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Welfare Food Challenge: Post Reflection

Monday, February 3

Throughout the past week I was able to learn a lot about myself and the role food plays in my life. I want this blog to be a reflection of what I learned throughout the week, so that you are better able to understand my journey. So with that, I will provide descriptions below!

1. I missed my tea and snacks: This is something I had anticipated before the challenge even began, and I was not mistaken. I am so excited to include them in my diet again this week! Without these things, I found it harder to focus during classes and while doing homework in the evenings. This in turn decreased my productivity, and to be honest, really frustrated me. With this new sense of awareness, I now realize how difficult it would be to keep up with a job when you have limited food to eat. This has the potential to affect your wage, your relationship with your colleagues, and even your ability to get a job. If that was the case, then it would become even more difficult to escape poverty.

2. Eating food has a very social component to it: This week showed me how interconnected food and your social life can be. Going out for “wing Wednesday”, drinks, or supper in general are quite common activities amongst friend groups. I think that it can be used as a nice way for friends to get together and catch up, to debrief, or a way to celebrate success. If you can not afford to participate in these activities, it is hard to not feel some sort of embarrassment. In addition, it can make you feel as though you are on the outside looking in, rather than a part of the group. I can see how when you are constantly faced with these emotions, it may seem easier to isolate yourself from those around you.

3. Food without flavour takes away the excitement of eating: I have been fortunate in my life thus far to almost always have access to flavourful food. As a result, prior to this challenge I had never really considered what food would taste like without various spices, salts, dressings, cheeses, etc. This week I definitely noticed how when you are on a limited budget, it has a significant effect on flavour. Things as simple as salt and pepper truly do add quality and flavour to your foods. When flavour is lacking, I found that food as a whole is less appealing. In addition, I was not very motivated to eat.

4. Repetitiveness of food is very unappealing: When you have to eat the same foods day in and day out, food becomes quite unappealing. Similar to a lack of flavour, food receptiveness made me significantly less motivated to eat. I was not excited for meal times and did not want to bother preparing meals. This was a big shift from my typical attitude towards food, seeing as I am usually quite excited to prepare a meal. Generally I find that cooking is a good way for me to de-stress, or simply get my mind off of school. As a result, not being able to cook unique meals affected me more than I had originally thought it would.

It worked out very well that the last day of the challenge landed on a Sunday, because that meant my parents were able to send me back a big bag of leftovers for the week! I am so grateful for them and all of the support they give me. I am halfway through the second year of my program at Red Deer College. There is yet to be a week where I do not come back to campus with a full fridge of leftovers or pre-made meals. For someone who is this far into their college program, I think that is quite remarkable. I have always been very thankful for this, but the Welfare Food Challenge made me develop a new sense of appreciation for my parents' support. I have posted some pictures of the food I brought back to Red Deer below!

While I didn’t capture everything I ate today, I did take pictures of what I made for supper. I have shown my stir fry and pistachio pudding below! If you are wondering, it was as good as it looks.

When considering how fortunate I am, I began thinking about other college students and the potential food challenges they may face. After doing some research, I found an awesome resource that collects information about food insecurity in college students across Canada (Meal Exchange, 2015-2016). Through my research I learned that in 2015-2016, approximately 2 in 5 college students were faced with food insecurity (Meal Exchange, 2015-2016). The same website had a very educational picture which went into further detail about food insecurity in college students (Meal Exchange, 2015-2016). I have posted this picture below!

(Meal Exchange, 2015-2016).

If my parents did not provide me with so much food every week, I can see how food security could be a potential problem for me as well. Groceries are definitely not cheap. I did not realize just how expensive they were until I moved out!

I want to thank you guys again for following along with my journey throughout this past week. The Welfare Food Challenge has helped me expand my knowledge in more ways than one. In addition, it has provided me with a unique perspective into other individuals' lives. If you are able to, I challenge you to participate in the Welfare Food Challenge as well! I don’t think it is something you will regret!

I am off to pop some popcorn and boil the kettle for some tea! So with that, I will talk to you guys later!

