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I was really in the mood for a good veggie burger. I was beginning to feel the weight of all the fries and ice cream that I had been eating the first few weeks of school and was really looking for something healthy. When I saw that there were veggie burgers in the SUB, I was elated. I marched over to the counter and asked for a veggie burger with lettuce and tomato. He went over to the freezer, pulled out a perfectly good veggie burger, and dropped it into the fryer.
My heart sank as I heard the sizzle of my now oil saturated veggie burger. He must have saw the surprise in my face because he then said, “ its taste better that way.” Eating a well balanced and healthy diet is hard to do while living on a college campus, but it is necessary for good health. Hasbrouck Dining Hall should provide students with a greater variety of healthy food options because, especially for college students, it is important create healthy eating habits so we can not only be healthy now, but continue to be healthy into the future.
I have recently either had to become a carbotarian and only eat breads and pasta, or eat very greasy foods like French fries and mac and cheese bites.
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Proficient in: Bad Eating Habits
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I struggle to find healthy options that will nourish my body and give me the energy I need to get through my day. Everyday in Hasbrouck dining hall, I have access to a broad deli selection (which is no help to me as I am a vegetarian), a hamburger and fry station (which again is not much help).
Sometimes they also provide a nacho/burrito bar with can be very limiting for vegans and vegetarians. At that station, the only thing vegans would really be able to make is a bean, rice, and lettuce burrito.
There is, however, one station that is considered the “healthy station.” They give you proper serving sizes and try to serve healthier options. In my opinion, that one station is not enough. Normally there is a vegetable, a grain, and a meat. If you are not an omnivore, that leaves you with a vegetable and a grain, but no protein. Also, sometimes the vegetables are covered in oil which takes away some of their nutritional value. SUNY New Paltz dining hall does not always promote healthy eating, making it difficult for those who are trying to maintain a healthy diet.
My family always instilled in me that healthy eating habits are very important. The, “Apple a day keep the doctor away.” was saying that frequently circulated around my house. I was taught that learning to live a healthy early on will set you up for a healthier lifestyle in the future. In the Harvard Medical School book, Eat, Drink, and be Healthy, by Walter Willett M.D., an American physician and nutrition researcher, it says that, “Making poor choices-- eating too much of the wrong kinds of food and too little of the right kinds… increases your chances of developing cancer” (1). Now this is an alarming fact. If each college student is in school for around eight months of the year for around four years, that is a lot of time for us to be making poor food choices that can increase our risk of illness later on in life. Instead, we should be building the foundation of healthy with so much of our time spent here, to ensure a healthy and long life. What we do and put into our bodies now, as young people, has a huge affect on the quality of life that we will have in the future. This does not mean that we have to take away all the unhealthy food in the dining hall- I mean who doesn’t love a plate of fries or a bowl of ice cream every once in a while- but moderation is key. Healthier options, such as a fresh salad bar with better dressing and topping offerings, and fresh fruit rather than canned fruit should be just as easily accessible as the endless French fries and Belgian waffles. Imagine walking into Hasbrouck and seeing an array of fresh vegetables incorperated into the meal options of the day. Imagine walking out the dining hall satisfied and nourished rather than bloated and sick.
I for one know that eating healthy in college can be difficult. Between balancing your school work, sleeping, and having some kind of a social life, food sometimes gets put on the backburner. In the article “Factors Influencing Healthy Eating Habits Among College Students: An Application of the Health Belief Model.” by Patricia Bederman Miller, Ph.D., et al., it stated that, “Numerous studies have shown that college students often have poor eating habits. Students tend to eat fewer fruits and vegetables on a daily basis and report high intake of high-fat, high-calorie foods” (46). This statement shows that college students all across America are vulnerable to unhealthy eating. Hasbrouck doesn’t have to follow this pattern. Many of us know about the notorious and seemingly inevitable freshman fifteen. The thing is though, it can be avoided. If healthy food options were implemented in the meals given to us at Hasbrouck, this freshman fifteen would be much easier to avoid.
I know there are some students who may be content with the food at Hasbrouck, and believe that there is a sufficient amount of healthy food options available. To that I would say that sure, maybe for some people, Hasbrouck is great. But for myself and my friends, and even people who have made conversation with in the dining hall, Hasbrouck needs to do better so that we, as students have the option to eat better. There are times when I go into Hasbrouck and leave having nothing but a muffin or a bowl of cereal. Even the few healthier options that I round up in the dining hall aren’t as fresh as they could be. Who knows how long the vegetables are sitting out during the day. Another opposition to implementing healthier foods into Hasbrouck could be that eating healthy can take more time than just grabbing something quick to eat, or maybe they don’t know how to put together a well balanced plate that tastes delicious. That is why I believe there should be new options for people who are on the go. Why not have an avocado toast station that runs all day, or a smoothies station where smoothies can be made for you, and you pick what you want in it, or a burrito station that has grilled veggies rather than just different meats, and a broader vegan selection. These things are quick and easy but still nutritious. They also don’t have to be incredibly difficult to implement.
Lastly, I think it is important for students to be given the resources to learn more about the benefits, and really the necessity, of eating healthy, that way it is more desirable to go for the foods that will fuel your body rather than the ones that seem quick and easy. Hasbrouck is the main dining hall on campus and if they were to prioritize healthy eating, it would be much easier for their us students to do the same.
How Veggie Food Is Spoiled. (2021, Dec 13). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/how-veggie-food-is-spoiled-essay
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