The food/energy balance
A typical person eats about 500kg of food each year - that's half a ton, 1100lbs, or 78 stone! All in all, that's about the weight of a fully-grown Jersey cow!
But, have you ever thought why we eat so much?
Food is one of the basic necessities of life. Just like a car needs to be filled with petrol, your body needs to take in fuel in order to maintain its systems in good working order. We use energy from food for all our daily activities, from walking and standing, to lifting and gardening.
So, the food we eat is converted into energy which we then use through physical activity. Click our caveman versus modern man example to find out more:
This means that in order to maintain a healthy weight we need to balance the amount of food we consume with the amount of energy we expend through our day-to-day activities.
It is possible to consume too little fuel to serve the body's needs - this can lead us to be underweight, undernourished, and cause ill health. Likewise, it is possible to eat too much food and become overweight - this causes many health concerns, including high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes.
For more information on maintaining your own food/energy balance, go to are you a healthy weight?
Also remember, it is not just the amount of food that it is important, but also what types of food we eat. Visit eating a balanced diet and vitamins & minerals for more information.