References

Meal Exchange. (2015-2016). Hungry for knowledge. Retrieved from https://www.mealexchange.com/what-we-do/hungryforknowledgereport

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Welfare Food Challenge: Day Seven

Sunday, February 2

Day seven has come to a close, which means I have officially completed the Welfare Food Challenge! I can not explain to you guys the sense of freedom and relief I feel right now! At the same time though, I do feel guilty that I am able to leave this week behind me and carry on with my typical day to day routine. Throughout the week I was constantly counting down the days to get to this moment. I know that others simply can not count down the days, because this is their reality. There is no final victory moment for them for making it through the week. This got me thinking about what resources are available to help others so that the financial challenges they face seem a little bit more manageable. I wanted to educate myself on this topic so that I can offer some guidance and direction to others if they ever ask me for some help! The Red Deer Resources that I found are described below:

Red Deer Food Bank Society: This society helps provide individuals from Red Deer with emergency food needs (Red Deer Food Bank Society, 2018). To reach them, follow the information below:

Phone number: (403)-346-1505

Address: 7429 49 Ave, Red Deer, AB T4P 1N2

The Mustard Seed Red Deer: The Mustard Seed serves meals every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm (Bradley, 2020). In addition, they offer bible study on Monday and Friday from 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm (Bradley, 2020). Finally, they offer a prayer meeting on Wednesday from 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm (Bradley, 2020). To reach them, follow the information below:

Phone number: 403-347-1844

Address: 6002 54 Ave, Red Deer, AB T4N 4M8

Students’ Association of Red Deer College: This association offers a variety of resources for students at Red Deer College. For example, they offer an on-campus Food Bank for students’ attending Red Deer College (Students’ Association of Red Deer College, 2019). Furthermore, they offer employment opportunities, health and dental plans, and used textbooks for students (Students’ Association of Red Deer College, 2019). To contact them, please review the information below:

Phone number: 403-342-3200

Address: 100 College Boulevard

Box 5005

Red Deer, AB T4N 5H5

While the summary above is not an extensive list of all the resources available in Red Deer, I hope that it can be used as a good starting point for anyone who needs it. Now I can tell you guys what I ate today! For breakfast I made two scrambled eggs and a banana cut into slices. There is no logical explanation for it, but I am convinced that bananas taste better when they are cut into circles. I have definitely been missing my sweets this week, and was feeling pretty desperate for something to satisfy my sweet tooth this morning. I knew I had a package of honey that I had taken from the college Tim Hortons earlier in the week. I thought that maybe if I drizzled it over the banana this would help fulfill my desire. It in fact did quite the opposite. This was not a good mixture, and I would not recommend trying this in your own kitchen. I ate about three quarters of the banana and could not make myself eat the rest.

For lunch I had one last bowl of chicken noodle soup. I made the soup the night before and put it in the fridge, because I knew I didn’t have long to prepare lunch today. This worked well, because I just had to quickly warm it up before heading back out the door to class.

I found myself getting pretty hungry around supper time so I made a big bowl of spaghettini noodles and sauce. I am a huge pasta fan, but I will say that I am quite happy that I don’t have to eat it again for awhile! In fact, I think I will be taking a break from all of the foods I ate this week. I am so excited to include some variety in my diet again!

As I head to bed tonight my head feels about 90% full of personal reflections from this past week. I will tell you guys all about them tomorrow in one last “post-challenge” blog! The other 10% of my brain is daydreaming about what foods I can finally eat tomorrow. Let me tell you, I can not wait to include snacks in my diet again! In addition, I am definitely excited to do some baking this week (I am thinking chocolate cake in particular). Thank you guys so much for following along with my Welfare Food Challenge journey this week. I hope that my experience has taught you something new, or maybe simply made you reflect on your own food choices. I know that personally, I have learned a ton! I will talk to you guys tomorrow!

References

Students’ Association of Red Deer College. (2019). Your Students’ Association: The 411. Retrieved from https://sardc.ab.ca/programs-services/

Red Deer Food Bank Society. (2018). About us. Retrieved from https://reddeerfoodbank.com

Bradley, B. (2020). The Mustard Seed Red Deer. Retrieved from https://theseed.ca/reddeer/

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Welfare Food Challenge: Day Six

Saturday, February 1st

That’s a wrap on day six! I did not have clinical this morning, so I shamelessly enjoyed a long sleep in. After getting up so early on Thursday and Friday, Saturday morning sleep ins are hugely appreciated! When I woke up, it was closer to lunch than breakfast so I decided to just make something small. I had one piece of toast with some peanut butter and strawberry jam. I know at this point, you must think I cheated to get the luxury of peanut butter and jam. If this is indeed what you are thinking, I must politely correct you! I snagged one small pack of peanut butter and one small pack of jam from the cafeteria at clinical yesterday. However, I know that not everyone has access to hospital cafeteria resources. So if you want to call it cheating, I guess you would not be entirely wrong. Nevertheless, for the sake of my clear conscience, I am going to consider it a lucky find and call it a win.

