Page 223 - Health, Population and Environment Education 9

ii. Food obtained from plants
Cereals like rice, wheat, maize, millet, buckwheat, etc.
Legumes like beans, gram, red pulses, lentils, soyabean, etc.
Fats like oil
Vegetables like green-leafy vegetables, underground vegetables like potato, sweet
potato, yam, etc.
Fruits like apple, mango, guava, papaya, etc.

b. On the basis of major functions
Energy-giving foods like carbohydrate and fats
Body-building foods like protein
Protective foods like vitamins, minerals, etc.
The food that we take undergoes through the process of digestion. The final products of
the food are transmitted to the cells and tissues of the body through the circulatory system
by means of blood. This helps in the growth and development, repair and maintenance of
the body as well as to give energy to do various types of work.

An outline of our essential nutrition
For proper functioning of our body, it requires different types of nutrients. Nutrients are
those chemical components in foods that are used by an organism to grow and survive. So,
in order to supply the essential nutrients required for the body, we must take balanced and
nutrients diet. Our body is composed of the following elements in the given proportion.

Protein 17% Fats 13.8%
Carbohydrates 1.5% Minerals 61.6%
Water 6.1%
The above table doesn’t include vitamin though it is one of the essential nutrients required
for the body. It is because vitamin is not stored in our body. So, the essential vitamin for
the body should be taken through our diet regularly. Some of the required nutrients are
described below:
A. Carbohydrates
It is an essential element of nutrition. It is one of the cheapest, easiest and important
elements gained from the food materials. Nepalese diet provides 70%–80% of carbohydrates
required for the body. It is the chief source of energy and heat for the body.
One gram of carbohydrates provides 4 calories of energy. We can obtain carbohydrates
from plants and animals.
Source of carbohydrates
i. Plant sources

Rice, wheat, maize, millet, buckwheat, sweet potato, yam, sugar, pulses, apple, bread,
vegetables, etc.
GREEN Environment Population and Health Education Book-9 223