Carbohydrates & fats
	Whole grain cereals, millets	Protein, fibre, minerals, calcium,iron & B-complex vitamins
	Vegetable oils, ghee, butter	Fat soluble vitamins, essential fatty acids
	Nuts and oilseeds	Proteins, vitamins, minerals
	Sugars	Nil
BODY BUILDING FOODS	Proteins
	Pulses, nuts and oilseeds	B-complex vitamins, invisible fat, fibre
	Milk and Milk products	Calcium, vitamin A, riboflavin, vitamin B12
	Meat, fish, poultry	B-complex vitamins, iron, iodine, fat
PROTECTIVE FOODS	Vitamins and Minerals
	Green leafy vegetables	Antioxidants, fibre and other carotenoids
	Other vegetables and fruits	Fibre, sugar and antioxidants
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