Do You Like To Eat?

STORY BY VICTORIA BELL, FNN REPORTER, WOODRIDGE BUREAU. 

January 14, 2013. Well who doesn't! I sure love to eat. Have you ever thought about the things that might happen to you when you eat the foods that surround you? Now, tell the truth. When you're hungry, don't you automatically think of all the fatty foods such as snacks, big meals, or whatever fills you up? But, when you actually get the food in front of you, think about what that food contains. Some food contains fattening trans fat and ingredients that make you gain weight faster.

One healthy way to stay in shape is maybe planting your own garden. This is what some kids from a program called Food Prints did.

 This program's overall goal is to inspire people, or more specifically, inspire children to eat healthy while they're young—so they will not have to go through life being obese. When I first went to this program at Watkins Elementary School they treated me as though they’d known me for years. They started this program for 2nd and 3rd graders. One specific person who really helped me with this field experience was Ms. Percival, the teacher for the program. She walked me through all the steps of this program and why it was started. The first important question I asked was, “How do you get students interested?” Ms. Percival responded, “When they come to class, we help the kids understand the importance of eating healthy, and they also have hands-on experiences. They do hands-on activities with the food preparation. The best part is when they use four of their senses. They smell the food, they touch the food, they examine the food, and when they finish the preparation and the teacher cooks it, they get to use the fourth sense, which is tasting and eating the food that is cooked”. Another question that I asked Ms. Percival, was, “Do you think your program will or is making a difference to curb childhood obesity?”. Her response was, “It addresses the issue because when the healthy food choices are exposed to them, there’s more than a likely chance they will actually take action to eat healthy at a young age.” I really saw that they were putting their goals into action by watching and observing the students.

On the day I went to see the program for myself, the lesson they were working on was “grains and sweet potatoes”. One group grated cheese, another group peeled the potatoes, another group cut the onions up, and the last group broke the garlic up to bits and juiced the lemons. The group's main dish was cooked sweet potatoes and carrots. It’s a really inviting experience for visitors like me. The children at the school really showed that they were active in this particular subject because they couldn’t wait to sit down in that chair and work.

 You can put your own healthy eating kick into effect—by 1) exercising and 2) picking your food wisely. What I mean by that is to read the label on the package of the food you eat. The package has a white bar on it filled with information. Make sure you read about the calories, trans fatand how much is in one serving. Look especially at the ingredients as well.

In conclusion, watch what you eat and take caution with your lifestyle. You might ask, “What do you mean?” I am informing you about this topic because when you think about your body and how healthy choices make you feel, you won’t have to go through dramatic changes in your life because of bad health or obesity. So I will ask you again, “Do you like to eat”?

 Victoria Bell is a 6th grade student at Friendship Woodridge Academy.