This assignment is designed to reinforce the concepts and objectives in this unit. Please be sure to complete your reading assignment before you begin this assignment.
Scenario:
Clara is an African American college student. She is 5’4″ and weighs 170lbs. Clara’s entire family is overweight and her father was diagnosed with diabetes last month. Her uncle has been suffering from diabetes since he was eight years old. Clara fears that if she does not change her diet she may develop diabetes as well.
On an average day Clara eats two jelly doughnuts for breakfast, chicken nuggets with sweet and sour sauce and a large soda for lunch, and goes to the drive-through to grab a super-sized burger, fries, and a large cola. She usually snacks on jellybeans during the day and is always sipping on a cola.
Clara is concerned about her diet and decides to ask her friend Mary, nutrition major, for advice. Mary gives Clara some suggestions. First she tells Clara that, while her diet is very high fat, it is also very high in carbohydrate. “I should try that diet advertised on TV. If I cut all carbohydrate I can lose 50 pounds this month!” Clara announces. Mary rolls her eyes. Mary explains that complex carbohydrates are good, but too much simple sugar is not. Mary tells Clara that she should snack on fresh fruits instead of jellybeans, and eat more starch and fiber. Plain baked potatoes (instead of fries) and fortified cereals instead of high-fat doughnuts) would be a lot healthier. Small changes like these could improve her diet dramatically.
“Try not drinking so much soda,” Mary suggests. “Bottled water or a glass of milk would be much more beneficial.”
“I can’t drink milk!” Clara says. “Last time I had a glass of milk my stomach hurt for hours. I think I’m lactose intolerant since it runs in my family.”
Clara and Mary discuss cow’s milk alternatives and Clara thanks Mary for the Advice and goes home to plan her new healthy diet.
Questions
Please answer the following questions:
- Clara thinks she can’t drink milk because she is lactose intolerant. How might Clara include milk products in her diet?
- If Clara does not want to give up soda entirely, but still consume less sugar, could she drink diet sodas? What are the pros and cons of this switch?
- Clara discovers that a lot of her calories come from carbohydrate. She initially decided to eliminate all carbohydrate from her diets, but Mary tells her that this is a poor decision. Why?
- Although there may be the same amount of sugar in fruit as some candies, why is fruit a much better choice for Clara?
- Mary suggests eating more fiber. How would this be beneficial in Clara’s case?
Note: If you use additional resources, other than your textbook, which is always recommended, please be sure to cite your source(s). Wikipedia is not an acceptable source.
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