Resources - food, energy and water
resourceA supply of something (eg money or materials) that can be used. are things that people use. Some resources are essential for survival, whilst others are needed to maintain a standard of livingThe amount of wealth or personal comfort that a person or group of people have..
Food
People cannot live without food. The average person needs to consume between 2,000 and 2,500 caloriesThe units of energy contained in food and drink. per day. The actual number of calories needed depends on factors such as sex, age, height and level of activity.
Eating too few calories causes weight loss and can lead to a lack of energy. People who do not have enough food to eat may find it difficult to work. If there are too many people in a country who are unable to work, this can negatively impact the wealth of the country. Consuming too many calories can cause weight gain which can also make it difficult to work.
Water
People cannot live without water. Water makes up about two thirds of a person's body. We need it for our body to function, eg to absorb nutrients and get rid of waste. Each person should drink between 1.6 and 2 litres of water a day. The actual amount of water needed depends on factors such as the air temperature and the type of activity that a person undertakes each day.
Water is also used to keep ourselves clean and healthy, and is also needed to grow food and for industryThe type of work that people do.. In drier countries or drier seasons, irrigationThe channelling of water from rivers and streams to fields in order to help crops grow. enables crops to grow. Industry uses water in many ways, such as cleaning, cooling and as a raw materialBasic material that goods are made from such as crops, metals, wood and animal products such as wool and leather. in production.
Energy
Energy has many uses. It heats homes and offices, cooks our food and powers transport. Much of the energy that is used is in the form of electricity. This is called secondary energyEnergy that has been converted into a more useful form, eg electricity. - primary energyEnergy in its raw, unchanged state, eg oil and wind power. sources, such as fossil fuelNatural, finite fuel formed from the remains of living organisms, eg oil, coal and natural gas. or the wind, have been used to generate it.
Energy affects both food supplies and industry. miningWhen natural resources are extracted from the ground. and growing biofuelA type of energy source derived from renewable plant and animal materials, eg ethanol (often made from corn in the United States and sugarcane in Brazil), biodiesel (vegetable oils and liquid animal fats) and biogas (methane from animal manure). required to generate energy takes up valuable farmland, which reduces the amount of food available to eat. And if energy is more expensive or in short supply, then it costs more to produce and transport food. This is passed on to consumers through an increase in the price of food.