Unit 15 Healthy eating

扩展资料

Health problem

　　In the United States, 30 percent of the adult population have a weight problem. To many people, the cause is clear: they eat too much. But scientific evidence does little to agree with it. Going back to America of 1910,we found people were thinner than today, yet they ate more food. Because in those days people worked harder, walked more, used machines much less, and didn’t watch television.
　　Several modern studies, however, have shown that fatter people do not eat more than thinner people. In fact, some investigations, such as a 1989 study of 3,545 London office workers show that fatter people eat less than thinner people. Studies show that thinner people are more active than fatter people. A study by a group at Stanford University found the following interesting fact: The more the man ran, the greater loss of body fat. Thus, those who run the most eat the most, yet lose the most of body fat, yet lose the most of body fat, Yet 80 to 90 percent still don’t get enough exercise. The situation is worse among children, who spend too much time watching TV, and too little time running around. In the USA, fitness is something you cannot get away from/ You’ll see special stores full of books and cassettes telling you how to get fit. You’ll meet joggers in the park, and find at least one health club in every town. Americans know they have a fitness problem. Many people feel they are too fat. 80 percent of people say they try to improve their fitness, even if they soon give up.

Americans Take Cholesterol Advice to Heart

　　Americans appear to be taking the advice about lowering their blood cholesterol levels to heart. According to the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), significant reductions in the blood cholesterol levels of U.S. adults have occurred during the last 12 years. Average cholesterol levels in the U.S. dropped nearly four percent between 1978 and 1990 among every age/sex group studied.
　　Moreover, the proportion of Americans with "high" cholesterol levels dropped from 26 to 20 percent, while the number of adults with "desirable" cholesterol levels increased from 44 to 49 percent. Yet some 52 million Americans still have cholesterol levels that exceed health recommendations, prompting release of another report in June from the National Cholesterol Education Program's (NCEP) Expert Panel on the Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults (ATP II).
　　The new report updates ATP I guidelines published in 1988, but continues several themes: namely that high levels of low density lipoproteins, or LDLs, are the main targets for therapy; dietary therapy is the first line of treatment; and drug therapy is reserved for the highest risk patients. But according to Scott M. Grundy, M.D., ATP II chairperson and director of the Center for Human Nutrition, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, "The new report also reflects our improved understanding of cholesterol and its lipoproteins, and makes some key changes."
　　Among them are recommendations for more aggressive therapy in patients with existing heart disease. The patient's age and sex also should be considered when prescribing therapy, recognizing that an older person has a much higher risk than a younger person.
Moreover, the new report recognizes the benefits of high density lipoproteins (HDL) levels, or good cholesterol believed to protect against heart disease. HDLs should be routinely checked, together with total cholesterol. HDLs higher than 60 mg/dL should be considered a negative risk factor. "In other words," Grundy explained, "a high HDL reduces the risk of coronary heart disease, and it should lessen the need for very aggressive therapy in patients having high HDL levels."
　　Greater emphasis is placed on weight loss and physical activity as essential components of dietary therapy. Studies show that increased activity and weight loss by those who are overweight significantly decrease illness and death in heart disease patients.

How to Lower the Fat in Chinese Cooking

Here's How:
1.Avoid dishes with heavy sauces, such as red-cooked dishes that are simmered in dark soy sauce and sugar.
2.If you are trying to decide which regional cuisine to try, Cantonese is generally the best choice. Cantonese dishes tend to be light, using fresh ingredients.
3.Reduce the amount of oil you use for stir-frying. For vegetables, add 1 tablespoon of oil to the wok, stir-fry the vegetable very briefly, and than add broth or light sauces to season.
4.Try other cooking methods besides frying, such as steaming and baking.
5.Trim the fat off meat.
6.Try partially freezing meat. This will make it easier both to remove the fat and to cut the meat into thinner slices.
7.Reduce the amount of meat in your meal. The average Chinese daily diet consists of rice, noodles and other grains, vegetables, nuts, and fruit.
8.Author Stephen Wong notes that fat does serve the useful purpose of dispersing flavor. To make a low-fat dish more flavorful, he suggests increased use of healthy seasonings such as ginger, garlic, and cilantro.
9.Stick to noodles that are lower in fat. For example, a cup of cooked rice noodles has 0.352 grams of fat, while the same amount of chow mein noodles has a whopping 13.842 grams of fat. (Source: USDA)
10.Finally, if a recipe calls for coconut milk, try one of the skim or low-fat versions.

