At a glance, I thought Agnes' diet was really healthy. She ate plenty of fruits and vegetables and since she's in badminton, I know she must have plenty of exercise each week, which makes her a really healthy person - in my eyes, at least. I was really surprised when the nutritional tools showed that she wasn't that healthy after all.
I think Agnes' case showed me that even though we may exercise a lot and eat our vegetables, we might not necessarily be living healthily. It makes people really comprehend how just a meal can change our lives when taken in long-term - for example, a cone of ice-cream taken, say, once a week would definitely contribute many calories etc., and in the long run the person will be rather unhealthy. This shows that we should be mindful of everything we eat - even if it's just something as insignificant as a tea snack - if we're trying to aim for a perfect, healthy diet.
Even so, I think Agnes provides me inspiration to start eating my vegetables. She eats a lot, really - 20 long beans? - and I think I should start learning from her and try eating them, even if I don't like the bitter taste and the feel/smell/texture/colour of it.
Wednesday, 22 February 2012
Reflection: Shannon
I always thought Shannon seemed really healthy so it kind of surprised me when I read her blog. I never saw anyone who ate so little in one day and ate so many...um, varied things in a single day.
Overall her diet seems fine, but I'm more concerned about the fact that she doesn't seem to be taking much lunch. I know some people believe we should eat only 2 main meals a day for some reason, but I think it's not good to be eating only 2 meals, especially since we're growing kids and need the energy from the food to grow. I was also horrified at her breakfast on Day 3 - ice cream? It seems like a really unhealthy breakfast and also I don't think people should consume cold food in the morning. My mother always tells me not to do that but I don't do that anyway because my stomach is really weak in the morning and I can't stand cold food (in the morning).
The one good thing about her diet is the amount of fruits Shannon eats. I think it's a good habit to include fruits in the diet because unlike vegetables, fruits are tasty and they are also a source of dietary fibre. This means fruits are really healthy and from what I know eating fruits, they seem really filling (or maybe that's just me) so it could help fill up Shannon's belly if it's grumbling over lack of lunch.
Overall her diet seems fine, but I'm more concerned about the fact that she doesn't seem to be taking much lunch. I know some people believe we should eat only 2 main meals a day for some reason, but I think it's not good to be eating only 2 meals, especially since we're growing kids and need the energy from the food to grow. I was also horrified at her breakfast on Day 3 - ice cream? It seems like a really unhealthy breakfast and also I don't think people should consume cold food in the morning. My mother always tells me not to do that but I don't do that anyway because my stomach is really weak in the morning and I can't stand cold food (in the morning).
The one good thing about her diet is the amount of fruits Shannon eats. I think it's a good habit to include fruits in the diet because unlike vegetables, fruits are tasty and they are also a source of dietary fibre. This means fruits are really healthy and from what I know eating fruits, they seem really filling (or maybe that's just me) so it could help fill up Shannon's belly if it's grumbling over lack of lunch.
Reflection: Shermaine
I enjoyed reading Shermaine's blog because it was quite detailed on what she ate and was also filled with pictures that she took of her own food. The pictures also tell us the portions which she ate, which really helps us in analysing her diet - which I think is really healthy.
Shermaine's diet is filled with healthy meals like aglio olio and porridge and wholemeal bread, so maybe that's why Shermaine seems so healthy and energetic all the time. But being Shermaine's friend, I also know that all her mealtimes are a bit wonky - for example, she eats her lunch during recess. Shermaine doesn't think that there's anything wrong but I think it's bad on the body. If there wasn't anything wrong, why would humans fix a certain time to eat their three main meals?
Being a very unhealthy person I don't know what the consequences of this are but I hope Shermaine can try to eat her meals regularly - I know sometimes she skips her meals even though she has track later on and needs the energy from food. It's really worrying whenever I see this sort of thing happening and I will definitely try to convince her to change her eating habits.
Shermaine's diet is filled with healthy meals like aglio olio and porridge and wholemeal bread, so maybe that's why Shermaine seems so healthy and energetic all the time. But being Shermaine's friend, I also know that all her mealtimes are a bit wonky - for example, she eats her lunch during recess. Shermaine doesn't think that there's anything wrong but I think it's bad on the body. If there wasn't anything wrong, why would humans fix a certain time to eat their three main meals?
