Study Buddy (Challenger): Beyond the plate – how to make healthy eating simple and fun
This page is for students who want to take their reading comprehension to the next level with difficult vocabulary and questions to test their inference skills.
A balanced diet isn’t just about good and bad foods; it’s about nutrients, variety, and enjoying meals, say experts. Photo: Shutterstock Content provided by British Council
Read the following text, and answer questions 1-9 below:
[1] Most of us probably think we have a pretty good idea of what a “balanced diet” looks like. And a lot of us may be wrong. “I don’t love the term,” said Dr Matthew Landry. “It can give people an outdated or oversimplified idea of what healthy eating looks like.”
[2] Some people he has counselled as a dietitian think a balanced meal means “balancing the good and bad foods”. That idea troubles him. “We shouldn’t tell folks that they should have foods that aren’t really nutrient-dense, just as long as they have some vegetables on their plate.”
[3] The typical diet in the United States has an excessive amount of refined grains, added sugars, sodium, unhealthy sources of fat and not enough fruit and vegetables. “You need your healthy fat sources, your healthy protein sources and your fruits and vegetables,” said Dr Shilpa Bhupathiraju, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. She added that it is the combination that provides balance.
[4] It is natural to look for short cuts to correct an imbalance. But there is no substitute for healthy eating, and you cannot buy balance with a pill. Bhupathiraju said a healthy eating pattern is about more than any nutrient. Eating various fruits and vegetables, for example, provides vitamins, minerals, and helpful fibre, essential for heart health.
[5] Finding fresh fruit and vegetables can be challenging in communities with limited food options or tight budgets. Landry suggested “looking for sales, coupons and market promotions” and “trying to purchase in bulk when possible, especially for non-perishable items”. He advised to keep in mind that with fruit and vegetables, “canned and frozen options can be just as nutrient-dense as ... fresh versions”.
[6] Landry said the idea of balance in a meal goes beyond what you are eating. “It’s not all about the food,” he said, but also how you approach your meals. He encouraged people not to focus on a number on a scale but to think about how eating well makes them feel better. “We shouldn’t lose the joy that we get from eating a good meal,” he said.
[7] Meanwhile, Bhupathiraju is a proponent of eating as a family, “which means putting your screens away”. She encouraged involving kids in meal preparation. “When you’re cooking together as a family, that’s when it becomes more fun,” she said. For her, the path to balanced eating is about “keeping it simple, keeping it fun, and making it a family affair”.
Source: Tribune News Service, October 27
Questions
1. What does the “term” in paragraph 1 refer to?
2. According to Landry in paragraph 2, a common misconception about a balanced diet is that it …
A. includes only fruit and vegetables.
B. involves balancing good and bad foods.
C. requires strict calorie counting.
D. requires cutting out all carbohydrates.
3. What does Bhupathiraju consider to be the foundation of a healthy diet according to paragraph 3?
4. Based on your understanding of paragraph 4, what is Bhupathiraju’s stance on using pill supplements to achieve a balanced diet?
5. In paragraph 5, what is the main challenge that some communities face when it comes to accessing healthy food?
6. Find a word in paragraph 5 that refers to “something that can be stored for a long time without spoiling”.
7. In paragraph 6, Landry encourages readers to …
A. ignore their hunger and fullness cues.
B. increase their protein consumption.
C. prioritise quantity over the quality of food.
D. focus on the overall eating experience.
8. Based on your understanding of paragraph 7, what is the connection between cooking and family bonding?
9. Match the following headers below to their corresponding paragraphs. (3 marks)
(i) Do not count on quick fixes
(ii) It does not have to break the bank
(iii) Think beyond the plate
Answers
1. a balanced diet
2. B
3. a combination of healthy fats, proteins, and fruits and vegetables
4. Pill supplements are not a substitute for a balanced diet and one should focus on achieving a balanced diet by eating a variety of fruit and vegetables.
5. They struggle to access fresh fruits and vegetables due to limited options and financial constraints. (accept all similar answers)
6. non-perishable
7. D
8. Cooking together as a family can strengthen relationships and create positive memories. (accept all reasonable answers)
9. (i) Paragraph 4; (ii) Paragraph 5; (iii) Paragraph 6