For lunch I reheated the leftovers from my pot of soup yesterday. To be honest, the leftovers didn’t taste half bad. In addition, I appreciated the convenience of leftovers today!

Seeing as it’s a Saturday, I drove home tonight to visit my family. For supper they were having cheeseburgers, veggies, and dip. Talk about temptation! In all honesty I think I would have broken down and cheated if I wasn't so close to the end of the challenge. I knew that I only had four more meals to get through, so I slowly pulled out the lettuce and caesar dressing that I had brought home. It was tough to eat alongside my family while they enjoyed their meal. However, I was pretty excited to be home and really enjoyed their company. As a result, supper was still a pretty good meal!

After supper wrapped up I began considering the meals I had eaten throughout the past week, and wanted to compare them to Canada’s Food Guide. I know that the food guide has undergone some big changes recently, so I was curious to see how my meals would compare. The new food guide suggests that individuals should portion their plates as follows: half fruit and vegetables, one quarter protein foods, and one quarter whole grain foods (Resenbloom, 2019). In addition, it suggests that you make water your drink of choice (Resenbloom, 2019). Even just reflecting on today, it is clear that I did not fulfill these suggestions.

One thing I was successful with was making water my drink of choice. I did not have the option to buy drinks other than water this week, as they were too expensive for my budget. I was unsure if my white bread and the white spaghettini noodles qualified for whole grain foods. A quick search online showed that the simple answer to this question is no (Hamblin, 2016). However, for the sake of simplicity during this comparison, we will pretend that they did qualify. Breakfast was the only meal that included more than one food group (protein and whole grain). This means that according to the food guide, all three of my meals today were significantly inadequate (Resenbloom, 2019). Just how far my meals were from fulfilling the suggestions shocked me. I knew that it would be difficult to eat healthy on such a low budget. However, I did not realize how poor my nutritional status would be.

(Resenbloom, 2019).

This then got me thinking about the relationship between poverty and health status. A reported 4 million individuals in Canada face food insecurity (Canada Without Poverty, 2020). Studies have shown that individuals living in food insecure homes are 80% more likely to have diabetes, and 60% more likely to struggle with hypertension (Canada Without Poverty, 2020). Based off of these statistics alone, it is easy to see that health related issues are much more likely to occur in lower income households (Canada Without Poverty, 2020).

All of the knowledge I have gained throughout this week has made me much more knowledgeable about the financial and nutritional difficulties others face. This in turn has made me develop a new appreciation for the lifestyle I am able to live in my normal day to day life. In the past I have sometimes complained about having no food. In reality, this has never been the case. The truth is that I just did not have food that appealed to me at that point in time. I now realize that I need to appreciate the fact that I have food, regardless of what kind it is.

Overall, today was a good day. I am happy to be home and feel a growing sense of relief that the end of the challenge is so near. I think it is easier to get through the day when you know you don’t have to live under these circumstances for much longer. That is all I have to share about today, so I will see you guys on day seven (woo hoo)!

References

Canada Without Poverty. (2020). Just the facts. Retrieved from http://www.cwp-csp.ca/poverty/just-the-facts/

Rosenbloom, C. (January 22, 2019). Canada’s new food guide is here. Everything you need to know. Retrieved from https://www.chatelaine.com/health/canadas-new-food-guide/

Hamblin, J. (June 13, 2016). Why whole wheat is better than white. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/06/grains-and-mortality/486761/

[carterpennock]

Welfare Food Challenge: Day Five

Friday, January 31

Day five is complete, which means there are only two days left of the Welfare Food Challenge! I had clinical again today, which meant I left the house by 6:00 am. Similar to yesterday, I did not feel like eating that early in the morning. However, I was smarter today and packed a caesar salad for a snack on our first break. While it might not be your typical snack food, it was nice to re-energize with something to eat. In addition, having some food at our first break today completely avoided a repeat of the embarrassment I felt yesterday. After I was done eating, it was time to head back to the unit!

For lunch I enjoyed a bowl of chicken noodle soup. The soup is one of my only meals this week that doesn’t feel like it is missing some flavour. I do not usually add anything to the soup, so I am able to enjoy it just as I normally would.

