Healthy Eating Barriers for College Students (Essay Sample)

Healthy eating
Student’s name
University affiliation.
HEALTHY EATING BARRIERS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS.
Healthy eating basically means eating the right food that is a well-balanced diet. This includes including all the food groups in your diet. Professionals say that there are five major food groups, these are fruits, vegetables, proteins, fats and sugar, whole grains (Weil, 2014). College student’s face a lot of healthy eating barriers these makes them have poor nutrition. These barriers include;
Lifestyle.
The kind of life students have on campus do not allow them have time to sit down and take in a well-balanced food. Due to time, they prefer fast foods to the balanced diet. The students also involve themselves to drinking a lot of alcohol than water (Weil, 2014). With this type of lifestyle, their feeding habits are affected.
Money factor.
Most of the students do not have enough money to support themselves in getting a well-balanced diet. Therefore, more often than not they buy fast and cheap foods (Weil, 2014). For these students to have to put money in their pocket, they have to work extra hours which is not even enough. Therefore, this is a paramount factor to consider when it comes to eating healthy.
Time.
College students have less time dedicated to eating. This is because they have a tight schedule within their line of work, and this include attending classes. Some college students have part time jobs apart from student making it had to have time for a healthy diet that is good for the body (Weil, 2014).
Some of the barriers to healthy eating amongst college students include insufficient knowledge on the composition of a well-balanced diet. This insufficient knowledge to them makes them not to appreciate the benefit of a well-balanced diet. The other factor is the environment in which these students were raised in. This creates a different eating habit. Students who were in the high social class eat healthier than other social classes i.e. the lower class and the middle class.
WAYS TO IMPROVE HEALTHY EATING HABITS ON CAMPUS.
College students should know that eating healthy has a lot of benefits to their life and also their study habits. The fast foods that they eat on campus do not provide them with energy as it required (Smith, 2013). There below are some of the ways in which healthy eating could be improved on campus;
The campus should vary the meals they offer for the students in that nutrition requires varying types of meals on a daily basis (Smith, 2013). The campus should take advantage of this and make the students have a healthy eating diet. In addition to this, the proportion in which they give to the college students should be monitored. The campus should also keep healthy snacks in the school compound
College students should be advised on time management. This includes the time they dedicate for having lunch and snacks when on the campus. This can make them value this time so that the body can digest.
When on campus, students are known for drinking a lot and partying. Drinking with consideration and moderation is healthy to their health and alcohol also burn a lot of calories in the body leading to negative effects.
Campus students should also be encouraged to carry fruits and water with them (Smith, 2013). This will help improve their concentration level. While on campus no student should be allowed to skip his or her meals since they use a lot of energy, and this energy needs to be regained to keep them going.
When it comes to outdoor activities, college students should be advised of the relevant sports or activities to join. This keeps their body metabolism high and also keeps them fit. There should be a school gym and also some fitness course to encourage them to join and learn the benefits of good nutrition. Above all, campus students should know that, sleep and rest are very important. Taking a nap is also a part of staying healthy as far as nutrition is concerned.