An Apple A Day: A first-year perspective on healthy eating

A mere five months ago, my eating habits were abominable. Around my dinner table, despite my mom’s best efforts, vegetables were never taken very seriously. In fact, my dad actually considers the sauce on his pizza as one of his daily servings of fruits and vegetables. Clearly, then, I come by my unhealthy eating habits honestly. My philosophy has always been that there’s no point in living longer if you can’t enjoy what you eat while you’re here. I’m by no means suggesting that people should follow my indifferent approach, though.

Here at Laurier, I’ve noticed a health consciousness well above the norm. My Willison Hall comrades frequent the gym with shocking regularity and their level of fitness almost motivates me to go myself. Of course, Lose Weight Exercise alone is insufficient and university life doesn’t exactly lend itself to optimal health. One area where it should be easy enough to maintain a healthy lifestyle, however, is our eating habits.

As a first year student with a meal plan, I am rather dependent on the food services offered on campus. According to a recent survey of food services at Canadian universities, Laurier ranked second, well above average in food quality.

Laurier stacks up well against other universities. However, the dining hall doesn’t always fit a student’s schedule. Why must it close so early? Why are so few stations left open on weekends? The major obstacle is a university-wide hiring freeze in place until this coming May. Alas, no change will occur while I’m in residence, but Laurier hopes to open more stations for longer hours under a new collective agreement in September 2004.

In the meantime, the Terrace will remain the most attractive option in terms of weekend and late-night eating for myself and many others. Once again, I must question how healthy options such as Harvey’s are. Howe vert, according to WLUSU Operations General Manager Mike McMahon, Harvey’s was brought in specifically because it was the popular request among students, which makes it difficult to gripe about the unhealthy food on campus.