Researchers from Oregon State University say college students deserve a failing grade on their eating habits because, on average, they eat less than one serving of fruits and vegetables a day -- far fewer than the five recommended by health experts.
Surely intelligent, educated college students know better. Why aren't they (you?) doing better?
There are 2 reasons I fall under this statistic. The first, and probably more prevalent, reason is that it is much harder and more time consuming to find and consume healthier foods. Especially now that I live off campus, the ease of eating un-healthy food compared to food that is even moderately healthy is crazy. I have the ability to drive through any fast food chain and pay under $5 for a meal. Why would I ever spend more time and money for food that does not add a whole lot of value in my opinion. This brings me to my second point. I stay away from healthier food, especially vegetables, because I do not enjoy them as much. While I realize that there are benefits to healthy foods, this is not enough motivation to constantly eat healthy. These two reasons why I stray away from healthy foods coincide with how I make decisions. The risk/reward (or more accurately the cost/benefit) is not worth eating healthy for me. I assume this will change once I become older and less active, but doesn't environment always affects decision making?
ReplyDeleteI think that there are several factors which could explain that. As Tyre said it is easier and often cheaper to eat un-healthy food. When you go in a fast food you don't need to wait for cooking something by your own. So, no need to wait food for baking in the oven or something like that. You gain time and no need to be creative or to find ideas like "what could i eat tonight? How i will cook my vegetables?". Secondly I think it is linked with the social environment where students live ant study: if you are on campus with your friends and that everyone eat at Chick-fil-A for lunch you just follow the crowd rather than bring your lunch box with salad and fruits whereas others are eating burgers. We usually tend to do what the majority do. Finally, education could be the strating point of what we eat and why we eat a particular kind of food. Indeed if you are used to eat fruits and vegetables since you are a kid and if your parents get you used to eating in a healthy way I think you tend to imitate it when you grow up. But for some people as contrary, as they ate too much healthy food when they were younger they take it out on fast food later!! Actually I am a fruits and vegetables-addict, so I don't feel concerned by this statistic. I need vegetables and fruits everyday and it is a real pleasure for me to eat it. Healthy food adds lot of value (for my palate and my stomach). Moreover in that way I can more enjoy fast food/un-healthy food during the rare time I eat it!
ReplyDeleteThere is a simple reasons for that. As previously stated, college students are extremely busy! They don't have time to think about the fruits and veggies that they should be consuming. I think our generation in general is all about maximizing every second of the day.
ReplyDeleteFortunately, I personally do not fall under the category of students who have "failing grades" when it comes to eating. I find time almost every night to cook dinner and include veggies and healthy protein. I cook daily because of the many food allergies I have. Eating at college was a difficult adjustment for me. When I lived on campus I was constantly stressed because I couldn't eat the easy and accessible foods that my friends were eating.
I think if people realized that food shopping once a week is not THAT big of a deal and that it also allows you the freedom to cook healthy and know what ingredients are in the foods you are consuming -- they would do it more often.
Eating healthier foods has been said to promote academic achievement. I feel strongly that students need to stop being lazy and incorporate healthy, nutritious foods into their daily life.
As stated above, I feel that this particular "choice" we make as students is the answer to the question "what is easy and satisfying" versus "what do I want to eat tonight?" Like Nicole, I am someone who enjoys making their own meals at home - dinner especially. However, I will be the first to admit that when things get busy (or spending all the money at one time on groceries even though it goes further in the long run), is unappealing. This being said, if we know the problem. What's the solution?
ReplyDeleteI believe that food companies have a lot of opportunity in this realm. If companies understood why people eat conveniently rather than healthfully AND could convince others that healthy food was in the samee category as good food, these companies would strike gold. Not unlike most people, I like to indulge in an unhealthy meal from time to time, but the more often I do it, the worse I feel. If there was a fresh, quick, fast way to eat healthier, I would surely do that majority of the time. At this time, I don't have the magic answer either but the market is there and whoever finds it has a high chance of turning fruits and vegetables into cold, hard cash.
I thought it was very interesting what Nicole brought up in class about the former McDonald CEO, Mike Roberts, deciding to start his own chain of healthy fast food. I did a bit more research on his concept (http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-14/former-mcdonalds-executive-serves-up-healthy-fast-food) and I think that this could be the solution for student lifestyles. Chipotle is currently the leader in a healthy and fresh fast food. Students enjoy Chipotle because they know that the ingredients are delicious and the meat processing is more humane than any other fast food restaurant.
