|
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
So Fast So Furious
By Lady Ochel C. Espinosa
An Eagle's Eye View
YOU just finished the midterms that you spent the whole day preparing for. The triumphant, relieved air you have hides your exhaustion from the day's work.
You have crammed your way to passing another grueling examination, but at what expense?
Suddenly, your knees wobble, your head throbs wildly, and everything blurs. Spasms jolt your stomach. The feeling of accomplishment is replaced by pain.
Life in school- whether in grade school, high school, college, grad school, medicine or law - is getting more fast-paced, and students try to keep up with it. With the demands of heavy academic workload, extracurricular activities, and attempts to maintain a social life, students fail to give importance to their health.
Hunger Pains, Grade Gains?
Registered pharmacist and student of medicine, Pong Bartolome says that in many of his readings he has encountered a very relevant information saying seven out of ten students in the Philippines complain of hypoglycemia, gastric pain or headaches from hunger, stress, or lack of sleep.
According to Pong, "Hypoglycemia is a condition when the body's blood sugar drops, often resulting to dizziness. It has two types: reactive hypoglycemia, which usually occurs after surgery when one eats meals that are high in carbohydrates; and fasting hypoglycemia, which is caused by skipping meals."
"If you don't eat anything, ultimately, you don't have sugar in your body, but then if you're studying, you would need sugar for the brain. It's gonna burn the fat or the protein, so you have an end-product which is not good for the body," says Ma. Aimy Villanueva, another medicine student.
A time-constrained schedule usually takes its toll on the eating and sleeping habits of students. Some risk empty stomachs and aching heads for additional hours of studying or other activities.
Some, on the other hand, are constrained by a schedule that does not permit time for a decent lunch. Some live on their own with no one to cook for them. These people resort to what seems to be the most practical solution: instant food.
Eating Habits, Worse Than Rabbits
Law student Reyan Loja used to stay with three flatmates in a boarding house near her campus. Instant noodles and canned food are stocked in their pantry. Seldom does she cook full meals. When she's not eating instant noodles, she's in one of the fast food chains and cafeterias within Iloilo City, especially the ones found in the malls, satisfying her appetite.
"If we have time, galuto naman kami," Reyan says. "Pero kasi, usually, walang time to prepare food and everything, so we turn to instant food instead." But knowing this does not do her health any good.
Reyan makes sure to eat nutritious food on weekends when she goes home to Mambusao, Capiz with her family. "We eat as much as we can para sa week, medyo okay lang."
Jenny* shares a similar experience. She lived with her cousins in an apartment unit near her university during her freshman year. They had a helper who cooked food for them, so eating three full meals a day wasn't a problem. But coming to school in time for an early class or to do projects wasn't easy, so this school year, she moved into a girl's dormitory, saying goodbye to her cousins and to three square meals a day.
"It's inconvenient to get up early [to cook] so I don't eat breakfast at all," Jenny shares. "For lunch, it's either I go to JD or avail of the food in the cafeteria sa dorm." Her dorm has a little kitchenette, she also stocks up her nook with crackers and chips.
Denise's* case is different. She lives in the province of Guimaras, a good one-and-a-half-hour travel from their house to her med school. Even when she college Denise went home everyday. Despite the distance, she doesn't seem to have problems managing her time.
She makes sure to eat properly, get adequate sleep, and study regularly. When she needs to be in school early or has to stay up late in the evening, she sometimes packs sandwiches to eat in the boat ride, where she also tries to take a quick nap or read up on her lessons.
Denise doesn't eat no-cook foods that much. She either eats full meals at home or in school. On hectic days, she brings sandwiches in her bag.
"Discouraged kami by my parents. Indi sila sang instant food lang kay sobra wala daw sustansiya. Wala kami ginapakaon sina, so sobra kisa lang may ara sa balay," she shares.
Parental guidance.
Bank Manager Amalia* has two daughters studying in a university in Metro Manila, Angel *and Anna*. While she does not monitor her children's eating habits very often, she is glad that they themselves try to eat right.
"Lately, they told me that they have been bringing sandwiches because they would like to save. When they're at home, they sometimes eat instant noodles. I think the rule is really to [keep] the balance. They can eat these things probably, but only occasionally or when the need arises. More or less they're getting more aware na about what is healthy and what is not," Amalia says.
"As a parent, I can only tell them to eat properly," explains Amalia. "I hope they try to keep in mind the long-term effects of not taking care of themselves properly, because right now, they might not feel anything, but they will see the effects later on, probably hyperacidity or ulcer."
Aside from lack of time, Amalia notices another reason students don't get to eat right at times. "Sometimes they don't really have money. There are some kids that, because of hard times, they're forced to eat only this to get by."
Conversely, med students Pong and Aimy see how young people nowadays have a different body image.
"Their body image is something like, thin is in," Aimy remarks. "I think it's also because they think you have to be thin in order to be fashionable, in order to be pretty."
Both Pong and Aimy agree that constant reminders, assurance, and guidance of parents can help children be conscious of their health.
Health Risks on the Quick Fix.
No-cook noodles, microwave-ready cold cuts, and from-the-packet meals seem so practical, convenient, and timesaving that the health consequences are easily disregarded. Instant noodles contain a certain amount of edible wax to keep the noodles from sticking together.
Myths about how the wax causes cancer when consumed regularly have been around for a few years but there are no scientific proof for this. The truth is, instant noodles can be harmful because the soup usually contains monosodium glutamate or MSG.
"Masama, in a sense[that it is high in salt content," says Pong about instant noodles. "The regular salt requirement of the body is only about 2 to 4 grams a day. ", says Pong
The regular diet of Filipinos according to the study of FNRI (Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Department of Science and Technology) contains more or less something like 12 to 20 grams of sodium. With just the regular diet alone, you already get more sodium [than is required.
Pong also shares that the "Chinese syndrome"-headaches people often acquire from eating instant noodles-is caused by the MSG in the seasoning, which is also contained in various junk food.
Aside from no-cook noodles, another popular option for students who don't have the luxury of time is to take coffee, soft drinks, or tea. However, their main ingredient, caffeine, the world's most widely circulated drug, has adverse effects too.
According to a Reuters Health article, caffeine boosts the body's production of stress hormones many hours after a person drinks coffee. Post-traumatic stress disorder, diabetes, obesity, social anxiety, high blood pressure, and heart diseases can also be caused by excessive intake of caffeine.
Healthier Alternatives, No More Additives
There are other wiser and healthier options. If cooking food isn't one of them, one can find quick and healthy alternatives in the supermarket such as bread, cereals, milk, fruits, vegetables, and fruit juices. These food are rich in vitamins and nutrients like carbohydrates, calcium, fiber, and proteins among others.
Slowing down was never meant to be part of a teenager's vocabulary. Young bodies permit teenagers to push beyond limits.
However, like everything, even youth will fade. Our decisions now will definitely affect us when our bodies age.
One has to think twice before consuming another cup of instant noodles or coffee. It could be an instant ticket to long-term malnutrition or sickness.
* Names have been changed to protect the individual
(August 16, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor. Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board. Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
|
