Health & Feature

Health tips for students-Food

Dr. Bijoy Bhushon Das

We need food for three main reasons: for preventing diseases, for curing diseases and for maintaining physical fitness. Right food promotes our health, so also wrong food promotes diseases.

The innumerable cells, glands, tissues, muscles and many other small and big organs of our body work incessantly to keep the entire body mechanism active and energetic. Food provides them essential nutrients without which any organ of the body may revolt, or one or two may become so weak that they will be simply incapable of discharging their duties properly. The problems that will arise are what we call 'diseases'. We must therefore ensure the supply of carbohydrate, minerals, vitamins, proteins and fat in right dose and quality.

You can have sufficient supply of these nutrient elements from common daily food items if you are a little bit alert in your food selection. Choose your food items in such a way that they will ensure proper supply of the five essential elements for your body.

Seeds, vegetables and fruits: These three types of food provide the five basic nutrient elements to our body. A meal prepared with items taken from each group is called a 'balanced diet.' Do rush for a balanced diet to get a disease-free body.

Seeds and cereals: They include items such as rice, wheat, pulses, almond, beans etc. They generally supply the essential element called 'carbohydrate'. In gaining strength and proper growth of your body, they play a powerful role. The importance of the seeds and cereals is beyond description in deferring our old age.

Vegetables: Vegetables are the source of minerals, proteins, vitamins and many other important elements, such as dietary fibre and physiochemical-antioxidants. Without all these elements your bones will not develop properly; hair will start falling, and you'll feel the lack of appetite along with many other physical complications. If you do not receive the right supply of antioxidants, you become vulnerable to cancer, and wear and tear of early aging.

Fruits: Different kinds of fruits are sources of minerals, vitamins, and enzymes. The special characteristic of fruits is that they contain huge amount of alkaline but less quantity of protein and fat. Another good side of fruits is that as soon as we consume fruit, we become energized immediately and our fatigue is removed at once. The vitamins which we receive from food help the body not only to digest the fats and carbohydrates but also to assimilate the nutrient elements from them.

In addition to these four categories of food, it is essential for you to add complementary foods, like milk, curd, honey etc. to your daily food menu. They are elements that will meet the deficiency of carbohydrate, proteins, vitamins in your body.

By combining all the above mentioned items in your daily food in right proportion, you can all expect to avoid various types of diseases and live an active, fit life-the much desired life of a youngster.

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