ReplyDeleteWith the introduction of Lyfe, consumers will be able to purchase American style food varieties. The ingredients will even be localized by region to ensure freshness. Currently there are very few fast food places which truly are healthy and low calorie. I expect Lyfe to be very successful because of the push towards healthier eating, especially among lower income students.
I think one's environment and upbringing play a large role in eating behavior. My mom was a stay-at-home mom that made sure I ate a healthy breakfast every day before school. She would pack nutritious lunches for my brother, dad and I and also spent many hours everyday making delicious dinners. Basically I was brought up to eat healthy foods that were good for me. Coming to Wake I think I've been able to maintain fairly healthy eating habits, although I think Wake is a very health conscious school that may differ from the average college. At the Pit I always saw a lot of kids eating salads (even guys) and there were always lines at the healthier options that they offered such as the omelette station.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I do agree that the availability and simplicity that fast food offers is a very tempting option I think most students, at least here, know better. I know that I had to take Health here and there was a good week spent on eating healthy. I also think their is some environmental pressure to be fit and healthy at Wake because one's outward appearance is very important here.
At the same time however, nothing hits the spot better than late night Cook-out or Subway so I think for me at least there's kind of a "health can wait" attitude. Afterall there's a very limited time in my life where I'll be able to do damage to my body with little consequence so might as well live a little right?
I agree very much with Luke. I believe our dieting behaviors stem from our rearing, our society's loss of admiration for the art of cooking, and the pressure we feel from being busy. Our habits are manifested on what our parents taught us were important values and for me one of those was respect for the food I eat.
ReplyDeleteMy mom always had a home-cooked meal prepared for my family because she realizes the importance in maintaining her loved ones health and values the art of cooking. Growing up with the appreciation for good food creates habits. i could not go from eating delicious, freshly prepared meals to eating "fake foods". To avoid what would result in disappointment with our food choices, we must learn to cook ourselves and appreciate our foods straight from the ground.
All of my roommates I have had at college, too, have been lucky enough to be reared like me. For the most part, all of my apartment mates and I, make our breakfast, lunch, and dinner on a daily basis, and our refrigerator is always stalked with lots of color. We have so many fruits and vegetables around, they become ornaments around our apartment. Truly, food can be art and I think some people just never learned how beautiful it is.
I believe many students at Wake Forest have learned an appreciation for the food they eat, for which many "average consumers" have not been fortunate to grow up knowing. This is evident in the selection students have demanded at the Pit, which is supplied with numerous healthy options and little junk food. I know there are exceptions to this theory, but I do believe our eating habits are significantly influenced by our parents, much like we concluded was true with our political views.
I agree with most all of the comments that have been previously stated. My reasoning though for not eating as many vegetables, and fruit as I should doesn't stem from cost, or difficulty in cooking, yet it comes from the fact that buying groceries and cooking for one person is incredibly difficult.
ReplyDeleteI find that most times when I buy fresh fruit, vegetables, and try to eat as healthy as I can I end up throwing away a good portion of what I have bought because it goes bad before I can finish it all. Its difficult to prepare meals that are healthy with fresh ingredients. Its much easier to pickup a frozen pizza that never goes bad and can be pulled out and placed in the oven much more quickly.
Similar to the comments above, I believe that the typical schedule of a college student is what consequentially leads to unhealthy eating habits. Many students here at Wake, as well as other universities, have tight schedules balancing classes, meetings, and extracurriculars. I know, personally, on some days I only have a small break for lunch and even though healthier options are more appealing to me, most of the time I have to choose my lunch based on availability. When the Chick-fil-A line is moving faster than the salad bar, I oftentimes have to sacrifice nutrition in order to make it to my next class on time.
ReplyDeleteI, too, agree with Luke and Megan’s references to the strong influence that our family lifestyle brought upon our eating habits. I was fortunate enough to have parents who valued healthy, well-balance meals over take-out even when my sister and I were being shuffled between school and sports practices. Now that I have apartment-style living this year, my roommates and I try our best to schedule the time for grocery shopping and making dinners because we quickly realized the health benefits and satisfaction from a well-balanced meal. Fruits and vegetables are typically not a part of “on-the-go” meals that students go for and even though we are all well-educated on healthy eating habits, sometimes it’s hard to justify taking the time to cook a meal when you’re stressed for a test and feel every spare minute should be put to studying. I think that Shannon makes a valid point in saying that if there was a ‘fast-food’ place that served fresh, healthy food the idea could truly capitalize and dominant in markets such as college students.
