When you are unwell you feel unhappy and uncomfortable. Only when your body is healthy, your mind feels healthy too. Food is a basic necessity for good health. No living being can survive without food. Ask yourself a few questions.

1. Do you ever think about the quality of food you eat?
2. What is healthy food?
3. Is your mind fully on food while you eat or you drink?

Though all of us eat many times a day, often we are not mindful of what we are eating. These are some tips about healthy food habits.

*Eat to live, don’t live to eat.

How to eat?

1. Never start eating as soon as you reach home tired from school. Relax for a few minutes, wash your face, hands and feet and then have your food.
2. Chew your food well. Every morsel that you take should be chewed thoroughly before swallowing.
3. Eat happily, enjoying everything that you eat.
4. While you are eating do not watch TV or read a magazine. These should be done at some other time.
5. Always eat in very clean surroundings.

How much do eat?

1. Never stuff yourself with food. This way you overburden your digestive system.
2. If you are in a hurry eat a little less, chew your food well, rather than gulping it quickly.
3. Keep a balance… don’t overeat what you like and avoid what is not so tasty. All types of food are important.
4. When you leave the table you should feel just about full but not really full.

Unhealthy eating

1. Actually Junk food is junk. It might be tasty but it does no good to your body. It takes the same kind of effort for your digestive system to digest junk food but this not benefits the body.
2. Avoid tea and coffee.
3. Fried food, sweets, pickles, papads and kachauris, bhujia and nankeens are tasty food but not healthy foods.
4. Fresh fruits and vegetables are healthier than tinned and frozen ones.

Healthy food

1. Fresh fruits and vegetables are extremely good for health. Try to consume as much fresh fruits and vegetables as you can.
2. Dry fruits are good for health.
3. Make it a habit to have a lot of fresh salad with every meal.
4. Milk and milk products must be consumed regularly.
5. Salt and sugar are slow killers. Take as little as you can.
6. Two much of oil and spice kills the actual taste of food.
7. Food must always be cooked on slow fire.

It’s not easy

`I love to Sachin bat!

`Watching the match was great fun. The last five over were simply thrilling’.

`My father loves his game of golf.’

`I bought myself a poster of Steffi Graff.’

You often hear statements like these. Every one loves to play some game or the other. Millions of people watch the sports channels on TV every school encourages the students to take part in sports. Are sports important for fitness reasons only? Sports demand a great discipline of body as well as mind.

You have watched great players on TV and the field. To be a great player demands a lot from you. Besides the talents God has given you, you have to put in a lot of effort on your own. Hours of practice go into the making of a good player. It needs a lot of discipline to play your role within the team. You have to obey the direction of your coach and the caption.

a) Have you not seen good players going over to congratulate their opponents after losing a game?

b) Do you think it is easy to smile when you have lost?

Try and do it and only then you will realize how much courage and effort it takes. But that is what makes one a fine sportsman.

Have you not seen great players control themselves when an oppo0nent commits a foul against them?

Or when a referee or umpire gives an unfair decision against them or their team?

They obey without a word of complaint. Try not to shout or grumble the next time you feel cheated and then you will realize how difficult it is.

So the next times you watch a game admire the discipline and the team work, the sportsmanship and the patience. And don’t forget about the hours and hours of practice that each player puts in to reach a great level.

Games and sports give a great training for the mind too. When you play a game, you have to keep of the game in mind. You cannot break the rules. Similarly in life, you have to follow some rules. If you don’t follow the rules, you will have to pay a price.