Jeremy just got out of two back to back classes and he has two more to go. After he gets out of class at 5:45 pm, he has an organization meeting at 7:00 pm. Once his meeting for his organization is over with at 9:00 pm, Jeremy has to go home and study for his test that starts at 9:10 am the next day. In order to get enough sleep, Jeremy needs to make sure that he is in bed by midnight. At what point in this schedule does Jeremy have time to go home and cook a meal instead of stopping by a McDonalds or a Burger King and grabbing a quick burger and fries?
This is the issue that many college students are faced with on a regular basis. Burgers and shakes and fries, oh my! These items can be just as harmful to students as the terrifying animal’s lions and tigers and bears. Although these items can be harmful health wise, while in college they seem to be the most accessible and the most price friendly options that students have. Not only is it price friendly, but it is time friendly as well. The title fast food is a lot more appealing than home-cooked meal in the sense of time.
The best option in college that will help students to stay healthier is getting a meal plan at the school, applying for food stamps, or matching the activities the students participate in to what it is that they eat. The top option to be healthier in college is getting a meal plan that the school provides. There are many reasons that this option trumps many of the others. As a college student, people are always on the move around campus and it is hard to find time to stop and take time out to cook. When it comes to the school meal plan and the cafeteria, everything is already prepared.
All the student has to do is go in and partake of anything that they want. Speaking of anything that the student wants, the cafeteria has a variety of items and they even has menu changes every day. There is no way to get bored or outgrow the option in there. The even brighter side of this option is that there is always a healthy choice in the food that is cooked. They constantly have baked chicken or baked fish, vegetables, and the salad bar that has become essential in every cafeteria. When it comes to the cafeteria, the only reason that a student would not eat healthy is if they did not want to.
The next best option, and generally better for a person who lives off campus, is receiving food stamps. For those who do not know, food stamps are simply “food credits” that are given to people by the government in order to buy groceries. This option comes with certain requirements. In order to receive food stamps in certain places the student has to be working at least 20 hours a week. While some may want to focus on school and not work, this option proves quite beneficial for those who have a job and meet the simple requirements.
These food stamps come in handy because healthy food carries a higher price that unhealthy food. With the food stamps, the student can afford to pay that extra and get the foods that will lead to a better lifestyle and better health. Also, when it comes to time issues, with food stamps a good method for students to acquire is that of meal prepping. Meal prepping is where the student cooks all of their food for the week that way when it is time to eat and they only have 15 minutes, all they have to do is heat it up or take it out of the fridge.
Once again, much like the food plan, once the student gets to the store the choice of being healthy or unhealthy is in their hands. Lastly, to be healthy in college a student can simply match the activities that they do every day to what it is that they eat. Some students go running every day or play sports in their free time. These people have the choice to eat something that may be considered a bit unhealthy simply because they can burn that off through the activities that they engage in.
However, other students simply go to class and go back home to sit on the couch and watch television or play video games. These students are the ones who have to watch what it is they take in more carefully because they are not out burning the calories that the other students are. If these students who do not do as much as the others do take in less, such as a salad or choosing water over juices and sodas, that creates a healthier lifestyle for them. There is currently a program that was recently released called Mixify that promotes this exact concept.
At the end of it all, as mentioned in every paragraph, the choice comes from the students. There are various options around, but if they do not want to live a healthier life and eat healthier then there is nothing that anybody can do about it. The cafeterias constantly push people to sign up with them, but one of the main issues is getting the money up all at once in order to pay it. The issue with food stamps, as mentioned before, is that the student must have a job where they work 20 hours or more.
Some people cannot afford to put that much time into work because they are constantly in class and handling homework. The last option of matching what the student eats with what they do can be a problem for students as well due to the fact that the busy people seem to eat less and the idle people seem to eat more. When it is all said and done, it is about self-control and what the student allows themselves to do. When they get to those times where they are out about to grab that unhealthy burger just remember, burgers and shakes and fries, oh my!
