Irrespective of where you are in the world,you need to get an adequate daily supply of proteins,lipids, carbohydrates , minerals, vitamins and water into your system. These are the constituent elements of food.

Proteins are obtained from meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, seeds, nuts and to a lesser extent from fruits, grains and green vegetables. During digestion proteins are broken down into animo acids -of which there are 8. Animo acids pay a crucial role in transporting proteins to cells that require them. The only food containing all 8 animo acids are eggs. It is therefore essential that you eat a balanced diet in order that one of the 8 aren't missing from your food intake,

Lipids (fats) are composed of 3 kinds of fatty acids as follows: saturated fatty acids; mono-unsaturated fatty acids; and polyunsaturated fatty acids.Saturated fatty acids are found in meat, processed meat, organs, butter,fresh cream, eggs, some seafood and peanut oil. Mono-unsaturated fatty acids can be found in olive oil, in fruits like peanuts, almonds, olives and avocados, and in duck and goose meat. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are found in corn and grape seed oil, margarine made from sunflower seeds or corn, fish, shellfish and fish oil. It is best to digest more of the last two types of fatty acids at the expense of the former as too much of the saturated kind has been known to increase cholesterol and blood pressure.

Carbohydrates are also essential to keeping your "machine" in good working order. Carbohydrates split themselves into two groups: simple and complex. The simple kind is found in sugar, honey,jam, chocolate, dried fruit,cakes,biscuits,candy, corn flakes,soft drinks and syrups. Complex carbohydrates are found in peas,beans, lentils, wheat, barley, oats,corn,rye,fruit, dried vegetables,bread and potatoes. It is best to make your main source of carbohydrates the complex group at the expense of the simple kind especially if you are obese.