I think that this issue is caused by a number of unfortunate situations facing kids our age today. I know for me, eating in an unhealthy way usually is caused by one of a few things. First, I have personally struggled to keep healthier foods fresh recently. I have ended up being on campus for meals much more than usual recently, which has left the produce and fresh foods I had purchased for the week at my apartment. Unfortunately, much of this food spoiled, resulting in a loss of time and money. Second, I totally agree with Megan when she says that the lines at places like the salad station can often be longer than others. While on the run, I'm forced to decided between being healthy and being punctual. Finally, as a manager for the Men's soccer team, I am with the team a lot. The members of the team are running 5+ miles a day and need to eat large amounts to keep their energy levels high. When we are travelling on away trips, I am surrounded by food that is not the most healthy. This makes it tough because the food is free and very tough to turn down. I agree with what Shannon said about a healthy "fast-food" restaurant that could offer more than salads.
ReplyDeleteAs others have discussed, college students simply don't have time to go grocery shopping, cook healthy meals, or even to think about what food they're eating. As is true of our other purchases, convenience is key and is typically the determinant attribute for college students' eating choices. Off campus residents are tempted by the option of low-cost, fast-food choices, while on-campus residents have multiple fast food options in Benson.
ReplyDeleteAt Wake Forest, because of meal plans and food dollars, we typically make these decisions based solely on convenience, rather than price or health. When students ask themselves "What's in it for me" the answer regarding faster food options is often more time to study or to prepare for class. Although it is unfortunate, Wake Forest has a fast-paced culture that often forces students to forgo a healthy, balanced lifestyle, for higher grades and more campus involvement.
I agree with much of what has been said here regarding lack of time as the primary reason for our "failing grade." As college students in a fast paced environment, it is very difficult to find the time to cook a healthy meal every night. As Ethan mentioned, I usually buy fruits and veggies when I make my weekly trip to the grocery store...but unfortunately much of it goes bad because too often I find myself on the run or on campus come dinner time. The thought is always there...I just usually "fail" on the follow-up. I feel like the two hours it would take for me to drive home, cook dinner, eat, clean up the kitchen, and drive back to the library are better spent doing other things.
ReplyDeleteI realize that I will always be busy, and that it is my responsibility to make eating healthy a priority. Growing up, I was spoiled by my mother's healthy homemade meals almost every night. Since being at college, I have not eaten as healthy as I did when I lived at home. When I lived on campus, I eventually got very, very bored of the few healthy options on campus. Now that I live off-campus, I just do not make the time to cook a healthy meal nearly enough. Personally, I know that the solution lies with me to make healthy eating a priority.
The previous posts really sum up the position of most students here at Wake, and I imagine many college students in general. I know I should be eating more fruits and vegetables every day, but it really is harder than it sounds!
ReplyDeleteGrowing up, everything I ate was coming from either Farmer's Markets, or free trade/organic grocery stores, and the only carbs we ever ate we're potatoes and occasional bread! My family made eating healthily a priority no matter what, and I know I totally took that for granted. Now that I am living on my own, I've realized a few things; for one, the kind of produce my family buys is way more expensive than I ever thought I would have to spend on groceries. At this stage of my life, I have a hard time justifying to myself why I should spend $5 on a small carton of strawberries versus getting 2 frozen pizzas for the same price. Additionally, sharing a refrigerator with 3 other girls who are generally on completely different eating schedules/have different tastes, means that often times the produce I do buy gets buried amongst other things... leaving me to stumble upon it a few weeks later when it is sufficiently inedible.
I've been thinking about this issue a lot recently and so I've started to test out some new strategies to hopefully steer my eating back on the right track. Since one large factor is cost and convenience of access, I've started buying V8 Fusion drinks, that contain one serving of fruits and vegetables in every serving. There's no way I can say pouring myself a drink is too "inconvenient" or time consuming! Also, to address the cost and time-sensitivity problem, I've started buying frozen fruits and making smoothies with them. While this option does take a little longer, I never have to worry about the fruit going bad. While I know these are still not totally perfect options, they are attempts to help align the eating habits I want to have, with the lifestyle choices I'm currently making.
