HEALTH CARE

FOOD AND DIGESTION

A living thing needs food. We eat food everyday. The food keeps our body strong and healthy. It gives us energy to do work. It helps us to grow. The food habits of people are different in different places. The kind of food depends on the climate of the place. It depends on the work the people do and the food that is available in the place. About half of the people of the world are ill-fed. Only a few enjoy the right kind of food. The right kind of food is known as nutritious food or balanced diet.

1. Carbohydrates:- Sugar and starch are rich in carbohydrates. They are called fuel foods. They give us heat and energy. Sugar is present in fruits and sugarcane juice. Starch is present in almost every food we eat. Wheat, rice, potatoes, bread-all these contain starch.

2. Fats:- Fats also give energy and heat. It is also a fuel food. Fats of animals, butter, ghee and oils are all fats.

3. Proteins:- Protein is an important part of the foodstuff. All the cells of the body contain protein. We need proteins for building up. They are called tissue foods. They help us to grow.

 Meat, chicken, fish, eggs, beans, peas, milk and cheese are rich in proteins.

Food containing proteins should be included in the daily diet because the body cannot store proteins for latter use.

4. Minerals and Vitamins:- Meat, mild, fresh vegetables, cereals, eggs and fruits contain mineral salts in small quantities. They build strong bones and strong teeth. They keep our blood pure. They are necessary for healthy skin and for all chemical reactions in the body.

 Vitamins are needed in small amounts. They keep our body healthy. They protect our body against infection. We have vitamins A,B,C,D,E etc. Vitamins B and C dissolve in water but A,B,E dissolve only in fats.

Vitamins and minerals are called the protective foods.

5. Water:- All living things need water. We must drink plenty of water. Water is necessary for many fluids found in our body. It helps to keep our blood flowing. A part of the water comes out as urine removing many wastes like urea.

SMALL CHILDREN AND THEIR FOOD:-

Children continue to grow up to the age of 18.Growth in the younger stage is very rapid. So they must be given enough of growth-giving food. They should also be given food containing vitamins. The vitamins are health-giving food. So children should be given good food to enable them grow well and preserve their health.

The lack of vitamins in our daily leads to many health problems. We get skin infections, bone diseases and gum bleeding if our food does not contain different kinds of vitamins.

Children in many countries suffer a condition called malnutrition. Most of these children in our country come from poor families and are under-nourished. They do not even have three full meals. They do not know the value of a balanced diet. Our Government is spending crores of rupees to provide ‘balanced diet’ for poor children, in the ‘Midday Meal Scheme’.

SOME SIMPLE RULES TO GROW WELL:-

1. Drink milk daily

2. Eat plenty of fresh vegetables and fresh fruits. Seasonal vegetables like carrot, turnip, beet, pumkin and greens are rich in vitamins. Seasonal fruits like guava, papaya, orange, lemon, banana, mango and tomato are rich in vitamins and minerals.

3. Drink plenty of water.4-6 glasses between meals is ideal.
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4. Germinating seeds must be added as part of your food.

5. Avoid sweets. it is bad for teeth.

6. Avoid fried food. It will increase weight.
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DIGESTION OF FOOD

We need energy to do different kinds of work. You know that we get this energy from the carbohydrates and fats in our food, and that proteins are useful for repairing the wear and tear of our body and also the growth of our body.

Our body can make use of the constituents of the food we eat only when they reach all parts of the body. To carry the food constituents to all parts of the body is one of the functions of blood. However, food does not dissolve in the blood in the same form in which we eat it. The food we eat undergoes certain processes. These processes result in the formation of substances which can dissolve in blood. These processes are together called “digestion of food”. Organs engaged in these processes are called digestive Organs.

The digestive tube from the mouth to the anus forms the digestive system or alimentary canal. The mouth, the food pipe, the stomach, the small intestine and the large intestine form the alimentary cannal. The food undergoes different changes in the different parts of the alimentary canal.

The digestion starts in the mouth. We put the food in the mouth. Our teeth bite the food and grind the pieces of food well. Saliva (a liquid produced in some glands in the mouth) mixes with food when the teeth grind it. This juice(saliva)changes the starch contained in the food into sugar. The food is now soft and it is like a paste. Then the paste is swallowed. The food paste goes into the stomach through the gullet or the food pipe.

The food reaches the stomach and remains there for nearly four hours. The stomach is like a bag. Its walls are made of muscles. These muscles expand and contract. The food is well-churned. There are some glands in the stomach which produce a digestive juice. An acid is also produce. These mix with the food. The juice acts on some parts of the food. The acid kills harmful germs, if any, in the food. The food from the stomach passes into small intestine little by little.

The small intestine is very long and thin. The length of this tube is abut six metres and kept coiled in the belly and this occupies a large part of it. More digestive juices are produced here. One juice comes from liver. This is called bile. These juices act on the food. Digestion is completed in the small intestine. The digested parts of food are absorbed into the blood. What remains now is a waste material. This passes into the large intestine.

The large intestine is a wide tube. It is shorter than the small intestine. As the waste material passes along, this removes a lot of water from the waste material. The waste becomes fairly a solid. This is periodically thrown out of the body through the anus.

RULES TO BE FOLLOWED FOR PROPER DIGESTION OF FOOD:-

1. Chew the food well before swallowing it.

2. Do not over-eat because over-eating causes indigestion.

3. The swallowed food stays in the stomach for about four hours. So, do not 
  eat anything before 4 hours after taking meal.

