Chapter 3: Eating Habits
On a warm third Saturday of September 2017, my childhood friends Sarah, James, and Henri met me at my mom's apartment in Highland Park to cook healthier versions of hamburgers and French fries. "Hi, guys!" I greeted my friends. "Hi, Angel!" Sarah greeted back. "We are cooking burgers and fries for dinner tonight," I told my friends. "Do you want some?" "Sure," James replied. "I also made some feta-mint dip for you guys to have snacks in after dinner," I told everyone. "Mmm," Henri stated. "That sounds yummy!" We cooked lightened bacon cheeseburgers and sweet potato fries. Then, we each had a snack with our dip. I ate apple slices, Sarah ate carrot sticks, James ate celery sticks, and Henri ate Wheat Thins crackers. "While we munch on some healthy snacks, let's take a look at a food diary we remember, whether it be long ago or recently," I suggested. "James, why don't you go first?" "Okay," James agreed. "The day I practiced juggling when I was 14 years old, I ate French toast and hard-boiled eggs for breakfast, Cheez-Its for a snack, a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup for lunch, peanut butter and celery for a snack, and a hamburger and French fries from McDonald's." "Juggling?" I asked. "Now, in case I have this wrong, you had trouble learning how to juggle when you had the Cheez-Its for a snack, but could concentrate better when you ate the celery sticks and peanut butter." Sarah shared her food diary next. "On the day of James's 16th birthday, I ate a bowl of Kashi Go Lean! cereal and a glass of milk, a fruit salad, a turkey and cheese sandwich on whole wheat with carrot sticks, Oreo cookies, 2 pieces of Pepperoni Lover's Pan Pizza, and a piece of James's chocolate birthday cake." Henri shared his food diary from Thursday at the Woodland Hills Open House. "This past Thursday, I ate cereal and milk with orange juice, a Hershey's milk chocolate candy bar for a snack, peanut butter and jelly on Wheat Thins crackers and an apple for lunch, nuts for a snack, and chicken, rice, carrot sticks, peas, and oatmeal cookies for dessert." It was finally my turn to share my food diary from Thursday. "I ate French toast for breakfast, a roast beef sandwich with pesto and goat cheese for lunch, an All-American hamburger with French fries for dinner, peanut butter and strawberry preserves on graham crackers for a snack, a smoothie for a beverage, and several other snacks at Emily's surprise party, such as Oreo cookies, Cheez-Its, Hershey's candy bars, Nutter Butter cookies, pretzels, M&Ms, fruit salad, and of course, Emily's birthday cake." I paused for a second. "Do we have anything in common?" I asked my friends. "We all eat a lot of snacks, especially when we are bored," Sarah pointed out. "That's right, Sarah," I agreed. "Does anybody know what factors influence what and how much we eat?" "I would say boredom, what people around us are eating, special occasions, and what we do at places like work and school," Sarah suggested. "Which was the case on James's birthday." "And on Emily's birthday, too," I added. "I would say who is buying the food, the method we can store and cook food, what tools we have to prepare the foods, and what skills we have in the kitchen," James suggested. "Which was the case when I was learning to juggle, and I did not have much time to prepare healthy snacks." "How about you, Henri?" I asked. "Can you think of any factors that influence what and how much we eat?" "I would say illness, medications, the time of year, and ads and the media," Henri suggested. "Such as the Open House I attended on Friday." "Well, I think some important factors include the amount of water we drink, our mental health, meaning when we feel down, we eat more, our spiritual health, meaning religions have certain foods they cannot eat, our financial health, meaning the amount of money we have influences the quality and amount of what we buy," I told my friends. "I am not sure if all of this had an influence on me at Emily's surprise party this Thursday, or what?" "I would say so, Angel," Sarah told me. "It seems like you were influenced by Emily's younger siblings, and they ate way too much junk food at the party. Only Kerry was eating sensibly with the fruit salad. How old is Kerry?" "She is almost 17," I replied. "Although it seems like we do like a lot of the same foods, like French toast, fruit salad, peanut butter and jelly on crackers, and hamburgers and French fries." "I also have photos of food that influence