Eating of proper food in the correct proportion is important in attaining a woman’s good health. Nutrition experts recommend that a woman should have a daily intake of food in proper proportion from each of the four basic classifications called the basic four. These are milk and milk products, meat, breads and cereals, and vegetables and fruits. The recommended servings of food from each of the basic four differ with age as younger women need more to enhance growth and development while older women need just enough to sustain their good health.

A woman eating the correct amounts from each group will surely be nourished in such a way that she will have more than enough nutrients. Additional nutrients are supplied by other food products such as fats and sugar, which are used in the preparation and preservation of food.
Boiling, cooking, refining, and other means of food processing can often result in the loss of some amount of nutrients in the food. However, the foods that belong in the basic four are proven to contain enough amounts of nutrients when taken in with the suggested proportions. This way, nutrient lost in any type of food processing is offset with the correct intake of the basic four.