State four important functions of food.
Answers
All foods contain one or a combination of the 6 nutrients. If you eat a balanced diet consisting of a variety of healthy foods, you are certain to receive these nutrients every day. Food has 3 main functions in the body:
Growth and Development
Provision of Energy
Repair and maintenance of the body's cells
Growth and Development
Babies , young children and adolescents grow at a rapid rate, while in adults and the elderly most growth has stopped and nutrients are mostly used for maintaining their bodies.
Your body cells must be able to grow and develop as you do, and food plays a major part in this. Protein, for example, is the building block for every body tissue cell such as bone, teeth, skin, and muscle. If a person is lacking protein in the diet, problems may occur such as stunted growth.
Food provides the materials needed to build, repair and maintain body tissues. Proteins, fats and minerals are the best nutrients for growth. Growing bodies need extra amounts of these nutrients. Every person, whether growing or not, is going through a continual repair process of replacing injured or dead cells. It is food that supplies the nutrients necessary for this process.
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Energy
Food supplies the fuel or energy needed to perform the many tasks of everyday living. We need energy to think, breathe, walk, sit, speak and even sleep. We get energy from carbohydrates, proteins and fats. It is important that we eat enough food to supply all our needs. If we don't, we will feel tired and listless. Having no energy can be compared to a car that has run out of petrol. On the other hand, if we eat more energy food than our body needs, this energy will be stored in the body as fat. Too much stored energy will result in the body becoming overweight or obese.