For supper I made two scrambled eggs and had a banana. The original plan was to make two “dip” eggs (sunny side up), and have them with toast. However, this was going very poorly so I had to resort to turning them into scrambled eggs. When I go home on the weekend from college, my dad always makes the best “dip” eggs for breakfast. Based off of my performance tonight, it is quite obvious that I have a lot of practice ahead of me before I master the “dip” egg technique. Regardless, it was a good supper! I must acknowledge that calling them dip eggs sounds quite silly, but I want this blog to show a genuine version of myself. Me and my siblings have been calling them dip eggs since we were little kids, because we always love to dip our toast in the yolk!

At the end of the day, I am feeling much better than yesterday. Overall I ate more food and at more reasonable times of the day. I must admit that I have not gotten used to not snacking throughout the day. I hoped that as the week progressed my body would become used to their absence, but this is not the case. Instead, I find that I am drinking more water in between meals to curb my hunger. I was curious to know if this was actually working, or if it was producing more of a placebo effect. A quick search online indicated that water truly does suppress your appetite, and is often used as a way to combat obesity (Corleone, 2018). In addition, we all know that water is good for our health, so I guess this is not the worst thing! While I think everyone can agree that water has health benefits, I was not confident in all of the specific purposes it serves in the body. Further research explained that water assists in nutrient transportation, regulation of body temperature, and the avoidance of fatigue (Corleone, 2018).

As I sit here writing this blog, I can see an individual going through one of our campus dumpsters. I see this quite commonly on residence, but it takes on a new meaning tonight. I do not know this individual’s story, but regardless, it is clear that he does not have enough resources to meet his needs. This got me thinking about how much waste we throw out everyday, and how much of our waste could potentially be saved or re-used. After doing some research I found that approximately 58% of food produced annually in Canada is wasted (Second Harvest, n.d.). The vast amount of food wasted translates to roughly $49.46 billion lost each year (Second Harvest, n.d.). I was shocked to learn that 32% of the wasted food could be donated to individuals and communities in need (Second Harvest, n.d.). If this were to happen, I think I would see a significant decrease in the number of people searching through campus dumpsters. Now that I am aware of this, I am going to work harder to minimize the amount of food I regularly throw away. Often when I have leftovers I put them in the fridge, but do not end up eating them all. This is because I get tired of eating the same food and want to make something new. As a result, part of my leftovers usually get thrown away for no logical reason. I now know that this is contributing to an immense amount of waste in Canada, and is really quite selfish of me. To fix this, I am going to watch my portion sizes more carefully when cooking. This will reduce the amount of leftovers I have after a meal so I do not have to eat the same food multiple times. In addition, I now realize that sometimes I just have to “suck it up” and finish the leftovers in the fridge.

I am quite tired after clinical and super excited to head to bed. So, with that, I will see you guys on day six!

References

Corleone, J. (December 2, 2018). Does drinking water help curb hunger? Retrieved from https://healthyeating.sfgate.com/drinking-water-curb-hunger-4001.html

Second Harvest. (n.d.). The avoidable crisis of food waste. Retrieved from https://secondharvest.ca/research/the-avoidable-crisis-of-food-waste/

[carterpennock]

Welfare Food Challenge: Day Four

Thursday, January 30

Day four of the Welfare Food Challenge is complete, which means I am over half way there! Today was a challenging day. I had clinical this morning, which meant being out the door and on my way to the hospital by 6:00 am. Typically on clinical mornings I am not hungry when I first wake up. As a result, I usually pack a couple granola bars or trail mix for a snack when we go on our first break. After staring blankly at my cupboard last night, it became clear that having no snack foods was going to become an issue yet again. When break time came, me and some of my classmates met up in the cafeteria. Sitting there empty handed, watching them all pull out their morning snacks was difficult. Several students asked me if I had forgotten my food that day, and offered me some of their own. While this was incredibly kind of them, I found myself embarrassed. I then began to consider the strong link between eating and socialization. I decided that was something I wanted to do more research on after our clinical shift was done for the day.

After skipping my usual morning snack, I was definitely ready for lunch! I had packed a caesar salad for lunch today. This was good because it was a convenient meal to pack with me for clinical and didn’t require a lot of preparation time the night before.

Clinical finished at 2:30 pm and I had to be at the college by 3:00 pm for a group project. We worked on this from 3:00 - 5:00 pm, and then had an evening class from 5:00 - 8:00 pm. During our evening class we presented the group project we had been working on, which left no time for me to eat supper before 8:00. Usually I know that my Thursday’s are quite busy, so I get a muffin or bagel from Tim Hortons to tie me over until I can make supper. I did not have enough money left to make either of those purchases, so I knew I simply had to wait to eat until later. I found myself becoming frustrated and my mood shifted to a more negative one than usual. This is when the “hangry” emotions kicked in. There is a plethora of resources online that analyze the link between our emotions and hunger. As a result, it turns out that the term “hangry” actually has some physiology linked to it. When we are hungry for an extended period of time the human body enters stress mode (Rana, 2018). During this time our body releases the steroid hormone cortisol, which initiates feelings of anger and irritability (Rana, 2018). Needless to say, I can not wait to get home and make some food.

