Eat this, not that

By Nastacia Voisin, Staff Writer voisin15@up.edu

Sticking to a New Years' resolution to have a healthier lifestyle may be difficult by the time March rolls around - especially in the wake of Valentine's Day indulgences. For many students, the freedoms of 24-hour food availability and access to sugary, fatty snack foods can lead to waistline trouble.

In honor of American Heart Month and "Foods for Your Heart," Bon Appétit's newest theme, The Beacon took a look at the food on campus to see what's healthy and what's better left alone.

Breakfast:

Eat This:

An egg and cheese biscuit from The Cove has 300 calories and 18 grams of fat.

Not That:

Add on a sausage to the egg and cheese biscuit and the calorie count jumps to 580, with an additional 19 grams of fat.

 

Lunch:

Eat this:

When browsing through the deli, try a 6 inch corn tortilla (60 calories), some mozzarella (90 calories) or some pastrami (40 calories).

Not that:

Be wary of pita bread (220 calories per slice), American or cheddar cheese (110 calories), and beef bologna (80 calories).

 

Dinner:

Eat This:

For pasta lovers, plain penne is the best bet, with a 3/4 cup serving totaling 150 calories and one gram of fat.

Not That:

The same amount of garlic linguine pasta has 290 calories and six grams of fat.

Keep in mind that the marinara (45 calories/ 1 g of fat) is a healthier choice than the alfredo sauce (140 calories/nine g of fat).

Food substitution isn't a cure-all, but making calorie and fat savvy choices in The Commons is a start. Just remember that food swapping is no replacement to exercise or nutritional health choices.