How can we make healthy food choices?

Our body needs the right amount of nutrients to grow well and stay healthy. So we should make healthy food choices by having a balanced diet. A balanced diet has all the nutrients that our body needs, in the right amounts.

We should eat a variety of food for a balanced diet. We should also eat in moderation, that is, not eat too much.

The diagram below is the food pyramid. It tells us how to make healthy food choices.

Eat less of foods rich in fats and sugar.

Eat foods rich in proteins in moderation.

Eat more of fruits and vegetables.

Eat more of foods rich in carbohydrates.

Using our teeth to eat
We use our teeth to chew and grind food into smaller pieces that are easier for us to swallow.

Our two sets of teeth
We grow two sets of teeth — milk teeth and permanent teeth.

Our milk teeth start to grow when we are about six months old.

We have 20 milk teeth. They start to fall out when we are about seven years old. By the age of about 12, our permanent teeth have replaced all our milk teeth.

We have 32 permanent teeth. They last our whole life. If we lose them, we will not grow a new set of teeth. So we should take care of our teeth.

Our four type of teeth
Our teeth come in four types — incisors, Canines, premolars and molars, look different from one another.

Each type of tooth has its own function.

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What will happen if we do not chew Properly before we swallow it?