MCT CampusStudents strive to maintain a healthy diet in a tempting atmosphere. Dietitian Kristen N. Roscioll was at Cabrini on Wednesday, Sept. 26 to help guide students in food selections and weight management. Roscioll addressed how to overcome the dieting challenges that college students encounter.
College students make a variety of mistakes. One of the most common is skipping breakfast. Breakfast is an important factor in eating healthy and something that college students neglect, Roscioll said. It is important to start eating early and one’s breakfast should consist of 300 to 400 calories.
Eating before bed is harmful to one’s diet and does not give the body sufficient time to break down the food. Roscioll suggests not eating 90 minutes to two hours before bed.
Juice and soda act as a harmful indulgence. An eight ounce can may have up to 100 calories. Vitamin drinks also are not advised. These drinks contain calories and one can gain the same nutrients from vitamins. It is best to avoid these drinks and stick with water or unsweetened beverages.
Roscioll urges students to avoid the dieting myth that all carbohydrates are always bad. “Carbohydrates are the body’s main source of fuel,” Roscioll said. We can not cut them out of our diet completely, but we must consume them in moderation.
College students are constantly on the go and may not have time to sit down and eat a healthy balanced meal. Roscioll suggests students carry snacks on them. Granola bars, trail mix, crackers and nuts are all healthy snacks that can hold one over until they are able to eat a proper meal.
It is all right for one to indulge in their favorite food once in a while. Too many restrictions often do more harm than good. It is the amount we consume of favorite foods that is harmful to diets.
The amount of food college students eat is at times larger than the recommended servings. The average person should consume about 2500 calories a day. Eating the appropriate serving size is one of the more important factors in dieting.
Students may have the will to eat healthy, but sometimes the campus food does not leave them with that option.
“The food that they have in the cafeteria doesn’t seem too healthy,” Caitlin Robillard, a sophomore history major, said. “I usually go to the grocery store to buy food.”
Exercise works in conjunction with dieting. Robillard recommends that students exercise three to five days a week for a half hour to 45 minutes.
This will not only aid in dieting, but also helps in students overall wellness.
