The Foods We Eat: A World of Nutritious Cuisine

Of all the types of food we eat, seeds comprise the bulk of our cuisine. All the grains we eat are seeds. The wheat that makes our bread is a seed. Rice is another invaluable seed that produces the energy of life for half the world's population. Beans and lentils provide us with proteins and amino acids that rival anything found in the meat foods. Seed foods are useful in producing the oils we use to cook our food as well. Corn, sunflower, canola and peanut oils are all made from compressing the oil out of seeds.

Seeds contain the extra high energy nutrients required to grow a new plant and work so well to provide the nutrition we need to stay healthy and well fed.

The second largest group of items that provide our food are vegetables. From the flowers to the roots there are parts of over two thousand plants that offer themselves up to the menu. The leaves of lettuce, cabbages and kale are high in such nutrients as easily absorbed calcium, vitamin D and trace minerals. The storage bulbs in the root system of plants provide many invaluable sources of energy and vitamins. Carrots are a great food to improve eyesight through the beta-carotene in them. Potatoes, turnips and beets provide much needed starches and carbohydrates for the fuel our bodies need to work. We can use the stalks of many plants for food. Celery and asparagus provide nutrition and are a fine source of the roughage needed to keep a body functioning properly.

After the plant itself comes the fruit group. Fruit is the substance a plant grows around its seeds to encourage animals to ingest them and ultimately spread their seed into distant areas. As a reward for aiding them to increase their range, the fruit of most plants have essential vitamins like C to keep our skin an teeth healthy. One of the advantages to fruit is that it is usually easily transported and can be eaten with no extra preparation, thus making it a great snacking food.

Animals are another major source of our food. The muscle tissues and organs of most beasts are edible and many cultures feel that the meat in a meal is its most valuable part. As well as the flesh itself, animals can produce the byproduct foods that round out out diets. Eggs, while heavily laden with cholesterol are also full of essential fats and protein. Milk can be a nutritious part of a meal by itself but, when converted into cheeses, butter, ice cream and the like, can add even more variety to our food supply. Some cultures provide foods that utilize animal blood in them.

To a lesser degree, fungi provide trace minerals that can be found in no other foods. The humble mushroom will help supply some of the needful things that keep us strong. Insects help in their own right. Honey produced by the bee is one of the greatest sources of natural antibiotic know in the world. So when you go to acquire something to eat, realize the whole world can be your oyster.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food