Being a very unhealthy person I don't know what the consequences of this are but I hope Shermaine can try to eat her meals regularly - I know sometimes she skips her meals even though she has track later on and needs the energy from food. It's really worrying whenever I see this sort of thing happening and I will definitely try to convince her to change her eating habits.
Reflection: Me
I knew my diet was an unhealthy one - I just didn't think it was THAT unhealthy. I mean, how unhealthy it would be eating gummy bears/worms for lunch like two to three times a week? It seemed really insignificant to me but now I know that all of this "insignificant" factors contributed a significant part in making my diet unhealthy.
I learnt that I was at risk of stroke, several cancers etc., which is something I definitely don't want to get. I'm already trying to get myself to eat my greens so hopefully my diet will become healthier in time. In any case, the nutritional tools were really useful. They informed me about what I could do to make my diet healthier, and also what I would end up with in the future if I continued my unhealthy way of living. It was really an eye-opener and perhaps occasionally I'll do the three-day diet thing all over again to see how much I'm improving.
The one-dish meal I cooked wasn't supposed to be very healthy - it's fried, after all. I wanted to make it healthier and all but I guess everything was one gigantic flop. It goes to show how alien the concept of "healthy diet" really is to me and probably to all other 14-year-olds out there, and it certainly shows that we have to brush up on our comprehension of a healthy diet and a healthy living.
I learnt that I was at risk of stroke, several cancers etc., which is something I definitely don't want to get. I'm already trying to get myself to eat my greens so hopefully my diet will become healthier in time. In any case, the nutritional tools were really useful. They informed me about what I could do to make my diet healthier, and also what I would end up with in the future if I continued my unhealthy way of living. It was really an eye-opener and perhaps occasionally I'll do the three-day diet thing all over again to see how much I'm improving.
The one-dish meal I cooked wasn't supposed to be very healthy - it's fried, after all. I wanted to make it healthier and all but I guess everything was one gigantic flop. It goes to show how alien the concept of "healthy diet" really is to me and probably to all other 14-year-olds out there, and it certainly shows that we have to brush up on our comprehension of a healthy diet and a healthy living.
Friday, 10 February 2012
Analysis: Fried Rice
Today I cooked fried rice to find out how it's cooked. It's really easy...but, I realised, pretty unhealthy too.
There were lots of salt, soy sauce and oyster sauce dumped into the fried rice. I know that it's to make it taste better, but really I feel that we could decrease the amounts a bit. Especially since the egg seemed rather salty - even more so than the rice, which tasted rather plain in comparison. I think we could decrease the salt and soy sauce content in the egg, which would balance out the food a little.
There could be less oil, too - there seemed to be too much oil being dumped in the wok. Plus the white rice could be changed for brown rice - which tastes much less the same but is even healthier.
I think I could increase the amounts of vegetables to increase the dietary fibre content of the meal - especially since, well, I don't have enough dietary fibre.
There were lots of salt, soy sauce and oyster sauce dumped into the fried rice. I know that it's to make it taste better, but really I feel that we could decrease the amounts a bit. Especially since the egg seemed rather salty - even more so than the rice, which tasted rather plain in comparison. I think we could decrease the salt and soy sauce content in the egg, which would balance out the food a little.
There could be less oil, too - there seemed to be too much oil being dumped in the wok. Plus the white rice could be changed for brown rice - which tastes much less the same but is even healthier.
I think I could increase the amounts of vegetables to increase the dietary fibre content of the meal - especially since, well, I don't have enough dietary fibre.
Diet Analysis
When I computed my findings, I was seriously shocked. I didn't think my diet would be this unbalanced, but it was, and I kept thinking about what Ms Chionh said in class.
