You might feel full after having a big meal. But you may actually suffer from“hidden hunger”. This means that what you eat may fill your stomach, but it's not giving you the proper nutrition (营养) that your body needs.

This happens when food lacks the vitamins (维生素) and minerals (矿物质). They are what people need to keep healthy, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

At present, “hidden hunger”affects 2 billion people worldwide. These people include 300 million people in China. It is most commonly seen among children and teenagers. It can also result in a bad immune system (免疫系统), blindness or even death, China News Service reported.

Many Chinese people don't get enough iron (铁), calcium (钙), vitamin A and vitamin D. One main reason is that agricultural products don't have much of these nutrients. Over 40 percent of China's farmland is losing its vitamins and minerals, lowering the nutritional value of the crops that grow on it, according to Xinhua.

Many of the processed foods that people enjoy eating today, such as chips, burgers and cookies, have made the situation worse. Vitamins and minerals are easily lost when these foods are processed, People's Daily noted.

In response, China's government has created several action plans to improve public health. It also develops and promotes nutritious foods.

Eating more fresh nutrition-rich food like vegetables, whole grains and milk can help us keep healthy. For vegetables like carrots and broccoli (西兰花), boiling and steaming, can better preserve (保留) their nutrition when compared with frying them, CNN suggests.

Many of us eat to satisfy our need for delicious food. But because of the NCP (新型冠状病毒肺炎), many Chinese people are changing their eating habits.

Because of busy work, ordering simple and quick meals online is common for many young people in China. Zhang Yuan, a 30-year-old woman from Dalian, was one of them. She usually ate in the office and seldom cooked at home. But during the NCP outbreak, staying at home for a long time has changed her eating habit. Now, she can cook for herself. “Cooking by myself sometimes needs more time, but it helps me have a healthy diet,” Zhang told China Daily.

Instead of eating at fast food chains (连锁店) or restaurants, cooking at home has become a new trend. “Some people even regard sharing food videos on their WeChat as a special way to say hello to each other when face-to-face dinner is not possible,” noted China Daily.

In addition to cooking at home, many people also eat separately and change the habit of using serving chopsticks and spoons.

In China, eating together has been a kind of habit for centuries. For Chinese people, eating one’s own dish would be considered rude. They usually share several dishes and sometimes share utensils (餐具) to show their respect and closeness. Though it seems polite, it’s really risky (有风险的). According to World Health Organization, foodbome (食物传播的) diseases are quite common, and saliva (唾液) is one of the most common ways for them to spread. So many cities in China, including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, have already called on people to order separate meals.

Though these habits formed the pandemic (大流行), they are good for people’s health and safety. So we should keep them from now on.

Do you always eat well? It’s essential for your health! You need apples, oranges and other fruit. You need vegetables such as carrots and tomatoes, too. Fruit and vegetables are good for you. Just eat them more every day. Meat isn’t very healthy food. You can eat some, but don’t eat too much. What about ice­cream? It isn’t good for you! So don’t eat it.

Do you play sports? It’s good for you, too. Basketball, volleyball and soccer are all great sports. You can play one of them after school. Play sports with your friends every day!

Do you always watch TV? It’s fun to do it and it’s good for your health,but don’t watch too late in the evening.