Essay Example: College Students Should Take Time to Cook Healthy Foods

College students are free to make their own food choices, but they should choose healthy options to maintain their health condition. It is typical for students entering college to change their diet as they get more freedom than when they are living at home (NYU, 2020). College students have the freedom to eat in the school dining centers, outside school, or cook for themselves. However, eating at school dining centers and outside limits their options of healthy foods, as they only take what is present on the menu. A student's academic performance relies on proper nutrition and also for other co-curricular activities that a student does. It is crucial to understand how a college student should eat healthily and their nutritional requirements.

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It is a responsibility for everyone to meet nutritional requirements, yet the majority of college students are negligent about it, or they ignore it because of the pressures they face. As college students start their new lease of life, they have to adapt as they get social and financial freedom like never before. They now have to plan their finances and their social life as they interact with diverse and more people (NYU, 2020). Achieving minimum nutritional needs is not enough, as college students should develop good eating habits, and the first step they should take is to cook healthy foods for themselves for optimum performance and good health.

Background informationA college student has more challenges in life than before as they are experiencing a lot of new things, and their diet changes and they tend to cook less and eat out more. It is usual for many college students to utilize the dining centers on campus. However, it poses a problem as they are presented with unhealthy and healthy foods to choose from. They can either, therefore, gain or lose weight in the first years or months that they start college. Their nutritional choices determine it because if they choose poorly, they end up with weight problems (Clerkin et al., 2020). They can either gain excessively or lose weight, and they are more at risk of health problems.

As a college student starts their first year, they alter their eating habits and their physical activities. They must choose wisely and opt to cook their food as it encourages healthy eating habits. It is usual for individuals to pass on their eating habits to their adulthood, and it has a massive impact on their future health. It becomes difficult to change when they get used to it, and it is better to choose wisely at the beginning. For example, when one becomes overweight at an early age, they can go on and become overweight all their life, and they become at risk of diseases like diabetes and cancer (Clerkin et al., 2020). It is, therefore, crucial for a college student to consult people or credible sources to gain good eating habits and start cooking healthy food at an early age.

Why cook healthy food?NutritionA college student, like any other person, needs to fulfil their body's nutritional requirements to achieve optimum body function performance. It is, therefore, necessary for a college student to cook their food as a healthy option so that they get all the nutrient requirements, including fats, carbohydrates, and proteins (Sogari et al., 2018). Cooked food contains other mineral requirements like calcium that are also useful for the body. A college student can then accompany cooked food with nutrient supplements and preferably by prescription, but it can also be by choice. Supplements are useful to boost one's level of nutrients in the body, improving one's health. Currently, technology trends, there are mobile applications or computer software that can assist a college student in keeping up with their nutritional requirements and maintain a proper cooked food diet. Nutrition from cooked food is, therefore, essential to support metabolism and other body functions at an optimum level.

References

Clerkin, K. D., Pohl, C. J., Shupe, E. R., & Kim, M. J. (2020). Influencing nutritional habits of college students using a food pantry. Journal of American College Health, 1-5. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2020.1721506

NYU. (2020). Nutrition. https://www.nyu.edu/life/safety-health-wellness/live-well-nyu/priority-areas/nutrition.html

Sogari, G., Velez-Argumedo, C., Gómez, M., & Mora, C. (2018). College students and eating habits: A study using an ecological model for healthy behavior. Nutrients, 10(12), 1823. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10121823