However, I must confess, I cheated today. I think that I am probably more disappointed in myself than you are. I feel unbelievably guilty, but let me explain to you why I cheated. I had a super challenging day at clinical and was feeling a bit upset and frustrated this afternoon. My mom was in Red Deer picking up my little brother from hockey and knew that I had dealt with some challenges today. She texted me saying she picked me up a drink from Tim Hortons, and was going to swing by the college to say hi quick before class and drop it off. Of course I couldn’t bring myself to say no to this offer, because she had already purchased the drink and I would have felt incredibly guilty. So while I recognize that I cheated, I did not have to pay for my drink, nor did I even ask for it in the first place.

For supper I devoured a bowl of spaghettini noodles and sauce (yes I know it’s a big bowl). To be honest, I was so hungry that I hardly noticed the absence of grated cheese and ground beef. After supper, to satisfy my curiosity from earlier, I did some research on how eating and socialization are related. Canada’s Food Guide (2019) suggests that eating meals with others is an excellent way to develop connections and add entertainment to your day. Moreover, they recognize that shared meal times allow you to spend quality time with one another, share traditions, and explore new food options (Canada Food Guide, 2019). Based off of this information, it is quite apparent that eating together has a very positive impact on your social life!

While today was challenging for me, I keep reminding myself how fortunate I am that this is not my reality. In just four days of doing this challenge, I feel like I have learned a vast amount about some of the financial challenges that others face. This in turn makes me realize how truly fortunate I am in my day to day life. I apologize again for cheating, I promise you that it will not happen tomorrow! I will see you guys tomorrow on day five!

References

Canada’s Food Guide. (December 4, 2019). Eat meals with others. Retrieved from https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/healthy-eating-recommendations/eat-meals-with-others/

Rana, S. (March 14, 2018). Here’s why you feel grumpy when hungry; you’ll be surprised! Retrieved from https://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/heres-why-you-feel-grumpy-when-hungry-youll-be-surprised-1813619

[carterpennock]

Welfare Food Challenge: Day Three

Wednesday, January 29

Day three of the Welfare Food Challenge is complete! I woke up hungry this morning. I am a bit of a night owl and usually have a snack around 11:00 or 11:30 pm. I think that because I am no longer able to do this I am starting to get hungry much earlier in the day than I usually do. While this may be a seemingly small problem, it made me seriously consider how much I usually take for granted. For example, I have never had to worry about not being able to satisfy my hunger with food. Furthermore, when choosing a snack, I have always had a choice between more than one option.

My negligence of other individual’s hardships made me feel incredibly guilty. As a result, I wanted to educate myself more on the challenges that others face. In order to do so, I went to “Food Banks Alberta” and reviewed their information. I was shocked to learn that in March of 2019, there was 89, 821 individuals who visited a food bank (Food banks Alberta, 2019). What I found to be even more shocking was that out of the immense number of people accessing food banks in Alberta, 38% of visitors were under 18 years old (Food banks Alberta, 2019). I can't imagine not knowing where your next meal is coming from, especially at such a young age. I am 19 years old right now, and while I do maintain a level of independence, I certainly rely on my parents' support. I know that if I was ever in a position where I could not afford food, they would be here that day to bring me leftovers or take me grocery shopping. It does not seem fair that there were so many young children and teenagers relying on food banks. I wish it was a simple fix to help them improve their quality of life, but I know that unfortunately, this is not the case. However, I do think that spreading awareness on this issue is the first step to creating positive change.

After completing my research this morning, the slight twinge of hunger in my stomach suddenly seemed quite minor. For breakfast I made one piece of toast and sliced up a banana. Then, I was out the door and on my way to class.

For lunch I made caesar salad and had another banana. I am already starting to realize how the repetitiveness of meals makes them less appetizing. While I do not have a major problem with this yet, I can see how it may become frustrating later on in the week.

