BALANCED DIET

 Introduction

Balance diet is one which contains different type of foods in such quantities and proportion that the need for calories, minerals, vitamins and other nutrients is adequately met and a small provision is made for extra nutrients to withstand short durations of leanness.

A balanced should consist of

. consists of different types of food items,

. meets the need for nutrients and

. provides for periods of leanness when the diet may possibly not supply adequate amounts of all nutrients.

In this blog we will learn about the planning of balance diet

Planning Balance Diet

Planning of balanced diet includes 

The selection of the right kind of foods, and

The inclusion of suitable amounts of these foods so as to meet nutrient needs.

Use of food groups in planning balanced diet

What is food group?

Food group consist of a number of food items sharing common characteristics.

These characteristics may be:

. the source or 

. the physiological function performed

Let us now examine these two ways of classifying food into groups.

A. Classification based on source:

The simplest and most obvious classification is based on the interrelatedness of certain food items in terms of similar sources. The following categories are commonly identified even by a lay person.

. Cereals and millets

. Pulses

. Nut and oil seeds

. Green leafy vegetables

. Roots vegetables

. Other vegetables

. Fruits

. Milk and milk products

. Sugar and jaggery

. Fats and oils

. Flesh foods( fish, meat, poultry )

. Eggs

. Condiments and spices

B. Classification of food based on function:

The three group classification based on function

Group 1. Energy-giving foods

Food rich in carbohydrates or fats or both provides energy for instance.

The energy-giving category includes three types of foods:

1) Carbohydrate-rich foods A 

    cereals, roots and tuber

2) Carbohydrate-rich foods B

    sugar and jaggery

3) Fat-rich foods

    fats and oils

Group 2. Body-building foods

Food rich in protein aid in body-building or in other words, addition of new tissues and repair worn out tissue.

The body building group includes those foods which are rich in protein. The group includes.

. Milk and milk products

. Meat and meat products

. Fish 

. Eggs

. Pulses

. Nuts and oil seeds

Group 3. Protective/regulatory foods

Vitamins and minerals presents in food contribute to preventing disease. This is called the protective function. Water, fiber and of course, the vitamins and minerals play a role in regulating body functions.

Foods in the protective regulatory category include:

Fruit

Yellow and orange fruits, citrus fruits and other fruits like plum, banana etc..

Vegetables

Green leafy vegetables, yellow and orange vegetables and other vegetables like brinjal, cauliflower, cabbage, etc..

Green leafy vegetables, yellow and orange fruits, vegetables and citrus fruits are emphasis because they are 

particularly rich in carotene/vitamin C as well as minerals.

Conclusion

From this blog we can conclude that one has to ensure that each and every meal includes foods from the energy-giving, body-building and protective/regulatory groups. In this manner the diet would supply all essential nutrients and would become balanced.