Personally, I noticed that I probably eat less fruits and vegetables now that I live off campus than I did while I was in a dorm. First of all, as has been restated by just about everyone in this blog, I am too busy on a daily basis to plan out my meals. Therefore, I do not buy a lot of produce because I can not afford for it to go bad. Also, I think most college students overestimate how healthy they are eating. The problem is, our idea of eating "healthy" is much more centered around cutting back on unhealthy foods than adding fruits and vegetables to our diet. On top of this, I feel that students also overestimate how healthy the food is that we're eating, and I think marketing might just have a role in this. Nowadays many restaurants are making huge attempts to give their food a healthier image, even if that is not the case. However, I feel that we take these messages at face value without really knowing all of the facts.
ReplyDeleteI agree with just about everything that everyone has said so far. It is very difficult for college students to have more fruits and vegetables in their diet because it just isn't convenient. College students are very busy with constant school work, groups on campus, and socializing and their last concern after all of their activities is what they are going to eat. It seems that unhealthier choices are much easier, cheaper and faster, so those options fit the lifestyle of a college student. I know that I do not have a ton of money to spend on groceries each week, so I try to get items that I know will last me. Fresh produce goes bad very quickly and I honestly just do not have the time to go to the grocery store constantly to replenish the produce.
ReplyDeleteAs we talked about in class, Wake Forest students are not the average consumer. Although I think that students at Wake still make unhealthy choice, I think that many of the students do make healthy choices. The Pit has started to develop healthier options that when we first started as Freshman and Benson even has added the salad place. It seems that the Wake Forest students create a demand for healthier food on Campus and the administrators are trying to fulfill this need.
Maybe I am overestimating how healthy my eating habits are, but I do not think I fall under this statistic. I do not eat meat and am allergic to all nut products, so pretty much every meal I eat contains some form of fruit or vegetable. Obviously, my allergy is not a choice, but the one and only reason I choose not to eat meat is because it does not taste good to me.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree with most of you that eating habits in college are formed by a need for convenience and timeliness, I also think a large part of eating habits are formed simply by how foods taste. When it comes down to it, we are going to eat what tastes good to us, and it seems that unhealthy options taste better to the average college aged person.
We have talked about how Wake students are not average consumers, and I think that is also reflected in our eating habits. The salad station always has the longest line of any food option in Benson. The longest lines in the dining hall are usually at the omelet, sandwich or salad stations. I do not think this is the case because students consciously think to themselves “this is the healthier option.” All of these options let students add ingredients to make the food appealing to their own unique tastes.
As a vegan, I definitely do not fall under that statistic. Growing up, healthy living was always a priority for my family. There was maybe one meal a month that we didn't sit down and eat as a family. My mom always kept the house stocked with fruits and veggies so that was easy for me to continue into college. It's how I was raised and grabbing a handful of grapes instead of chips is just second nature to me.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with Emily, though, that budget and convenience are huge factors in college kids' decisions to eat unhealthy. I was shocked when I came to college and saw the price of certain fruit that I took for granted at home. It's much more tedious to figure out my grocery budget so that I can afford ample fruits and veggies. I can understand how buying cheaper, processed food is a temptation.
I also definitely agree with Adam that some people think they are eating healthier than they are. Marketers have done a great job of conditioning the average consumer to believe that the words "organic" or "all natural" imply that the product is healthy. While these are certainly better than foods laden with chemicals, a diet of organic cookies and frozen pizzas still isn't a great option. We need to recognize that marketers are placing labels on products that aren't necessarily healthy. We tend to get suckered into believing those words translate into "good for you".
I actually started eating more fruits and vegetables in college than when I was living at home. The pit makes it easier for me to eat fruits and vegetables because they are always there, and I can eat those along with whatever else. I think it is harder when you are living off campus because you have to provide for yourself and make sure your food is fresh, but I still use the meal plan, making it easier for me to get these foods. However, sometimes having options makes it hard to make the smart decision. Whenever I go to the pit or a restaurant, in my mind I might be planning on being healthy, but seeing the other food makes me want that. For example, at Shorty's, some of the options for side items include french fries, sweet potato fries, side salad, or a fruit cup. I might plan on getting a fruit cup, but when I see a waiter walk by with fries, I change my mind to that because they look good. The same situation applies to the pit. I could be headed to the salad bar and fruit station, but see they are serving something much tastier, and end up caving to that. If you eat at home, you can keep tempting foods away from you and stick to your plan of eating healthy. When you are around unhealthy food and have the option of changing your mind, it is harder to make the right decision.
