Food in the Real World

If you're living on your own in an apartment or in school residence, or if you're living at home and have started making your own meals you need to know some basic information about shopping, eating and creating meals. We've made a list of some different things that have helped us, some of it may be boring (like how many fruits and vegetables you need to eat in a day) but all of it will help you.

Shop Smart

Recipes, including after school snacks

How to save money on groceries

Dial-A-Dietitian

Make your meals more interesting

Food Groups

Vitamins, minerals and fibre

Shop Smart !

When you first move out you may be tempted to live on peanut butter sandwiches and kraft dinner. It's cheap and it's quick. But I have to say, sooner or later your going to be wishing for a home cooked meal, and something that doesn't stick to the roof of your mouth. So what can you do? Well, what I did was begin to talk to my older friends about what they like to eat, something that is quick and flavourful. I got a few recipes and then I started reading cookbooks and nutrition books to find out what I could survive on. I soon learned that pasta is good, it's quick and it fills you up, but it doesn't provide you with a lot of vitamins/minerals and your body converts the extra to fat. Rice in a box is good, but if you haven't read the ingredients you might want to. Silicon dioxide ???? I don't think my body needs that.

What else can you do? Well, if you live in Pemberton you could contact your local branch of Sea to Sky Community Services (894-6333) and get involved in the Community Kitchen program. This program provides nutrition information, budgeting and cooking skills. Smart food shopping is taught with a view to economical and healthy eating habits.

If you live in Squamish you could contact Save-On-Foods for a tour of their store with a nutritionist. The Shop Smart tour is an aisle by aisle nutritional tour of Save-On-Foods. The tour leader is a registered dietitian/nutritionalist who will translate nutrition recommendations into the foods available. In other words, she'll tell you what's good and what's bad. In Squamish you could also contact the Women's Centre (892-5748) or the Foodbank for free food or to get involved in the Community Garden project. You might also want to consider taking cooking classes at the Eclectic Kitchen, a great idea for the fall.

How to save money

 

Buy no-name brands

use coupons

buy bulk food

read store ads

grow a vegetable garden

Dial-A-Dietitian

phone #604-732-9191 or 1-800-667-3438

 

A registered Dietitian/Nutritionist (RDN) will help you with your nutrition questions on:

Cholesterol and Diabetes Control

High Blood Pressure Control

Weight Management

Allergies

Digestive Disorders

Anorexia/Bulimia

Pregnancy

Vegetarians

Athletes

Vitamins

Health Products

Food Composition

Food Safety

To make your meals more healthy and interesting:

try some new choices from a food group

include high fibre foods such as whole grain breads and cereals, fresh fruits,

vegetables and legumes, and grains (eg. rice, pasta)

 

make low fat choices (eg. use skim milk, lean ground beef, trim fat on meat,

chicken etc., and cut down on added fat such as butter and salad dressings)

 

in a healthy meal plan, sugar can occasionally be substituted for other

carbohydrates such as a food choice from the Fruits and Vegetables group. Ask

your doctor to refer you to a dietician to learn how!

 

healthy eating habits should be built around a healthy lifestyle. Keep active

every day and eat portion sizes appropriate for you. Check with you dietitian

for ways to make your meal plan fit your lifestyles.

Fruits and Vegetables

5 - 10 servings a day

Choose dark green and orange

vegetables and orange fruit more often

 

 

 

Examples of one serving:

 

125 ml (1/2 cup) of fresh, frozen or canned vegetables or fruits

125 ml (1/2 cup) juice

1 medium potato, carrot, tomato, peach, apple, orange or banana

250 ml (1 cup) salad

 

 

Bread and Cereals

5 - 12 servings

 

 

Examples of one serving:

 

1 slice of bread (preferably something other than white wonderbread)

175 ml (3/4 cup) cooked or 175 ml (3/4 cup) cereal

1 roll or muffin

1 bagel, pita or bun

250 ml (1 cup) cooked rice, macaroni, spaghetti

 

 

Milk and Milk Products

Youth 3 - 4 servings

Adults 2 - 4

 

 

 

Examples of one serving:

 

250 ml (1 cup) milk (skim, 1% or 2%)

175 ml (3/4 cup) yoghurt

45 g (1 1/2 ounces) cheese

 

 

 

Meat and Alternatives

2 - 3 servings

 

 

Examples of one serving:

 

30 ml (2 tablespoons) peanut butter

100 g (1/3 cup) tofu

250 ml (1 cup) cooked dried peas, bean or lentils

125 ml (1/2 cup) nuts or seeds

60 g (2 ounces) cheddar cheese

125 ml (1/2 cup) cottage cheese

1 - 2 eggs

60 to 90 g (2-3 ounces) cooked lean meat, poultry, liver

50 - 100 g (1/3 - 2/3 of a can) fish

Good Sources of Vitamins

 

 

Good Sources of Minerals

Iron	Calcium	Selenium
bran flakes	plain yogurt	tuna
oysters	skim milk	whole wheat bread
cooked kidney beans	cheddar cheese	chicken
chicken	cottage cheese	oranges
ground beef	tofu	egg noodles
	broccoli	bran flakes
	sardines
	almonds

 

 

 

Good Sources of Fibre

baked beans

kidney beans, cooked

all bran cereal

100% whole wheat bread

bran flakes with raisins

dried prunes

raspberries

sweet potato, cooked

peas, cooked

broccoli, cooked

raisins

corn, cooked

pear, with skin

 

 

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Try some recipes?

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