For supper I made a bowl of pasta with spaghetti sauce. I was quite hungry at the end of the day, and I found this to be a fulfilling meal. However, I will say that I am definitely still missing the grated cheese and ground beef on top of my pasta. I never realized how much I enjoy this simple addition to my food until it had been taken away. I was born and raised on a farm where we have both cattle and crop land. As a result, I am used to having beef with the vast majority of meals I eat. I know that beef is quite expensive, so I am fortunate that my parents usually send me back to college with some when I visit on the weekends. After this challenge is done, I can see myself raiding our beef freezer at home on the weekend. Next week, my pasta will have ground beef for sure!

At the end of day three I am feeling alright. I am a bit more tired than usual, and am having a hard time finding the motivation to do any homework. So, in an attempt to avoid researching ileostomies, I began looking up the relationship between food and energy. One of the primary symptoms of inadequate caloric intake is fatigue (Braverman, 2019). For moderately active women aged 19-30, it is recommended that you consume 2000-2200 calories per day (Gordon, 2019). While I did not count my calories today, I feel that I fell short of this value. As a result, my lack of energy tonight is explainable. I can see how if you were constantly rationing your food it would be difficult to find the energy for day to day activities. I think that this would then filter into your family, work, and social life and have a negative impact. Well, I am off to research ileostomies now, and then I’ll be off to bed. See you guys on day four!

References

Food Banks Alberta. (November 12, 2019). Hungercount 2019. Retrieved from https://foodbanksalberta.ca/2019/11/12/hungercount-2019/

Braverman, J. (February 21, 2019). Am I tired because I’m not eating enough? Retrieved from https://www.livestrong.com/article/464461-is-it-possible-to-feel-tired-because-i-am-not-eating-enough/

Gordon, B. (July 30, 2019). How many calories do adults need? Retrieved from. https://www.eatright.org/food/nutrition/dietary-guidelines-and-myplate/how-many-calories-do-adults-need

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Welfare Food Challenge: Day Two

Tuesday, January 28

As day two of the Welfare Food Challenge comes to a close, I am feeling good! I didn’t have to be at the college until 11:00 today, so I decided I would go to the gym again before class. Before heading to the gym I made two scrambled eggs and a piece of toast. This was a great breakfast and gave me the energy I needed. Typically I am not a huge egg eater, and tend to make a smoothie before the gym instead. I found that after eating scrambled eggs and toast I was actually more energized than usual. As a result, I started doing some research online. I found that eggs are actually ranked as one of the best sources of available protein (Get Cracking, 2020). In addition, they provide consumers with nine essential amino acids (Get Cracking, 2020). This is significantly important, as amino acids are considered to be the building blocks of protein (Get Cracking, 2020).

For lunch I had a bowl of caesar salad. This was a good meal, but I found myself getting quite hungry before suppertime. This is typically when I would have a snack, but with only $21 to spend on groceries, there is no extra money left to spend on snack foods. As a result, I tried to distract myself from my hunger by doing some textbook readings and preparation for lab tomorrow morning. I must admit, this wasn’t a huge help.

Some of my friends were going out for supper tonight and invited me to join them. After I explained my situation they suggested that cheating once would not be the end of the world. Immediately a moral debate began inside my head. I always enjoy the company of my friends, and going out for supper would be a great mental break from school. At the same time I knew that if I cheated (especially this early in the game) I would be insanely disappointed in myself. As a result, I reluctantly told my friends that I would not be in attendance. I did mention to them that it’s possible wing Wednesday next week could be used as a sort of celebration for making it through the challenge! For supper tonight I made a bowl of chicken noodle soup and a piece of toast. I ended up really enjoying this meal! I think that the satisfaction of avoiding temptation made it taste just a little bit better.

I appreciated the variety of food I got to eat throughout the day. It was nice to be able to make something different for every meal so that eating didn’t feel so repetitive. However, food variety is important for more than personal enjoyment. There is not one specific food that can provide consumers with all the nutrients required to live a healthy life (Michaelchuk, 2020). So, by including variety of food in your diet you can protect yourself from nutrient deficiencies (Michaelchuk, 2020). To contrast, you can also protect yourself from an excess of one type of nutrient (Michaelchuk, 2020). This is because if you repeatedly eat the same foods, you will likely consume an excess of the nutrients that food provides (Michaelchuk, 2020). Further research showed that having variety in your diet can also help to protect against chronic disease (Better Health Channel, 2020). This is extremely important seeing as chronic disease has become a major problem in our healthcare system today (World Health Organization, 2020). In fact, chronic disease has been shown to be the “leading cause of death and disability worldwide” (World Health Organization, 2020).

