A festival of food

"Food for Health" is Chapter 5 of the Class 4 EVS book Our Wondrous World and the first chapter of the unit on Health and Well-being. The chapter takes us to a lively school food festival with the banner "Eat Right, Stay Healthy". Students and parents bring dishes from all over India: dhokla, litti-chokha, dal-baati-churma, bajre-ki-khichdi, chhena-poda, kadhi-pakoda, ker-sangri, siddu, roasted corn, hot dosa, crispy vada, jowar upma and ragi laddu. This variety shows how rich and diverse Indian food is.

Mystery Masala and the six tastes

At the "Mystery Masala" stall, Mukesh and his friends taste a dish that is sweet, a little salty and a bit bitter all at once. It is Ugadi Pachadi, a traditional food of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana. It blends six tastes: sweet (meetha), sour (khatta), salty (namkeen), pungent (teekha), bitter (karva) and astringent (kasaila). In Ayurveda these six tastes are called shad rasa, and eating balanced food that contains them is considered good for health. Jaggery is sweet, tamarind is sour, salt is salty, green chilli is pungent, neem is bitter and raw mango is astringent.

Millets: the super food

Surbhi and her friends visit a stall of millet foods. Surbhi remembers that her grandmother ate jowar and bajra roti in winter and jau (barley) roti in summer. Millets such as jowar, bajra and ragi are rich sources of nutrients, which is why the stall is called "Super Food".

Three food groups

Our body needs a variety of foods to stay healthy, energetic and strong, because no single food has all the nutrients we need. Food does three main jobs:

• Energy-giving foods like rice, wheat, potato, maize, banana, sweet potato, honey and millets give us energy. Butter, ghee and oil also give energy.
• Body-building foods like pulses, soybeans, chickpeas, peanuts, tofu, milk, cheese, beans, almonds, eggs, meat and fish help us grow and build strong muscles.
• Protective foods like carrot, orange, lemon, papaya, spinach, cabbage, guava, amla and tomato protect us from diseases.

A balanced plate has food from all three groups in the right amounts: protective foods the most, then body-building foods and some energy-giving foods. Every region of India has its own special thali with many tastes and health benefits.

Say "No" to junk food

Foods with a lot of oil, salt and sugar, such as soft drinks, chips, bread pakoda, burgers, pizza and over-processed packaged food, are called junk food. They are not healthy if eaten regularly or in large amounts. Fresh, home-cooked food is always a better choice. Keeping a food diary helps us notice what we eat and which food groups are missing.

Water for health

Water is an important part of our diet. It helps digest food, keeps our skin and body healthy and removes waste through urine, sweat and faeces. Water-rich fruits like watermelon and cucumber also help keep water in our body.

Ways of cooking

Food can be cooked in many ways: boiling, steaming, frying, roasting, grilling and baking. Idiyappam is steamed, for example. Some foods, like fruit chaat and vegetable salads, can be eaten without cooking. A chef is a professional cook; the French word means director or head of the kitchen. We can even cook in a solar cooker using sunlight, which makes no smoke or ash.

Check the label

Packaged foods have labels showing the net weight, the date of packing and the "best before" or expiry date. Reading labels helps us choose fresh, safe food.

This Food for Health worksheet for Class 4 EVS turns the chapter into fun learning on WitKnowLearn with an online quiz, online activities and interactive games. Flip the cards, make healthy choices in the Healthy Choices Lab, play the games, do the food labs, take the challenges and then test foods for oil and water in the Virtual Lab.