Diet and Exercise

a) What is a healthy balanced diet?

• Know that a healthy diet contains the right balance of the different foods you need and the right amount of energy and the different food groups are ...

• Carbohydrates and fats are needed to provide energy for your body chemistry to function correctly, and of course to keep you warm at 37^oC,

  • but, not too much, or excessive fats or carbohydrates build up in your body which can lead to obesity.

  • Obesity is a common disorder in developed countries eg in Europe and the US.

  • Obesity is defined as 'having a body mass of at least 20% greater than the maximum recommended body mass.

  • Although the usual causes of obesity are overeating, lack of sufficient exercise and bad diet, hormonal problems can also help cause obesity.

  • Obesity can contribute to other medical problems eg arthritis (joint inflammation), type 2 diabetes (failure to control blood sugar levels), high blood pressure and heart disease and even some types of cancer.

  • If you have too much saturated fat in your diet, your blood cholesterol levels are raised above what is needed and deposits form on the walls of your blood vessels leading to higher blood pressure.

• Proteins are used by the body to build cells - growth of new tissue, cell repair and cell replacement.

• Mineral ions and vitamins are needed in small amounts for healthy functioning of the body - organs, skin, bones etc.

  • You do need mineral salts containing eg sodium, calcium, potassium and chloride ions BUT too much salt (sodium chloride) can cause high blood pressure and heart problems.

• Fibre keeps everything moving smoothly through your digestive system.

• A person is malnourished if their diet is not balanced.

• Lack of a good healthy diet can cause a person to be overweight or underweight.

• An unbalanced diet may also lead to deficiency diseases or conditions such as Type 2 diabetes.

• You need to eat the right types of healthy food and in the right amounts/proportions to maintain a healthy body.

• People who live on a poorly balanced diet are malnourished and malnourishment is common in the poorer developing countries of the world eg in Africa.

  • Don't confuse with starvation, where there is not enough food of any description to maintain life - the pictures you see on your TV of very thin people in Africa, on the edge of life exemplifies this pitiful state.

  • However, malnourished people can be overweight as well as thin, from an imbalanced diet eg those fat people who live off too much junk food and excess fat are as malnourished in some ways just…