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Balanced diet
Meaning of balanced diet
Balanced diet is a diet consisting of the proper quantities and proportions of foods needed to maintain health or growth. Every diet needs a balance of three main categories of nutrients: carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Calories are units of energy in our food.
When we talk about a balanced diet it means choosing a variety of foods from the different food groups – specifically: vegetables and fruits; protein (meat, fish, eggs, beans, soy); dairy (low-fat milk, cheese, yogurt); carbohydrates (starchy foods like rice, pasta, potatoes and bread – preferably wholegrain or whole wheat varieties); and a small quantity of healthy fats such as the unsaturated fat from olive oil. Drink plenty of water to keep hydrated and to help your body function better.
A well-balanced diet provides all of the energy you need to keep active throughout the day as well as nutrients you need for growth and repair, helping you to stay strong and healthy and help to prevent diet-related illness, such as some cancers.
Put simply, it means eating foods that contain all classes of food written below:
- Food for growth………beans, fish, egg, meat
- Food for energy………yam, Garri, tuwo, corn, pounded yam
- Food for protection and digestion e.g. fruits like pawpaw, water, melon, orange
Quiz
- What is a balanced diet?
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