4. Wash your hands well before every meal.

5. Before and after eating wash your mouth well.

6. Do not talk or laugh when you are taking food.

7. Do not play or take exercise just before or after meals.

8. Milk is a nourishing food. It can be easily digested. So drink at least a 
     glass or two of milk daily.

9. Eat all the meals at fixed hours.

10.Be cheerful while taking food.

FOOD COOKING

Most of the food we eat are well cooked. Cooking makes the food tasty, easily digestible and germs free. Fruits, nuts, carrot, faddish and tomato can be eaten raw.

COOKING OF FOOD:- We cook food in different ways. Boiling, steaming, frying, baking and roasting are different methods of cooking.

Rice, vegetables, red grams, green gram, beans and peas are cooked in boiling water. Bread and biscuits are prepared baking. Chapatis and papads are roasted on charcoal fire. Steaming is the method used for preparing many items like idlies.

Many kinds of sweets and savouries are prepared by the method of frying in ghee of vegetables oils.

RULES TO BE OBSERVED IN COOKING:-

Some vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, tomatoes, carrots and leafy vegetables should not be overcooked. Overcooking destroys the vitamins contained in them.

Vitamins are lost by our various methods of cooking.

Method of cooking loss of vitamins
1. Cooking in water Vitamin C and B

2. Cooking in steam Vitamin C and B

3. Cooking in pressure cooker Vitamin A,B and C

4 .Dry Roasting Proteins and Vitamin B

5. Baking Proteins and Vitamin B

6. Puffing Vitamin B

Cooking at high temperature and over a long period of time destroys the vitamins.

EATING FRUITS AND RAW VEGETABLES :-

a). Ripe fruits and raw vegetables are good for health. They should be eaten
daily.

b). It is not safe to eat all fruits and vegetables. Over ripe and rotten fruits
should not be eaten.

c). Cut fruits from hawkers should not be eaten. Such cut fruits are exposed
to flies. They deposit harmful germs on them. Roadside dust collects on
them.

d). Before eating fruits and vegetables they should be thoroughly washed with clean water.

SPOILAGE OF FOOD :-

Food is wasted due to spoilage y various agents.

a). Moulds, yeasts and bacteria are microorganisms. If food is left uncovered
they grow over it.

b). Moulds develop a white cotton-like appearance on food.

c). Bread moulds spoils bread.

d). Yeast spoils grapes and apples.

e). Bacteria spoils milk, eggs, meat and vegetables.

2 .Certain bugs, worms and flies grow in the foodstuff and spoil the food.

3. Certain conditions are favorable for spoilage of food.

f). If there is moisture in the food items, the microorganisms will grow.

g). If the temperature is high, the food items will start decaying.

h). Food gets putrefied quickly in summer than in winter.

i). If food substances are exposed to air, the microorganisms will grow.

4). If we fail to preserve and store the food properly, it will be spoilage
sometimes it will be eaten by rats and mice.

PRESERVATION OF FOOD

Preservation helps to avoid wastage of food. If food is preserved properly, can make seasonal food available throughout the year. If some delicio food items, are preserved properly, can be enjoyed throughout the year.

Fresh foodstuffs cannot stay longer in good condition, so they need to preserved. Bacteria and moisture spoil food. Thus for preserving food for long time it must be protected from bacteria and moisture. Following some methods of preserving food:

1. Low temperature:- Bacteria cannot survive or become inactive at very low temperatures. So, milk, eggs, meat and vegetables can be preserved by keeping them in a refrigerator.

In big towns and cities there are cold storages where vegetables and fruits in large number can remain fresh for a longer time.

2. Canning:- Foods like fruits, vegetables and fish are boiled, excess water is removed, sterilized and put into sterile germ free containers and tins. They are closed air-tight and sealed.


3. Pickling:- Pickling is the way of preserving some vegetables in excess oil. Salt is also a preservative. Lime, mango, prawn and many other vegetables are pickled with excess salt and oil in jars and bottles.

4. Salting:- Salt is a good preservative because micro-organisms cannot live in salt solution. Some vegetables and fruits can e salted and preserved for some time. Dry fish is salted and preserved.

5. Adding Sugar:- Sometimes fruits are preserved in sugar syrup. Sugar syrup removes water from bacteria and kills them. A good example of preservation of foodstuff by adding sugar is of jams. Fruit jams can be used throughout the year.

6.Chemical presevatives:-Preservatives stop microorganism growth in those foods that cannot be processed by such means as canning or freezing. Preservatives are used extensively in bread and other baked goods, pickled vegetables, fruit juices and cheese.

Common preservatives include benzoic acid, sorbic acid, and sulphur dioxide.

7.Drying:- Drying is a good method of preserving as it removes moisture and prevents the growth of bacteria and other micro-organisms. Few vegetables like brinjals, lady’s fingers, cauliflowers, peas, beans. chilies, coriander, unripe mango fruits, dates, grapes and banana chips are dried well and kept air tight for weeks and months in dry bottles or plastic containers.

Potato chips, papad of different types are also preserved by drying method.

8.Boiling:- Boiling kills bacteria. So, oiling also helps in the preservation of liquid food like milk.


PRESERVATION OF DRIED GRAINS:-

Food-grains like rice, wheat, maize, bajra, jowar and pulses like gram, peas, beans are dried well in the sun to remove the moisture. They are then kept in dry containers. Once in a while they should be exposed to sunlight.