Balanced diet definition and Why a balanced diet is important?

Balanced diet definition
A balanced diet is a healthy diet that gives nutrition to the body with the right portion, so that growth of the body can run optimally. Your daily calories intake can be obtained by consuming fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains.

All about calories
What are calories? Calorie is a unit to calculate the amount of energy. Each food that we eat, contain a number of calories needed by the body to perform an activity. Calories can be described as fuels of an engine to move or carry out their duties. Calories in food supplied by carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Among these three, fat contains calories the greatest. Each gram of fat contains 9 calories. Whereas each gram of protein and carbohydrates each containing 4 calories.
Calories of food used by our body to think, walk, breathe, talk, and other activities. To maintain body weight, the average person needs about 2000 calories per day. Age, gender, and level of physical activity is also very influential on amount of calories needed by a person’s body. Generally, men need more calories than women, and active people need more calories than people who are inactive (sedentary people).
Example of calorie intake guidelines based on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) can be seen below the following:
Children aged 2 to 8 years: 1000 to 1400 calories
Active women aged 14 to 30 years: 2400 calories
Sedentary women aged 14 to 30 years: 1800 to 2000 calories
Active men aged 14 to 30 years: 2800 to 3000 calories
Sedentary men aged 14 to 30 years: 2000 to 2600 calories
Active men and women aged over 30 years: 2200 to 3000 calories
Sedentary men and women aged over 30 years: 1800 to 2200 calories

The importance of balanced diet
Why a balanced diet is important? In order that the organs and tissues of the our body can work effectively, it needs proper nutrition, and proper nutrition can only be obtain with a balanced diet. With a balanced diet, our body will be protected from the disease, infection, fatigue, and bad performance. A poor diet in children can have a negative impact on growth. Therefore it is needed a balanced diet. Besides it properly balanced diet can also reduced the risk of diseases such as; diabetes, hypertension, heart diseases, obesity, stroke and cancer.

How to do a balanced diet
Actually to run a balanced diet is essentially consuming foods that high or rich in nutrients, such as; vitamins, minerals, fiber, and low in fats and sugars. The following are foods that are essential to success your balanced diet  program.
Fresh fruits
Besides instant and don’t need cooking, fruits are source of nutrients and vitamins. Choose fresh fruits that are rich in nutrients such as; bananas, apples, grapes, avocados, and so fort.
Fresh vegetables
Vegetables are foods that are very rich in vitamins and minerals. Eat vegetables at every meal and choose vegetables which are green because green vegetables contain the most nutrients. For example; spinach, green beans, kale, etc.
Grains
Mostly in the United States, the people consume processed foods of white flour. But, unfortunately during the refining process, the outer hull of the grain is removed. Whereas grain has many nutrients contained in the outer grain hull. Grains will provide many nutrients if they are composed by whole grains, including the hull itself.
Staple foods
You can not avoid the staple foods, although you are dieting. Because the carbohydrate content of staple foods will produce calories needed by our body. Even if you’re on a diet to lose weight, but if leaving carbohydrates are not option right to balanced diet. If your a staple food are white rice, change it with red rice. Because red rice have a higher fiber content and lower sugar levels. Besides that, you can get good carbs to your diet program of some foods such as; whole grain breads, cereals, grits, and so forth.
Proteins
Protein has a very important role for the development of muscle and brain. To get your daily proteins requirements, you can get it from meat and beans. Choose low-fat meats, such as; fish and chicken meat or certain part that are low-fat from beef.
To reduce the mount of fat and cholesterol in meats, try not to eat or discard the skin. Beside meats, you can get other proteins sources from nuts such as soybean, sunflower seeds, peas, walnuts, almonds, and others.
Dairy products
A variety of essential nutrients such as calcium, vitamins, and other nutrients are easily found mainly in dairy products. But also a lot of fats are contained in dairy products. So, in order your balanced diet program successfully, choose dairy product that are low-fat or fat free.
Oils
Choose greasy foods that are low fat, such as mayonnaise and salad dressing. Olive oil may be one good choice as an alternative to replace vegetable oil fatty.

May be useful, if you have questions about your diet program, such as what foods are good for losing weight, it would be better if you consult directly with the physician nutritionist.