#Wefarefoodchallenge

[annabella98-blog1]

Day 5

Day 5 was harder than every other day for me so far in this challenge. I really find that I have a hard time not being agitated and find I am quickly annoyed or lose focus in the tasks I am trying to complete. 

I ate more today than I normally have during this challenge in an attempt to feel better and improve my mood, but it really didn’t make a difference. This is because there is such a difference of quality in the foods that I am eating.

Food is vital fuel for your brain, and nutrition can have massive impacts on a person’s mental state. While the amount of food may change a person’s mood or ability to concentrate, the types of food someone eats can have an even bigger impact. 

“Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps regulate sleep and appetite, mediate moods, and inhibit pain. Since about 95% of your serotonin is produced in your gastrointestinal tract, and your gastrointestinal tract is lined with a hundred million nerve cells, or neurons, it makes sense that the inner workings of your digestive system don’t just help you digest food, but also guide your emotions.”

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/nutritional-psychiatry-your-brain-on-food-201511168626

The types of food we eat contain essential nutrients and vitamins, and processed foods in particular do not contain enough of these essential nutrients. In our western society, many people’d diets contain many processed foods especially since these foods tend to be cheaper than healthier options- for example the ramen noodles which are lacking in nutrients and vitamins and full of processed ingredients were cheaper than the apples or carrots I bought. 

“Studies have shown that when people take probiotics (supplements containing the good bacteria), their anxiety levels, perception of stress, and mental outlook improve, compared with people who did not take probiotics. Other studies have compared “traditional” diets, like the Mediterranean diet and the traditional Japanese diet, to a typical “Western” diet and have shown that the risk of depression is 25% to 35% lower in those who eat a traditional diet. Scientists account for this difference because these traditional diets tend to be high in vegetables, fruits, unprocessed grains, and fish and seafood, and to contain only modest amounts of lean meats and dairy. They are also void of processed and refined foods and sugars, which are staples of the “Western” dietary pattern.”  

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/nutritional-psychiatry-your-brain-on-food-201511168626

When someone faces food insecurity, more often than not they are more concerned about the quantity of food they are able to buy than the nutritional value their foods contain. Because these meals don’t contain the proper nutritional components and macro-nutrients, a person’s mood can be greatly influenced. Food insecurity can have profound affects on an individual which stretch past hunger and lack of food to an individual’s social life, mood, and ability to function throughout the day.

Not to mention, food insecurity can keep an individual from meeting their nutritional guidelines and food servings, which are essential for keeping a healthy physical, nutritional, and mental state.

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1GCEA_enCA840CA840&biw=1366&bih=608&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=kROsXL_NL4Wy0wLP9qy4Cw&q=canadian+food+guide+serving+chart&oq=canadian+food+guide+ser&gs_l=img.1.4.0l2j0i24l4.11432.12383..16071...0.0..0.76.294.4......1....1..gws-wiz-img.......0i67j0i8i30.lweehl6QZcg#imgrc=-WFpzVrXNIX__M:

Today for breakfast I had two hard boiled eggs and a bowl of oatmeal while I had a full lunch including another egg, a bowl of noodles and a piece of bread toasted. For supper I had a bowl of pasta with the sauce and had an apple for snacking later, but found that my mood still did not improve much. Today, I only met one of Canada’s recommended food servings. Food insecurity has very real impacts on an individual’s ability to meet nutritional requirements.

[annabella98-blog1]

Day 3

Today (and part of last night) really showed to me just how difficult this challenge can be, and how influential food status and security can be to someone’s social status and standing. 

For breakfast I was super excited to switch it up. I traded the oatmeal for two of my precious eggs soft-boiled in the shell with two pieces of plain bread. My family calls them standing eggs, but to be honest I have no idea what anyone else would all them. Either way- I was completely ecstatic for a change of flavor in the morning. 

After breakfast i spent some time on homework and then went to the horse farm to work my horses. Today I didn’t feel quite as tired or grumpy as I did yesterday and I am attributing that to the protein from the eggs. I was able to finish my usual homework, workout, and house hold chores easily today. 

Lunch is where my challenge today really began. Today, my entire family came over for Easter food preparation. My Father’s side of the family is Ukrainian which means there’s a lot of us- a lot of opinions, a lot of noise, and a lot of extremely delicious probably-not-so-good for your liver food. Everyone in the family meets in our house and brings food and ingredients to help make the multitude of foods we will need for Easter, along with over 700 Perohe we make every family get together for the community and church functions.

(Credits to the family for being great sports and featuring in the challenge blog!)

 With everything going on I didn’t really have the space or the time I needed to prep something for lunch. My family was quite interested in the challenge, but that did not make sitting out of the amazing family lunch any easier! Food is a social event, it gathers people to converse and share. It’s natural to eat together and share meals. This really made me think of just how impact living on Welfare could be to someone. My family understood why I was unable to participate in buying groceries or eating the food that they’d all brought for the event. But if we had gone out for food, while living on Welfare I might have to ask for just water, and if the people around didn’t understand that I couldn’t afford the meal we were eating it would be awkward. Not to mention, it was still a little bit embarrassing to not be able to share the food or bring supplies. For someone on Welfare, this would be something of a cost they would have to prioritize or plan well in advance- and still might not be able to afford it. 

Supper time could not come soon enough, an near empty house left me plenty of space to make my typical spaghetti and sauce for dinner. This is a meal that I could see myself getting tired of quickly, (considering I don’t even like pasta) but I find it filling and I do like that I feel like I don’t feel like snacking as often after dinner. 

Along with the eye-opening family experience, I also learned the social impact Welfare has with peers and friends. Last night my brother and some friends of ours wanted to go out to the bars. Since I knew I couldn't afford to drink and didn’t particularly want to anyway- I volunteered to be the designated driver. It didn’t seem like a big deal to me, I’ve driven as the sober companion many times before, I honestly didn’t see how this time would be any different since nobody typically pressures their driver to buy drinks.

But along the night I encountered some other problems. Some of the bars did not want to serve me water, even finding excuses like ‘the well being turned off’ or ‘we don’t accept transactions under 21 dollars.’

That gave me pause- 21 dollars for a transaction? That would quite literally be my entire week’s worth of groceries in one spending minute. Water, is actually free in the bars so it made me curious. Why would they not give me a glass when I’ve previously not run into these problems? When asked, I was told that the water was free but the glass cup it came in was not. Since I was only asking for a glass of water and not paying for anything else during the night I couldn’t even get water! How embarrassing was that? I could only imagine what it would be like for someone to be on Welfare and decide to go out with family or friends and only be able to afford water, to be told that they cannot actually have it served to them! Combined with the experience of food and family today I emphasized on a level I could not possibly have before. I also know that I am blessed enough to have peers and family who understand, but not every individual living on Welfare has that support. My family tried to ‘donate’ me food which I turned down in for the challenge but even then- that is a social support system I am blessed to have, and is not a given and many people living on Welfare do not have that support, or their support may not be able to support them in that way.

All said and done, today was pretty successful, but it had some eye-openers on the social impact of living on Welfare to me.