Fitness Needs

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The Proper Way to Diet
by Susie Dieet
http://www.rndiet.com

Taking a balanced diet is almost as necessary and important
as taking breath or drinking water. Although, you cannot
stop breathing or drinking for the fear of death, the
result of not taking a proper diet results in situations
which is not far from a death like situation. So, the
question arises as to what is a balanced diet?

A balanced diet is a diet that has all the nutrients
available in it in appropriate amount. It must contain
carbohydrates, protein, fat, vitamin, mineral salts and
fibers. It is also necessary that these nutrients are
present in proper proportions. Taking of water should also
not be forgotten.

Carbohydrate is comprised of carbo-carbon, -hydro-hydrogen
and ate-oxygen. Carbohydrate is considered the most
important source of energy. Our body gets most of the
carbohydrates in the form of starch. Our digestive system
converts this starch into glucose as our body cannot
directly utilize starch. Rich sources of starch are
potato, rice, spaghetti, yams, bread and cereals. The
sugar that we take is another form of carbohydrate called
sucrose. It also has to be converted into glucose before
it can be absorbed by our body.

Carbohydrates are nutrients which contain hydrogen, carbon,
and oxygen. They are the source of most of our body's
energy. Carbohydrates are usually in the form of starches
which our body converts to glucose. Potatoes, rice, and
bread are all good sources of carbohydrates.

Proteins are comprised of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen,
nitrogen, and sometimes sulfur. The body converts proteins
into amino acids of which there are 20 types. These amino
acids are used for the growth and repair of the body.
Proteins can be found in meat, beans, and nuts.

Our body requires vitamins in very small quantities. It
helps the body retain good health. The body cannot
synthesize vitamins and it has to be obtained from the diet
itself. The different types of vitamins are Vitamin A,
Vitamin B, Vitamin C, Vitamin D, and Vitamin E. A person
can survive for some time without vitamins but a prolonged
vitamin deficiency may result in a disease state that may
be potentially deadly.

Although mineral salts are more abundant in our body than
vitamins our body must still acquire some mineral salts
through food and outside sources. Examples of mineral
salts are iron, calcium, sodium, and iodine. These
minerals are very important to the body. Iron is required
to create hemoglobin. Calcium is used to keep teeth and
bones healthy. Sodium is required by every cell in the
body, especially nerve cells. Finally iodine is needed to
produce thyroxin.

Fiber or roughage can prevent constipation by helping food
to move easily through the intestines. The reason for this
is that the body can not digest roughage. Thus it moves
straight through the bowel. It also may carry other foods
with it.

Water is perhaps the most important part of our diets.
Every function in the body needs water to be carried out
properly. For example digestion requires ample amounts of
water. The recommended daily amount of water is eight
glasses a day. Dehydration is the #1 reason of
hospitalization every year. Avoid becoming part of this
statistic by drinking plenty of water, especially in the
summer.

To summarize, we can say that our body needs all the
nutrients in proper proportion. If your body lacks
protein, you won't grow properly and your body cells won't
be able to repair damaged cells or wounds. If you don't
get enough energy containing food, you would feel tired and
if you take too much fats and carbohydrates, you would turn
overweight.

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