College Hunger and Recipe Writing Reflection

Many say that college is the best time in life, but I would argue that it can be one of the most challenging times in life. In my experience, college has been more about learning to overcome obstacles and grow into a stronger person than about being careless and having fun. Specifically, the current exorbitant cost of college compared to low wages creates a great challenge for students in paying for a higher education. This concept is all too poignant for students experiencing hunger in college.

Food is an important aspect of a student’s life. Personally, I know I struggle to focus on school work when I am hungry. I am fortunate enough to have access to nutritious food to solve this issue and return to focusing on my assignment, but what of those who do not have that opportunity? This is another expression of classism in the United States. The idea is that the less fortunate should be able to “pick themselves up by their bootstraps” or “work hard” and they will be able to achieve the same success as those more fortunate. However, how does one do this when they do not have sufficient food to concentrate on school work? If a student that has access to food receives a better grade than a student who does not, is the more fortunate student smarter or more hard-working? Certainly not, though at first glance it appears that way. This issue is multi-faceted, and a true solution lies in a major overhaul of the way we view the cost of college education, which would be a state-wide or a nation-wide effort. However, as a campus community at Bloomsburg University, we can take small actions to help our fellow students in providing money or food, or in presenting information about how to eat on a budget.

An important issue to consider is the nutrition of college students’ meals. I am currently taking a nutrition course online, and it is eye-opening to learn how much goes into eating a balanced diet every day. Eating a nutritious diet requires variety in the foods eaten and particularly seems to require planning in advance to ensure dietary needs are being met. This provides an even greater challenge for students who are food insecure. One of the major terms that has been repeated throughout the course is “nutrient density” – how many nutrients there are in a food relative to its calorie content. In creating my recipes for the H³ cookbook, I would like to consider a third dimension to that analysis – comparing nutrient density to the cost of the food item. I feel that it is very important for college students to eat a nutritious diet; we work so hard every day and we need healthy fuel for that hard work. There are also many misconceptions about what is “healthy” and what is not: for example, about 50% of our daily calorie intake should come from carbs, which is great for college students since carbs are so cheap. However, those carbs should be whole wheats, which many people do not consume because the processed white breads and pastas are usually cheaper and taste better. Another example is the misconception that fruit juices and other processed sources of fruits and vegetables are a good source of these nutrients, which is not totally true. Fruit juices contain great amounts of added sugars which will contribute to obesity and make the consumer feel more tired. Whole fruits and vegetables are the healthier choice due to their higher fiber content, lower sugar and calorie content, and the lack of processing. This is another facet I would like to consider in my recipe: utilizing fresh fruits and vegetables where possible with respect to the budget. A final consideration I will take into my recipes is the ease of cooking them. Personally, I at first feel overwhelmed when I try to look up healthy recipes and they all seem to be very involved in the cooking process. This overwhelmed feeling stems from multiple factors: I feel I don’t have the time to constantly cook healthy meals throughout the week, that I don’t have the skills to execute the recipe properly, and that I do not have the proper kitchen equipment that the recipe requires. Therefore, I want to make my recipes accessible for students with limited time, a limited knowledge of cooking, and a limited inventory of cooking supplies.