Overall, I feel pretty good at the end of day two. I am not going to bed hungry, which is something I really appreciate. I am also proud of myself for being able to say no to my friends and avoid temptation tonight. I am someone who definitely struggles saying no because I always want to please the people around me. I can see how if $21 for food per week was truly my reality, I would quickly have to get better at saying no without feeling guilty. I would love to end my night with a nice cup of tea, but I know this is something that will have to wait until the end of the week. As Oprah Winfrey says, “You can have it all. You just can’t have it all at once.” See you guys on day three!

References

Better Health Channel. (2020). Healthy eating. Retrieved from https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/HealthyLiving/healthy-eating

Get Cracking. (2020). Eggs: An ideal food to fuel fitness. Retrieved from https://www.eggs.ca/nutrition/view/10/eggs-an-ideal-food-to-fuel-fitness

Michaelchuk, J. (2020). Eat a variety of healthy foods: Not just something dieticians say. Retrieved from https://albertamilk.com/food-stuff/variety-healthy-foods/

World Health Organization. (2020). Chronic diseases and health promotion. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/chp/about/integrated_cd/en/

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Welfare Food Challenge: Day One

Monday, January 27

My first day of the Welfare Food Challenge has come to a close!

For breakfast I made one egg and a piece of toast. While this was good, I normally love to add some salt and pepper to my eggs. Prior to this meal, I have always had access to salt and pepper. As a result, I never realized how much their absence would change the taste of food! For such a simple addition, it truly makes a big difference flavour wise. After eating breakfast, I had some time before class so I headed over to the gym. When I got back I was ready for a snack of some sort to refuel my body. I thought longingly about the breakfast bites that I had in my freezer from Costco. Gathering all my self control, I parted with my breakfast bites (without eating any) and headed to class.

For lunch I made a bowl of caesar salad. I am a huge caesar salad fan, so I was excited to eat this! While the meal was good, my expectations did fall flat a little bit. I usually love to mix in some grilled chicken and shreds of real parmesan. Without these additions the salad did not quite live up to what I what I usually enjoy so much.

For supper I made a bowl of spaghettini noodles and sauce. This meal was great and definitely satisfied my hunger! However, I sorely missed the grated cheese and ground beef I usually enjoy on top of my pasta. It is funny how things that I usually consider to be a regular addition to my food now seem like a treat.

I am already realizing how a $21 budget limits you extensively in your ability to add little “extras” and flavour to your meals. It is quite apparent that on this budget quantity takes precedence over quality. While I was able to satisfy my hunger, food just wasn’t quite the same without my usual additions. As I expected, I also missed having a cup of tea today. I usually love to have 1-2 cups in a day, and often take a “to-go-mug” of tea with me to class. Although caffeine levels vary depending on the type of drink, in general, tea has been shown to have less caffeine than coffee (Wartenberg, 2019). However, I find that the level of caffeine in tea is still enough to give me that extra little “spring in my step” throughout the day.

Not snacking throughout the day was quite a challenge for me. I find that if I snack while doing homework I can focus better on the task in front of me. As I worked through my homework today I found that I spent much longer than I should have on various tasks. This was because I spent more time scrolling midlessly through my phone (dumb, I know), and getting distracted by things that were not of relevance. This was really frustrating for me, because I am usually much better at getting things done in a timely manner. I knew that I was wasting my time, but for some reason, I could not pull myself together to stop. As a result, I personally found that not snacking significantly reduced my productivity level.

After doing some research, it turns out that I am not the only one who feels this way. Research indicates that snacking throughout the day can actually improve your ability to focus while increasing your level of productivity (NAU Canada Online, 2018). Further research showed that certain foods are better than others at enhancing your focus and concentration (Psychology Compass, n.d.). While I was aware of this much, I did not know that blueberries and avocados are two especially great choices to improve attention and productivity (Psychology Compass, n.d.). To contrast, muffins, cured meats, and fruit juices should be avoided when you are trying to focus (Psychology Compass, n.d.). I will take this knowledge with me when I make future food choices while doing homework!

Day one was a challenge, but I suspect that as the week goes on each day will become increasingly challenging for a couple of reasons. To start, I think that I will miss my tea and snacks a little bit more each day throughout the challenge. Secondly, I was lucky to have a pretty relaxed schedule today. On Thursday and Friday of every week I have clinical, so I am at the hospital bright and early. In addition, I have class Thursday evening, so I do not have a ton of extra time for meal prep. Maybe I am wrong though, and as I get busier I will have less time to focus on what I’m missing. Only time will tell! Regardless, I am still excited to tackle day two. Talk to you tomorrow!

