As a student, having a nutritious balanced diet could boost energy levels, improve focus, and reduce the risk of developing diseases such as cancer, osteoporosis, and even cardiovascular diseases. Most students are not aware of the grievous harm that an unbalanced diet could have on their body.
In fact, most of them suffer from the short-term effects of not consuming a balanced diet. Serious long-term effects include cancer, osteoporosis, and even cardiovascular diseases, among others. The Kendall Anderson Nutrition Center director, Melissa Wdowik, assures us that most of the heart disease issues that crop up upon attaining old age usually begin in the twenties. The arteries start hardening at a young age and become dysfunctional as time goes by. This is mainly due to the lack of vegetables and fruits n the diet.
Most students lack the time and money to actually search and purchase the appropriate vegetables and fruits for their diet. Thus, they settle for the cheapest, satiating, and available foodstuffs, which are rich in carbohydrates and calories. They lack the motivation to go for healthy alternatives. This makes them engage in unhealthy consumption diets such as the ones below.
Dangerous College Student Diets
Over the years, some trendy and silly diets have cropped up. These approaches are dangerous, extreme and invasive. They include:
- The plastic tongue patch- This is one of the most invasive and dangerous one of them all. It was introduced to the world by a renowned Beverly Hills plastic surgeon. Similar to the nicotine patch, this patch was creating to rid people of food addictions. The FDA unapproved patch, is sewn on to the tongue. It takes about six stitches to secure it on the surface of the tongue an about ten minutes. The invasive surgery costs about two thousand dollars. It aims at making the consumption of solid foods to be painful. This then restricts the user to stick t a liquid food diet, which regulates the amount of calorie consumption.
- Drunkorexia- This term was coined from two popular college activities, which are disordered eating and binge drinking. There are very many modes of administering this diet. This includes starving after binge drinking to reduce calorie intake, over exercising before or after drinking, throwing up due to excessive drinking as a way of getting rid of excess calories, or reducing consumption to prevent excessive consumption of calories after drinking. The effects of this act are severe including acute alcohol poisoning, increased risk of injury, weak immune system, hard time making decisions, and lack of focus and concentration. This is a trend is also popular among women from their twenties to forties. Avoid any such behavior, as it will affect your health, social, emotional life, and even your academics.
- Starvation- Each body cell needs fuel to perform effectively. In addition to this, the structure of the body requires constant regeneration, healing, and repair that come from the building block in the body. These building blocks come from healthy fats and proteins that are present in healthy foodstuffs. Picture the body as an engine and food is the form of fuel in use. Thus, when you restrict the flow of this fuel and raw materials, then the body retaliates within a long list of side effects. Moreover, minimal starvation leads to the consumption of less than one thousand to one thousand two hundred calories daily. This has adverse effects to the body’s functions and could lead to issues such as: increased risk of injury, sleep issues, hormonal imbalance, hair loss, weak immunity, depression, fatigue, and bone, organ, and muscle breakage. Starvation also reduces the ability of the bran to concentrate, which will lead to poor grades and even drug use. Some students induce starvation by indulging in drugs that reduce appetite.
- Smoking- Smoking has numerous side effects on the body. It not only affects appetite, but also the physical appearance of the user. It increases metabolism, reduces appetite, and even dulls the body’s taste buds. It seems like an unhealthy version of the ketogenic diet. This means that the body does not have enough fuel, and the boy’s lean mass is increasing. This might seem like a good alternative to losing weight fast, but the negative side effects outweigh the con. Smoking affects the lungs and increases the chances f developing lung or throat cancer. In addition to this, it ages the skin causing the user to appear older than they are. On the other hand, experts think that the user could gain about one hundred pound more due to the increased metabolism.
- Stimulants- These drugs cause a dependence that leads to admission to a rehab facility or weight loss. Consumption of stimulants could cause side effects such as stroke, seizure, high blood pressure (HBP), mood swings, impulsive acts, and even poor judgment. This dependency could limit somebody system functions such as the nervous and digestive system. It could lead to a hormonal imbalance that will be detrimental to the social and emotional aspects of the user’s life.
- Tapeworms- It is legal to harbor tapeworms in the United States of America. However, some people go to extreme levels to attain their preferred physical goals. Tapeworms cause grievous physical harm including death, nervous system damage, brain damage, disruption of organ functions, and blockage of the digestive system.
It is recommended that students try the plate method. This method entails dividing the plate into food segments with different proportions. Proportions such as:
- one fourth with grains
- one fourth with protein
- half the plate be filled with fruits and vegetables
Nutritionist recommends that this diet s especially maintained during stressful episodes. There are numerous convenient and healthy foods to choose from. Students should also refrain from participating in extreme diets. The society has set high physical standards beauty that college students are really trying to meet. Start by changing your mindset and accepting yourself. This will boost your outlook on life and motivate you to try healthier dieting options.