A house needs different types of 'energy' to make things go. Without different types of energy, such as electricity, gas and solar power, the hot water won't be hot, the refrigerator won't make things cold and the TV won’t screen anything.
Your body also needs energy to make things go. You need energy to run, jump, play, cool you down when you're hot - even for thinking and sleeping. Energy powers the muscles and cells in your body for all the activities you do.
So where does the energy come from?
Food & drink
Your body turns the foods that we eat and drink into the energy that muscle and cells need to function. The food energy is carried around your body in the blood.
Different types of food contain different levels of energy. The amount of energy in food and drink is measured in either 'calories' or 'kilojoules'.
Where does the energy go?
Your body is using up or 'burning' food energy all the time. Different activities burn different amounts of energy. Running burns more energy than sleeping or reading a book!
Too much energy?
When we eat more energy than we burn, our body stores the spare energy as fat and our body weight increases.
Balancing energy in and energy out
For a healthy body, we need to try and balance the amount of energy going in, with the amount being burned off. That means not eating too much and only eating when you feel hungry. It also means being physically active for at least one hour every day.
To make sure you fuel your body with healthy food, try to eat seven serves of fruit and vegetables (five servings of vegetables and two of fruit) every day.
- Tim Pegler is the editor of www.fitness2live.com.au
Related reading:
Healthy snacks
The most important meal
Think about eating