References

NAU Canada Online. (March 19, 2018). The 10 best brain food snacks for studying. Retrieved from https://canada.national.edu/the-10-best-brain-food-snacks-for-studying/

Wartenberg, L. (October 7, 2019). How much caffeine does tea have compared with coffee? Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/caffeine-in-tea-vs-coffee#tea-vs-coffee

Psychology Compass. (n.d.). Eating your way to focus and concentration. Retrieved from https://psychologycompass.com/blog/eating-your-way-to-focus-and-concentration/

[carterpennock]

Welfare Food Challenge: Preparation

Sunday, January 26

Hey friends! My name is Carter, and I am about to begin the Welfare Food Challenge in my global health and development class. This challenge requires individuals to spend a maximum of $21 on groceries for an entire week. The value of $21 was chosen, as this is the reality for many people utilizing welfare allowances in British Columbia (Gerlings, 2017). I will use this blog to post about my experience, so feel free to follow along!

Prior to buying my groceries, I consulted my mom and my grandma to get their advice. My grandma used to teach high school homec classes and had to create meals that were within the schools budget. As a result, I thought she would be an especially useful resource! My mom and grandma both agreed that soup, bread, and pasta would be good choices for the week. They thought these foods were sustainable, easy to make options. Other than this discussion, I did not have a detailed plan of what to buy. I thought that I would go to the grocery store and try to score some items on sale.

I live within walking distance of Sobeys, so I first considered shopping at this location. However, I know that Sobeys is definitely not the cheapest location to go grocery shopping at. As a result, I chose to shop at the Superstore in Red Deer because I knew they often offered good prices on food. I am fortunate that I have access to a vehicle so that I was able to make this decision. I know that in reality, individuals living off of this budget may not be able to afford gas, let alone a car.

As I walked around Superstore and saw the prices of food around me, I began wondering how I was ever going to afford enough food to create three meals a day for the whole week. With only $21 to spend, I knew that buying meat was not a realistic choice. However, I wanted to make sure that I was eating some form of protein during the week. I chose to buy eggs for breakfast to help achieve this goal! I got the last carton of eggs that was on sale for $3.28, so that felt like a big win! Making choices about what to buy took much longer than I had anticipated. I felt like I was walking endless laps around the store just trying to decide. As I put different items in my basket, I had my calculator open on my phone to try and keep a running total of what I was getting. Regardless, I was still incredibly nervous as I approached the till. It was a huge relief to see that my total came to $19.57, which meant I had $1.43 to spare! I’m hoping I can use this leftover money for a small snack at Tim Hortons later in the week! Here is what I came home with:

1 tub of margarine

1 bag of spaghettini noodles

1 can of spaghetti sauce

1 box of Lipton chicken noodle soup (4 packages inside)

5 heads of romaine lettuce

1 bottle of caesar dressing

1 carton of 12 eggs

1 loaf of sliced white bread

4 bananas

When looking at my purchases, I feel like I didn’t do too bad of a job! You might notice however that the photo does not include any seasonings or toppings. In addition, it includes very limited condiments. I think the absence of these things will be a challenge this week, as I am someone who loves flavour in her food. The other thing missing is a box of tea. While you might not have noticed this, it’s absence is staring me in the face. I love enjoying a cup of tea in class or while doing homework in the evenings. Saying goodbye to it for an entire week is going to take a lot of will power!

In class recently we discussed the concept of food insecurity. While there are varying definitions of what this is, I think an excellent summary is “lack of access to enough good, healthy, and culturally appropriate food” (Food Forward, 2017). When looking at the items I bought, it is apparent that my budget definitely limited my ability to buy healthy foods. Furthermore, I do not know yet if the food that I bought will be enough to fulfill my needs. This is something I will have to reflect on at the end of the challenge! I think that as I progress through the Welfare Food Challenge, it will help me to further understand food security versus insecurity.

For the time being, I am going to savour my last cup of tea and a muffin. I am a huge snack lover, so little things like this will be sorely missed this week! That’s all for now, I will talk to you tomorrow on day one of the challenge!

If anyone is interested in learning more about this challenge, feel free to visit the following link: https://welfarefoodchallenge.org/2017challenge/

References

Gerlings, K. (2017). 6th annual welfare food challenge. Retrieved from https://welfarefoodchallenge.org/2017challenge/

Food Forward. (October 8, 2017). What is food insecurity? Food security? Retrieved from https://foodforward.org/2017/10/what-is-food-insecurity/