Concept of nutrition and its importance
Concept of nutrition and its importance
At puberty, adolescents experience very quick physical development. To support this physical growth and development they need adequate nutrition. They should take a proper quantity of food with all necessary ingredients to supply energy, repair decay, and prevent diseases at the growing stage.
Lack of nutritious food causes mental and physical retardation and reduces the immune system. Therefore compared to other stages of life, people need more nutritious food at puberty. At this age, children remain busy with study, games, and sports, etc. Due to their physical activity, they need more calories. The intake of low-calorie food hampers physical and mental development.
Food ingredients
There are a number of ingredients of food namely protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamin, minerals, and water. Any food rich in any of the ingredients is known as such, for example, any food that contains protein is known as proteins and the food that contains carbohydrates is known as carbohydrates.
Sources of nutrients and their functions
Protein is necessary for bodybuilding, development, and growth of the body and to repair physical decay. Proteins are required for body energy and immunity. Fish, meat, milk, eggs, cheese, curd, pulses, beans, etc. are common sources of proteins.
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for all activities. Rice, wheat, corn, potato, sugar, honey, arum roots, sweets, etc. are sources of carbohydrates. Fats generate heat and energy for the body. Butter, ghee, fat, soya bean, milk, fish oil, coconut oil, etc. are the sources of fat.
Vitamins are essential to prevent diseases, maintain different activities inside the body and protect it from decay. Fish, meat, egg, milk, mustard oil, fish oil, green and red vegetables, fruits, beans, oilseeds, coarse ice, wheat with fiber, sprouted seeds are the sources of vitamins.
Minerals are very important for the internal functions of the body. There are many minerals in our body and every time they are discharged with urine, stool, and sweats they cause body decay. Some common minerals of our body are calcium, phosphorus, iodine, sodium, potassium, etc.
In order to compensate for the loss of minerals, we take salt, milk, milk food, small fish, meat, yolk, beans, vegetables, pulses, lime, banana, green coconut water, etc. 70% of our body consists of water. Water helps in maintaining the body structure, keeps the body cool and active, helps digest food, helps in blood circulation, transpiration of nutrition inside the body and also it helps digest food, helps in blood circulation, transpiration of nutrition inside the body and also it helps in exertion.
Timely intake of a sufficient amount of food is necessary for the maintenance and development of the body. By appropriate food, we mean a balanced diet. A balanced diet supplies the required calories to the body. A balanced diet contains the proper amount of each of the six nutrients mentioned above.
The required amount of balanced diet varies, depending on the age of people. For example, the requirements of carbohydrate, protein, fats, and other nutrients by an adolescent is higher than that of a child. Therefore the requirement of a balanced diet varies according to age, sex, and body structure.
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