Nutrition and Balanced Diet
Nutrition and Balanced Diet
Nutrients are the substances in food that the body needs. There are six — carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and water — plus roughage. A balanced diet contains all of them in the right proportion for a person's age and work.
The nutrients and their work
| Nutrient | Work in the body | Main sources |
|---|---|---|
| Carbohydrates | Give energy - the body's main fuel | Rice, wheat, potato, sugar, banana |
| Proteins | Build and repair the body - body-building foods | Pulses, milk, egg, fish, meat, soyabean |
| Fats | Give concentrated energy and keep the body warm | Oil, ghee, butter, nuts |
| Vitamins | Protect against disease - protective foods | Fruits and vegetables |
| Minerals | Build bones and teeth, keep the body working | Milk, green leaves, salt, fish |
| Water | Carries nutrients, controls temperature, removes waste | Water, milk, juice, fruits |
| Roughage or fibre | Not a nutrient, but helps the food move and prevents constipation | Whole grains, vegetables, fruit skins |
Three groups of food
- Energy-giving — carbohydrates and fats: rice, wheat, oil, ghee.
- Body-building — proteins: dal, milk, egg, fish, meat.
- Protective — vitamins and minerals: fruits and vegetables.
This three-group scheme is the one used in primary textbooks, and CTET questions usually ask which group a given food belongs to.
A balanced diet
A balanced diet is not an expensive diet. Dal-chawal with a green vegetable, a piece of jaggery and a glass of buttermilk covers all three groups at low cost. The teaching point of the chapter is that balance, not price, decides nutrition, which matters directly for children who eat the mid-day meal.
- Growing children and pregnant women need more protein, iron and calcium.
- A person doing heavy physical work needs more energy foods.
- Overcooking and throwing away the water in which vegetables are boiled destroys vitamins.
The mid-day meal
The mid-day meal scheme, now called PM POSHAN, provides a cooked meal in government and aided schools. Its purposes are nutrition, regular attendance and social equity — children of all castes eating together in one line. A CTET question sometimes asks the last of these, which is easy to overlook.
✗ Fruits and vegetables are body-building foods. | ✓ They are protective foods; body-building foods are proteins such as dal, milk and egg.
संकेत: ऊर्जा देने वाले (कार्बोहाइड्रेट, वसा), शरीर बनाने वाले (प्रोटीन), रक्षा करने वाले (विटामिन, खनिज)।
Nutrition gives 1-2 questions, usually asking the function of a nutrient or the group a food belongs to. The most repeated trap places pulses among energy foods or fruits among body-building foods. Roughage is asked separately — remember it is not a nutrient but is needed for digestion. Keep the PM POSHAN purposes ready, since the social-equity purpose appears as a distractor-heavy question.
Frequently asked questions
What is a balanced diet?
A diet containing carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and water in the right proportion for a person's age and activity, along with roughage. It depends on balance and variety rather than on cost.
Which foods are called body-building foods?
Protein-rich foods such as pulses, milk, curd, paneer, eggs, fish, meat and soyabean. They are used by the body to build new tissue and to repair what is damaged, which is why growing children need them.
Why is roughage important if it is not a nutrient?
Because fibre adds bulk to food and helps it move through the digestive system, preventing constipation. It comes from whole grains, vegetables, fruit skins and pulses, and is not absorbed by the body.
60-second recap
- Six nutrients: carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, water.
- Three groups: energy-giving, body-building, protective.
- Roughage is not a nutrient but is needed for digestion.
- A balanced diet depends on variety and balance, not on cost.
- PM POSHAN gives nutrition, attendance and social equity.