The Schedule of College Students and the Relation to Unhealthy Foods - Research Paper Example

The schedule of college causes them to eat unhealthy foods at awkward hours which make them unhealthy and obese College are required to adjust with various schedules of tuition. Students spent most of their time to complete work and dedication is required to complete assignments. The time of students, before, after and between the classes is used to do homework. Amidst busy schedules at college, students spare time for part time jobs and end up with no time to exercise and take food (Crisan). The high pressures of student life and the demanding time schedule at colleges have evolved the eating habits of students. Students are required to use more time for college work and have less time to indulge in other activities that include eating. Therefore, students are forced to make a quick grab of food (Anne Ng p.1). The research aims to substantiate that the busy schedule of college students paves the way for them to eat unhealthy foods at odd times that later makes them unhealthy and obese. College students are likely to stay awake late at night to complete assignments, readings, homework, sports practice and meetings. This is in addition to the varying schedules of college. They are thus forced to eat food at awkward hours. Many students know the ill effects of late night eating on health but students cannot remain hungry at night and therefore binge on fast food. Another reason why college students eat unhealthy food is peer pressure to unwind after a complex assignment is completed. Since sandwich shops close early students are left to eat unhealthy fast food late at night (Walz). The meager budget of college students enable them only to avail cheap, unhealthy food consisting of fries and greasy tacos that are readily available. The lifestyle of human beings is improved by modern technology but college students do not seem to live and eat in a healthy manner. College students are in an extremely pressurized environment due to the rapid development in the society. The society places huge expectations on college students that eating has become a luxury made available only by time. Students live in dormitories away from home and do not have the facility to consume home made food. The college schedule does not let them use much time to choose healthy food or travel back home to have a good home made food. The unhealthy food habits combined with college pressures increases when hot and fresh food is served fast. The demanding life style of students then has the bad calories that serve as the primary source of energy. Potato chips, colas and pizzas are the staple food for students who spent all night to study and the food vending machine is the nutrient source for them (Anne Ng p.1). The demanding schedules of students have changed their lifestyle into unhealthy food habits with convenience food. It is easy for them to live a life using things that come in handy. Though it should not be by putting one’s health and life at stake, students feel it is fun to eat out and have some good time with cohorts and peers without caring for the effects and consequences of poor diet (Anne Ng p.2). When college students are stressed about exams they consume junk food like ice cream in between study sessions as a comfort food. Students feel that good tasting food has an overwhelming impact on the brain and enhances the complete well being of the person. Students binge on junk food and noodles because they taste good and are inexpensive. Junk or unhealthy food is a quick fix for students who have crammed schedules. Further students do not wish to remain hungry and tired and therefore they access ready made food from the nearest corner or vending machine. These factors like time, exam stress and cheap food does not give rise to the idea of self cooking nutritious food among college students, they rather stick to unhealthy food to overcome the hunger at any time (Top 5 College Student Stressors). College life is a new environment and students feel difficult in balancing their life with higher education, social pressures and food habits. The extreme change in life style leads to a change in food habits and students become obese. The Freshman 15 stigma clearly indicates why it is difficult for college students to maintain their study life and food habits. The change in day schedule at the colleges affects eating and students do not have adequate time to exercise. Inadequacy of time is due to all nighters to complete projects and study for exams (Malinauskas et al). College student have the habit of eating late at night because they do not have enough time during the day. The time may be 12 am and the food they chose is usually fast food, junk food and friend food. The habit of eating unhealthy food is an outcome of eating disorders and diet changes. Eating habits change when student attend college because the eating time varies according to the college schedule. Students mostly depend on college cafeterias, buffets, unhealthy snacks and round the clock restaurants that tempt them to over eat and discourage them to choose healthy food. Stress and inadequate money also deprives students from eating the right food. Students deprived of eating food at the right time end up eating junk food at odd times such as 2 a m and are confident that they have good metabolism. But this kind of eating habits takes its toll in the long term. The Center for Disease Control recommends that college students should exercise at least 30 minutes a day even if they have busy schedules at the college. The CDC also recommends that moderate, regular or intense physical activity is essential to keep a student pleasant. Students tend to gain weight while at college because they chose convenience food and do not find enough time to exercise and thereby gain weight. The failure to consume healthy food and perform adequate exercise leads to the deficiency of Vitamin D among college students. A research by Cornell Medical College indicates that more than 14 percent teenagers and college students are deficient in Vitamin D. This is attributed to the college schedule that leaves the students with no time to perform daily routines. Students become unhealthy and are deficient in Vitamin D because they do not drink milk. Students are required to create an awareness about vitamin deficiency and its causes. Further students are required to have an awareness about food safety. Food safety is the right method for the consumption, preparation and storage of food. College students are exposed to helath risks in the short and long term because they are unaware of the facts of healthy eating. College timings and deadlines to submit assignments lead students to binge on unhealthy food and does not provide students with the required ingredients in food that include vitamin D, fruits and vegetables. The absence of physical activity among college students develops into bad habits and lifestyles that will continue in their future life.   