An unexpected test of resistance awaited me when I came home one night. As soon as I stepped into my apartment, every olfactory sense went on high alert, kind of like how Spiderman immediately senses danger. Instead of henchmen and hobgoblins, though, I encountered deep-fried tofu and Korean beef. The air was thick with aromas of oil and marinade, and my mind and body quickly fell subordinate to my nose as I found myself drifting toward the kitchen. My apartment-mate was making dinner for the next night and the counter was replete with culinary goodies. I had to swiftly hightail it to my room and shut the door, lest I succumb to the temptation of stuffing my face at 11 p.m.
It is this same primal instinct and speedy seduction that drives millions of Americans to indulge. The smell, the accessibility and the impulse of eating, combined with the ease of inactivity, form the basis of the new scapegoat/buzzword/epidemic — obesity. When the Center for Disease Control recently reported that obesity would soon overtake smoking as the leading preventable cause of death, even more warning bells (and cash registers) started ringing. Being overweight or obese spawns a wide range of conditions and diseases, from chronic coach-potato syndrome and food coma to diabetes and heart failure. Any argument about feeling good about oneself, regardless of weight, is eclipsed by sheer concern for one’s health.
According to the CDC, adults aged 50 to 59 have the highest percentage of overweight and obese people, with 26 percent of that group in 2001 falling into the category. College-age students, however, stand at a unique juncture in their lives, having the most control to direct the course of their health and well-being more than any other age group. We are old enough to make informed decisions about our lifestyles, yet we are young enough to easily begin and maintain healthy habits.
My childhood was certainly not conducive to dietary health. I remember eating Dunkeroos almost every day — kangaroo-shaped cookies to be dunked in frosting of all things. Back in the ‘90s, the words “carbohydrate” and “simple sugars” were confined to nutrition manuals and biology texts.
My high school cafeteria’s most popular items were pizza, cheese bread, spicy fries and chocolate malts. I never really ate there, but would help myself to my friends’ fries while they drank their 20-ounce Cherry Cokes.
Even in college, I attempted to eat “healthy” by ordering a taco salad from Plaza Cafe, laden with nutrient-deficient lettuce and fatty meat in a deep-fried shell. Only after I read extensively on nutrition and exercise did I understand the fundamentals of healthy living.
I was fortunate to have parents who cooked healthy Asian meals (canceling out the Dunkaroos) and enrolled me in swim classes. Only in college have I truly appreciated the mandated hour of physical education from my past. In college, no one is left to apportion vegetables or enforce exercise. We are left in the jungle of a million choices; the Freshman 15 is just one indicator of our newfound freedom and confusion.
Now is the best time to chart the route of health for the rest of our lives. As young adults, we can exploit our youth and get away with it. Or we can take advantage of our vigor, liberty and fast metabolism to make healthy choices. When else can we live off of four hours of sleep and make Earl’s Place runs for Chips Ahoy at midnight? At the same time, when do we have RIMAC at our disposal and lots of free time to both work out and experiment with healthy cooking?
After graduation, most of our jobs will require 40 hours a week of sitting and typing. Spouses and kids will bring extra joy, but also extra stress. Our metabolisms will slow and our energy will decrease. This sounds fatalistic, but it merely points out the many advantages that we young adults have.
An arsenal of important information on healthy living is lost amidst the sometimes-misleading marketing of diets and products. Diet books top the bestseller lists. Every aisle in grocery stores, from Trader Joe’s to Albertson’s, is packed with low-carb products. It is saddening, almost pathetic, to see the American public so quickly embrace gimmicks and fast solutions to a serious and long-term problem.
Instead of understanding that God did not originally create partially-hydrogenated oil and MSG, people flock to the gospel of Dr. Phil and Robert Atkins. While a general awareness of eating well and living healthy is commendable, the simple facts of consuming less and exercising more is somewhat diluted.
A paradigm shift is in order — a country in which two million people dine at McDonald’s every day can’t expect to forever alter its health in a 40-day diet. That being said, McDonald’s is coming up with “healthier” meals by eliminating SuperSize options and introducing apple and caramel dippers. Just as caramel is a concession to our overwhelming desire for sinful indulgence, McDonald’s probably is only conceding because of consumer demand rather than consumer health. If consumers actually filter through all the health news and trends, they’ll see that it all comes down to consuming fewer calories and exercising more, dippers or no dippers, carbs or no carbs.
Twenty-year-old college students — or people of any age — don’t have to stop eating their beloved burgers, garlic bread or chocolate mousse. Moderation and awareness are crucial, and as both students and humans during the prime of our lives, we can effectively live this credo starting today.
