3 minute read
Plant a Complete Diet
by Camille Alleyne
Our bodies need a variety of nutrients to facilitate healthy growth and proper function. Typically, foods have been divided into five categories of nutrients and each group offers specific benefits. These categories are proteins, vitamins, carbohydrates, fats and minerals.
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Let us plant a complete diet in our backyard. That way we will have the nutrients we need at our fingertips.
Your Essential Nutrients
Proteins:
Give energy, fight infections, and build and repair the body.
Vitamins:
Have different purposes e.g. vitamin A for eye health, B2 and B3 for growth and development, and C as an antioxidant.
Carbohydrates:
Provide energy and fibre.
Fats:
Also give us energy and they help us to absorb vitamins.
Minerals:
Can be divided into microminerals and macrominerals.
Even though microminerals are needed in trace quantities, they are extremely important for good health. Both types of minerals are multifunctional and necessary for a large number of body functions.
DO YOU WANT TO PLANT A COMPLETE DIET?
In this section, called Plant a Complete Diet, it should be noted that most foods contain myriad nutrients, but often one or two nutrients dominate.
We will show you how to produce the foods your family needs for a complete diet. The focus in this edition will be on eggs for protein, cucumbers for vitamins, ginger for minerals, bananas for carbohydrates and peanuts for fats.
Water – The Sixth Nutrient
There is, however, a sixth component that is vital to our health, and that is water. Many list this as a nutrient, though it may be more accurate to say that it performs as a catalyst, solvent and medium that:
1. carries nutrients and waste products around the body.
2. keeps the bloodstream at optimum fluidity.
4. regulates temperature, moistens mucous membranes, and lubricates joints.
3. helps skin remain supple.
Fibre, another essential to healthy eating, is actually a type of carbohydrate that our bodies are unable to digest. Fibre is found in all plant-based foods and can be categorised as soluble and insoluble. Soluble fibre dissolves in water. In its soluble form, the functions of fibre include the moderating of sugar and cholesterol levels. Insoluble fibre is the type with which most of us are familiar. We often call it ‘bulk’ or ‘roughage’. Insoluble fibre assists with the movement of food through the intestines, preventing constipation and aiding in digestive health.
According to Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health’s article, called The Nutrition Source, “High intake of dietary fiber has been linked to a lower risk of heart disease in a number of large studies that followed people for many years. In a Harvard study of over 40,000 male health professionals, researchers found that a high total dietary fiber intake was linked to a 40 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease.”
