A balanced diet contains foods from all seven food groups in the proper amounts. It provides enough energy for one's age, sex, occupation, climate, health conditions, and body size. Dietary fiber from fruits and vegetables is important for digestive health, while water is essential for life and makes up 60-70% of our body weight. It transports nutrients, regulates temperature, and is lost through sweat, urine, feces, and breathing. Consuming the right amount of a balanced diet prevents weight gain or loss and deficiency diseases.

1. Balance Diet

2. Dietary fibre (roughage)
•Dietary fibre consists mainly of cellulose that is
indigestible because we do not have enzymes to digest
it.
•Fruits and vegetable are rich in dietary fibre.
•Importance of dietary fibre:
a.Provides bulk to the intestinal contents.
b.Stimulates peristalsis (rhythmic muscular contractions
passing along the digestive tract)
•Lack of dietary fibre in the diet leads to constipation
(failure to pass motions)

3. Water
•Water is a very essential for life because 60% to 70%
of our body weight is water.
•We can survive for several weeks without food but
would be die in a few days without water.
•Importance of water:
a.Act as a solvent in which chemicals dissolve
b.Acts as a transporting agent for digested food,
excretory products, hormones and antibodies.
c.Takes part in biochemical reactions (for example,
digestion)

4. d. A major component of blood, body fluids,
digestive juices and urine.
e. Regulates body temperature by
evaporation of sweat from the skin.
•We require at least 1.5 litres of water daily to
replace water lost in sweat, urine faeces and
exhaled air.

5. The Importance of a Balance Diet
•Diet refers to the food we eat.
•A balance diet is a diet that contains all the seven classes
of food in the right amount.
•The amount of food or energy that a person needs
depends on several factors:
•Age – a teenager needs more food, especially proteins
than an old man who is no longer growing.
•Body size – people with bigger body sizes require more
energy than those with smaller body sizes.
•Sex – males require more energy than females because
males have a smaller amounts of fatty tissues in their
body. Thus, heat loss is faster in males than in females.

6. Different factors

7. •Occupation – a person who does heavy work
needs much more energy than a person who is
only moderately active.

8. •Climate – people living in cold countries lose more
heat to their surrounding compared with those living
in the tropics. They need more energy in order to
maintain their body temperature.

9. •State of health – a person suffering from hyperthyroidism (over activity
of the thyroid gland in the neck) requires more energy.
•The amount of food eaten must balance the quantity of energy used. If
we eat too much, we will gain weight and become obese. If we eat too
little, we will lose weight. Feel weak and may suffer from difficiency
diseases.

10. Food Pyramid

11. Calorific value of food
•The energy content of food is indicated by its calorific
or energy value.
•Carbohydrates, fats and protein supply us with
energy.
•The energy value of food is measured with a
calorimeter.
•The unit of energy in food can be measured in
calories (cal) or joules (J) where 1 cal is equals 4.2 J.
1 cal = 4.2 J

12. Class of food Energy value (kJ g⁻₁
Carbohydrates 17
Proteins 18
Fats 39
Energy value of carbohydrates,
proteins and fats

13. Foodstuff Carbohydr
ates (g)
Protein
(g)
Fat (g) Energy
value
(kJ g⁻₁
Rice 78.0 7.1 1.1 1508
Potato 18.9 2.0 0.1 344
Bread 51.3 7.2 1.8 1029
Refined
sugar
100 0 0 1626
Composition and energy value
per 100 g of foodstuff

14. Margarine 0.4 0.6 81 3024
Cow’s milk 5.0 3.5 3.5 273
Fresh
anchovies
0 17.9 1.1 344
Dries
anchovies
0 46 3.0 937
Crab 2.0 18 1.5 395

15. Food Quantity Energy value (kJ)
Egg 1 medium size 300
White bread 1 piece 400
Cornflakes ½ cup 200
Doughnut 1 piece 300
Curry puff 1 piece 180
Fried rice 1plate 3000
Fried noodles 1plate 2200
Rice 1plate 2800
Chicken rice 1plate 2000
Banana 1 piece 400
Full cream milk 1 glass 680