ReplyDeleteAlthough fruits and vegetables are easily accessible when eating at most campus dining halls, other options like desserts and french fries are equally as accessible, but usually more appealing. For students who actually eat on campus, eating fruits and vegetables is possible, but they must make that choice. Not only do you have to make the choice to pick the fruits and vegetables over less healthy alternatives, but you also have to deal with the same options every day. The lack of variety in fruits and vegetables eventually makes me turn to the less healthy options that tend to vary daily. Also, the set up of dining halls tries to promote healthy eating by having the fruits and vegetables near the front, but when you put your dishes up, you still have to walk past the dessert table making it impulsive to get in those last bites. Now that I live off campus I cook for myself frequently, but vegetables add to the dishes and time of cooking so I don't always incorporate them into my diet enough. Additionally, fresh fruit and vegetables do not keep well for longer periods of time and can be more expensive.
ReplyDeleteLike all human beings, college students have a finite well of willpower. We are forced to prioritize demands from the many different aspects of our lives and allocate effort as we move down that list. Eating 5 servings of fruit a day simply takes too much time, effort, and money and falls behind things like studying, job hunting, and chores. An interesting way in which this willpower idea conveys itself is in the snacks people consume while they're studying. In order to stay focused on the school work many students consume sugar drinks and snacks. We know it's not good for our bodies but it's a trade-off or reward for doing something that is good for our minds and careers. Successful and educated college kids know how to prioritize their time and effort, and at this point in our lives many students are not concerned with being perfectly healthy. I'm sure that as we grow older and our priorities shift more towards health and family that the current less than one serving a fruit a day will creep towards the recommended five.
ReplyDeleteI agree on the points of price and convenience as previously mentioned, but I would take it one step further. I would venture to say that for many the time it takes to buy and cook or prepare fruits and vegetables to eat costs you more than the actual difference at the register. The bottom line is time is money. Let's say it takes you roughly an hour to go to the store, buy the veggies you want, drive home, and cook them. In terms of minimum wage, that equates to $7.25 on top of the cost of the food. If your food cost $10, your now looking at a difference of $17.25 to $5 at a fast food joint. Hopefully by the time we graduate our time will be worth more than $7.25 an hour, thus further increasing the price of our time and the cost of buying healthy food.
ReplyDeleteLike most of my classmates, I believe the primary reason for this "failing grade" in nutritional habits of college students comes down to convenience. With the way many of our schedules are built, during mealtimes, I often only have time to run to the Sundry to grab a granola bar or yogurt and nuts between classes. While I try to make the healthiest choices during these times, my selections rarely include fruits or vegetables because they are not readily available to "grab and go" (or stock-out quickly when they are available).
ReplyDeleteI think the steps Wake Forest has taken to include more dining options that have fruits and vegetables more readily available for sit-down meals has been great. The addition of Forest Greens has allowed me to include more salads in my diet while on campus, and the addition of Moe's has allowed me to create delicious and convenient burrito bowls packed with vegetables when I am looking for a heartier meal. Like Shannon and Nicole, I really enjoy cooking at home, but often find I spend a majority of my day on campus or am on campus for group meetings at night making it difficult to find time to cook. I often find it more work to plan out my day and figure out how I am going to get home to cook a fresh meal than to just stay on campus and save the time for homework, studying, or working with teams.
I actually disagree with quite a few people about family eating habits informing our eating decisions now. Growing up my mom was always more concerned with giving my family foods that we liked rather than necessarily the right foods. That doesn't mean that we always ate unhealthy meals but my house was a place that friends came to to indulge themselves away from their parents. I made a choice in high school to switch to clean eating and actually transformed the way the rest of my family eats. We all eat many more vegetables and fewer processed foods now and it was because of a choice that I made independent of my family.
ReplyDeleteMy experience might be the exception to the rule but I think environmental factors of college life have much more influence over eating habits than what we were taught to eat as children.