Eating in the Cafeteria

　　As America is home to so many different nationalities, one can find almost any kind of restaurant in all the large cities. The restaurants can range widely in cost from inexpensive to very expensive. But fast food shops have become very widespread in the U. S. because they are quick and cheap.
　　And cafeterias are especially popular with American students. There you can get a variety of food such as fried fish, barbecued chicken, spaghetti, salad, vegetables, macaroni, sweet potatoes, rice, hot rolls. There are also desserts and drinks. You can pick up whatever strikes your fancy.
　　Tips are generally not required at cafeterias where you serve yourself and you are expected to clear your own table of dishes and utensils, and discard your trash in the garbage cans.
　　In most cafeterias, you stand in line. As you walk along, you select items available at a counter. At normal mealtimes, cafeterias are crowded with people. You can usually get a seat without waiting too long if you eat a little early or a little late.
　　Students entering the cafeterias on the campus are required to present their own valid meal cards. Student I. D. cards and any other identification must be presented if requested by dining hall staff, student managers, or checkers. An individual who refuses to show a student I. D. card a trespasser and will be denied entrance and be told to leave the premises.
　　Dining at students’ cafeteria, students are required to follows some rules. For example, once diners leave the dining hall, they will not be allowed to reenter during that meal. No food, glass or other dining services’ property may be removed from the dining hall. It is expected that students will be courteous to fellow students and dining hall personnel while in it. You are not allowed to break the line. Any action that jeopardizes the safety of other students is prohibited. No student if barefooted will be permitted to enter the dining hall. Moreover, alcoholic beverages and drugs are not permitted there. People under the influence of alcohol or drug will be required to leave. Another thing that makes a students cafeteria different from one out of the campus is the way of payment. Dining charges are payable in the same manner as tuition and other fees.

Vitamins

　　Many jobs can only be done with two people. One person takes the lead. The other person helps. It is this cooperation which brings success. So it is with the body. Much of our good health depends on the cooperation between leader substances and helper substances. When they work together, chemical reactions take place smoothly. Body systems are kept in balance.
　　Some of the roost important helpers in the job of good health are the substances we call vitamins. Our program today talks about vitamins.
　　The word “vitamin” was invented by Polish scientist Casimir Funk in 1912. Funk had been studying a substance in the outer covering, or hull, of rice. The substance was thought to prevent the disease beriberi. Earlier studies had shown that people who removed the hulls before cooking often developed beriberi. Those who did not remove the hulls did not get the disease. Funk believed the substance belonged to a group of chemicals known as amines. He added the Latin word “vita”, meaning life. And so he called the substance a vitamin — an amine necessary for life.
Funk failed to separate the anti-beriberi substance from rice hulls. And later research showed that vitamins are not amines, after all. But Funk was correct in recognizing the importance of vitamins for life.
　　Since his time, scientists have discovered 13 different vitamins. They are known as vitamins A,B group, C,D,E and K. Scientists say vitamins act like enzymes. Tiley help carry out chemical changes within cells.
　　We get most vitamins from food. If the foods we eat do not contain all the vitamins we need, we probably will develop a number of disorders. This brings us back to Polish scientist Casimir Funk and the link between rice hulls and beriberi. His experiments part of a long search for food that could cure disease.
　　What do vitamins do to keep us healthy? Which foods are the best source for different ones? Let us look at some of the vitamins that might be considered the most important.
　　Vitamin A is needed to produce a light-sensitive substance in the eyes. And it helps prevent skin and other tissue from drying out. People who do not eat enough vitamin A cannot see well in the dark. They also may develop a condition that dries the eyes. The condition, called xerophthalmia, can result in infections, and lead to blindness. The best source of vitamin A is fish liver oil. It is also found in the yellow part of eggs. Many vegetables contain substances that the body can change into vitamin A. These include the yellow vegetables squash, pumpkin and sweet potatoes.
　　Vitamin C is necessary for strong bones and teeth, and for healthy blood vessels. It also helps wounds heal faster. As we said earlier, a lack of vitamin C causes scurvy. The body store very little vitamin C. So we must get it every day in vitamin C—rich foods. These include fruits, tomatoes and uncooked cabbage.
　　Vitamin D increases the amount of calcium in the blood. Calcium is needed for nerve and muscle cells to work normally. It also is needed to build strong bones.
　　Vitamins are found in the four groups: fish and meat, vegetables, eggs and milk products, and grains. Doctors advise that the best way to get all the vitamins we need is to eat some of these foods every day.

返回页首