people," James added. We then went to our computers and smart phones to research each of the four food groups. I researched the milk and dairy product group, Sarah researched the fruit and vegetable group, James researched the meat and protein group, and Henri researched the grain group. Henri went first, telling us everything he knew about the grain group. "Grains provide fiber which helps digest food, lower cholesterol, reduces risk of chronic disease like heart disease, B vitamins, minerals like iron, which carries oxygen in our blood, magnesium, which builds our bones and releases energy from our muscles, and selenium, which provides a healthy immune system. It is important to choose whole grains because we feel full with less calories. We are supposed to eat 6 servings per day which is 3 to 8 ounces, and half of these should be whole grain. Some sample foods that belong to this food group include bread, pasta, oatmeal, breakfast cereal, tortillas, grits, brown rice, popcorn, and of course, my favorite snack in the whole wide world- Wheat Thins crackers!" Henri dipped a cracker into the feta-mint dip and ate it. "Good job, Henri," I remarked. "Now, it's your turn, Sarah." Sarah told us everything she knew about the fruit and vegetable group. "First, I will start with vegetables. Vegetables provide vitamins A, C, E, selenium, folic acid, and minerals, maintain blood pressure, which is good for our hearts, are good for red blood cells which lower our risk of anemia, and has a small amount of protein good for our muscles, like spinach and kale. We are supposed to eat 1-4 cups per day, which equal 3-4 servings of vegetables. Some sample foods that belong to this food group include eggplant, spinach, peppers, kale, squash, cucumbers, peas, beans, tomatoes, corn, mushrooms, and my top 3 favorite vegetables- broccoli, celery, and carrots." Sarah dipped a carrot stick into the feta-mint dip and ate it before she went on to talk about fruits. "Fruits provide vitamins like C, fiber, minerals, antioxidants, carbs, water, are good for our hearts, helps fuel our brains, increases our body's resistance to diseases, makes us feel full, and provides our bodies with energy. We are supposed to eat 4 servings per day. Some sample foods that belong to this food group include watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, pomegranates, lemons, limes, cherries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, cranberries, pineapple, tomato, and my top 3 favorite fruits- grapes, bananas, and apples." James took his turn to tell us everything he knew about the meat and protein group. "Proteins provide good cholesterol like in eggs and fish, as well as omega-3s, which are also found in fish, can also provide excess amounts, such as too much saturated fat and cholesterol, but helps build, maintain, and repair our muscles. Women are supposed to eat 5-5.5 ounces per day, and men are supposed to eat 5.5-6 ounces per day. Some sample foods that belong to this food group include seafood, nuts, seeds, beans, peas, eggs, and meat, like pork, beef, chicken, and ham." James dipped a celery stick into the feta-mint dip and ate it. Finally, I took my turn to tell my friends everything I knew about the milk and dairy product group. "Milk and dairy products provide a good source of calcium, are an important source of vitamins A, B12, and D, and provide some protein and iron. We are supposed to eat 3 cups per day of this group. Some sample foods that belong to this food include cheese, ice cream, yogurt, milk, and pudding." I dipped an apple slice into the feta-mint dip and ate it. "So, our meal included whole-grain buns from the bread and cereal group, ground sirloin from the meat and protein group, sharp cheddar cheese from the milk and dairy group, sweet potato fries, as well as lettuce and tomato from the fruit and vegetable group," I told my friends. "James, can you also show us how to bake those whole-grain waffles we ate for breakfast last week?" Of course," James replied. "We can't do it next week, but we can do it the following week when I actually have all the stuff to make waffles." "That's okay," I replied. "Next week, we can talk about something else that is good for us to do to maintain physical health other than eating healthy foods." "Sounds like a plan," Sarah agreed. Pretty soon, it was time for my friends to leave. "Thanks for a great evening and dinner, everyone!" I told my friends. "You're welcome, Angel," Sarah replied. "Bye, guys!" "Bye!"