It has been common for students to gain weight as they enter college due to the various changes to their lifestyle. Though factors like sedentary lifestyle, stress and changes in food consumption and diet styles have an impact, the change in work and class schedule that change every day and every semester is the root cause for students to become obese. While consumption of unhealthy food at odd times is one reason, the tendency of students to skip meals and the absence of weight management results in weight gain. The consumption of food at varying times and the limitations of their stay away from home give them little variety of food to choose from. Students also underestimate the size of servings and end up eating more than the standard size of a meal. Students become unhealthy because the fast food and junk food they gulp down at varying times and varying size of servings do not contain required amounts of nutrients. The nutrients that offer calories are proteins, carbohydrates and fates. Of these, the amount of fat and carbohydrates (specifically sugar) exceed the standard quantities. Together with this college student’s food contains low levels of dietary fiber essential for the health of intestines. Students are also deficient in Vitamin C due to their fewer intakes of vegetables and fruits. The amount of Vitamin C is lesser among students who smoke. Students become unhealthy because minerals like iron, calcium and zinc consumption is low and the intake of sodium is higher than the required amount. When compared to girls, male college student fair well in the intake of dietary requirements for poultry, meat, dry beans, fish , nuts, cereal, bread, pasta, rice and vegetables. Males consume more food than females and have higher energy consumption. The quality of diet is further impaired by the intake of fifteen or more alcoholic beverages in a week. This is attributed to the student’s anxieties related to academic achievement and the fulfillment of assignment. Eating disorders like bulimia and anorexia are prevalent among female college students when compared to the general population. Stressful times like final exams add to the pressure of students and lead them to consume less food or more food that result in eating disorders (College Students, Diets of). Pulling all nighters or the deprivation of sleep for on single night is a common practice among college students who usually score lower grade points. College students usually have inadequate sleep and their sleep is of poor quality and irregular. When the quantity and quality of sleep reduce the academic performance of students worsens. Though this may be due to exams and deadlines to be met at college it is not a good practice to achieve academic objectives. The quantity of sleep affects the physical health of students and impacts their performance and productivity. Inadequate sleep leads to serious health issues like obesity, depression and diabetes (Arcuri). College is a stressful part of student life. The pressure to achieve good marks can be overwhelming. The common problems of students worsen with acute health problems like obesity. Obesity has already become a problem for the youth because it leads to problems like hypertension, type 2 diabetes and dyslipidema. A 2005 research shows that three out of ten students are overweight according to their body mass index. While trying to continues with an active academic and social schedule it imperative for a person to have active eating patterns that include the consumption of four or five small meals through the day. But this eating pattern is not on the priorities to be fulfilled by students. Students do not have the time to cook meal and do not have the time to have food at regular intervals. The cause of obesity is the lack of time among students in the midst of their college schedules but a thoughtfully designed diet pattern is a simple and effective solution because it only depends on the person to change their lifestyle. Colleges do not take strict initiatives to solve problems like obesity because the college experience surrounds around giving freedom to the youth to make their own decision during their transition to adult and be accountable to the self. It is recommended that universities encourage healthy eating despite offering varied schedules for education which is the main cause for the unhealthy eating and the resultant obesity (Obesity on the Rise Among College Women). It may be concluded that the schedule of college students causes them to binge on unhealthy food. Since most of the time is spent to complete assignments students do not follow the four to five break down of meals through the day. Instead they get over their hunger by consuming a large meal at the end of the day or sometimes in the midnight or past midnight. The food consumed at this time is usually fast food or junk foods that include high fat food and colas with no adequate nutrients to maintain the health of the students. The busy schedule at college does not give enough time to choose a healthy menu comprised of fruits and vegetables or prepare meal using healthy ingredients. The lack of healthy food leads to the deficiency of nutrients like vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber. The convenient food pattern combined with cheap and ready availability of food leads students to choose unhealthy food. The college schedule also denies time for students to exercise. Stress related to the completion of assignments also makes students to binge on large portions of food. Thus college students binge on unhealthy food and become unhealthy and obese due to their schedules at college. Works Cited Anne Ng. Tips for the College Student: Conquering Unhealthy Eating Habits Novemeber 05, 2006. p.1-2. Available: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/79435/tips_for_the_college_student_conquering.html?cat=5. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Arcuri, Jim. College students who pull all-nighters and get no sleep more likely to have a lower GPA 2009 Available: http://news.bio-medicine.org/medicine-news-3/College-students-who-pull-all-nighters-and-get-no-sleep-more-likely-to-have-a-lower-GPA-289-1/. Accessed on April 29, 2009 College Students, Diets of. Available: http://www.faqs.org/nutrition/Ca-De/College-Students-Diets-of.html. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Crisan, Angela. Obesity and College Students 2007 Available: http://media.www.cychron.com/media/storage/paper910/news/2006/11/01/News/Obesity.And.College.Students-2382408.shtml. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Dickens, Whitney. Why don’t students eat right and exercise? 2009 Available: http://www.ncatregister.com/why-don-t-students-eat-right-and-exercise-1.1730584. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Malinauskas, Brenda M., Raedeke, Thomas D., Aeby, Victor G., Smith, Jean L., & Dallas, Matthew B Dieting practices, weight perceptions, and body composition: A comparison of normal weight, overweight, and obese college females 2006 Available: http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1475-2891-5-11.pdf. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Obesity on the Rise Among College Women 2007 Available: http://www.universitychic.com/article/obesity-rise-among-college-women. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Top 5 College Student Stressors — and Stress Relievers Available: http://www.collegeandfinance.com/top-five-things-that-stress-college-students-out/. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Walz, Rachel. Late night eating unhealthy, but tempting. 2006. Available: http://media.www.theconcordonline.com/media/storage/paper1089/news/2006/12/07/Opinion/Late-Night.Eating.Unhealthy.But.Tempting-2520779.shtml. Accessed on April 29, 2009 Read More