So here is the table for the Food Intake Assessment (highlight to see):
So here is the table for the Food Intake Assessment (highlight to see):
| Energy (kcal) | Carbohydrate (g) | Protein (g) | Total Fat (g) | Saturated Fat (g) | Cholesterol (mg) | Calcium (mg) | Dietary Fibre (g) | Sodium (mg) | |
| Average intake per day | 2,289 | 350.6 | 73.0 | 66.1 | 29.8 | 223.9 | 548.0 | 12.7 | 2,545.5 |
| Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) | 2,148 | 322.2 | 76.1 | 71.6 | 23.9 | 214.8 | 1,000.0 | 21.5 | 1,432.6 |
| % of recommendation met | 107 | 109 | 96 | 92 | 125 | 104 | 55 | 59 | 178 |
Shocked? Yeah, I was shocked too.
The first thing I looked at was the dietary fibre column because I don't eat my veggies and I still remember the look of colon cancer. Lo and behold, I don't have enough dietary fibre!
Looking at the HPB website, they told me that dietary fibre helps 'promote proper bowel functions, reduce blood cholesterol and control blood glucose levels'. I don't quite understand what they're talking about but yeah, dietary fibre sounds great. I think I'll start eating more dietary fibre (in the form of the green stuff clearly non-existent in my diet) from now on.
Anyway, according to the table I have more energy than what I need, about 7%. Which means that this 7% excess energy will be stored as body fat - so I have to think about burning that 7% fat from now on. Furthermore, consultation with the website tells me that excessive body fat leads to 'blood pressure, stroke, diabetes and even certain cancers'. It means that I'm in risk for several cancers as I am now.
My future doesn't sound promising at all.
But although my carbohydrates are above 100%, there's another table that puts my mind at ease (highlight to see):
| |||||||||||||||
So, this means that my total carbohydrates, protein and fat are within an accepted and recommended range - and hence I don't need to worry about them. I hope.
My saturated fat was 25% more than the recommended amount, and the website says that an excess saturated fat can 'raise your blood cholesterol, subsequently increasing your risk of heart disease'. So, on top of cancers I get heart disease? Yeah, I'm beginning to like my diet even more.
Risks of stroke and heart attacks are also icnreased by sodium, which is more than recommended amounts. Which means I have more bad stuff to look forward to.
And that's not all. Cholesterol was also more than recommended amounts, and it puts me at risk of heart diseases. Seriously, I think I'll die of heart disease before I get to go through torturous cancer.
And even though calcium is less than the recommended amount, I'm still at risk of developing osteoporosis, where my bones become weak and brittle. I haven't gotten weak and brittle bones yet, but I do realise my fingernails are slightly translucent and easily bend when I apply pressure on them. I'm guessing that this is also a sign I'm not getting enough calcium.
All in all, I have to give my diet a complete revamp, and the first thing I've got to do is eat those green stuff and down 2 more cups of chocolate milk.
Blog your Diet: Day 3
Sunday, 5 February 2012
Here is the food list for the day:
Here is the food list for the day:
- 09 08 - A bowl of Hokkien noodles with a cup of milk tea
- 13 31 - Fried rice
- 19 09 - Rice with beancurd, spicy fish and otah
- 20 47 - An apple and a pear
Today, on top of my breakfast I also drank a full cup of the milk tea that can be bought in hawker centres. The tea wakes me up and makes me feel even more full, so I don't snack after drinking it.
My mother decided to cook fried rice after hearing about my Aesthetics Performance Task. It was really nice. I like fried rice after all.
I would have completed all of my homework by Sunday, which is mainly spent secretly reading manga on my computer. I don't move much and, engrossed as I am in my manga, I don't think about eating so the next time I ate was dinner. My family loves spicy things - even though sometimes it's too much for us to bear - so we often have spicy foods for our weekend dinners. However, this time it was not as spicy as yesterday's, so I had no need to drink any chocolate milk which has been finished by me.
After eating, there is a period of 30 minutes to 1 hour where my family waits for our dinner to settle in our stomach, and after that period is the time where we eat fruits. My mother bought new fruits today so we had apples and pears to eat - but usually I am the only one eating all the apples and pears as my father and brother prefer oranges, and my sister and mother don't like fruits. So I ate an entire apple and pear. It was very filling, but I like to think it gives me a lot of nutrients even though my piano teacher told me fruits don't really have as many nutrients and vitamins as those vitamin pills she advised me to eat.
In any case, this was all I ate today.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)