It is important to eat a healthy diet to maximize your energy and concentration for studies and for overall well-being. This may be harder to do in the United States, where prepared or processed foods tend to have high amounts of fat and sodium (salt). Living in New York City, you will be able to find many different types of food to supplement your diet, including food from your home country. With a student schedule and budget, it is easy to get caught in a "fast food" trap. Although there may be price and time advantages to eating fast food, the amount need to be moderate in order to stay healthy. The following guidelines may reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and cancer.

• Eat a variety of foods. Select appropriate amounts of dairy, meat (protein for vegetarians) grains, fruits, nuts, and vegetables.
• To prevent unwanted weight gain, eat slowly, take small portions, avoid second servings, and eating in between meals.
• Avoid too much fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.
• Eat foods with adequate fiber. Choose whole-grain breads and cereals, raw fruits and vegetables and dry beans and peas.
• Avoid too much sugar. Stay away from large amounts of soft drinks, candies, cookies, and cakes.
• Avoid too much coffee and tea. If you drink large amounts of either, you may want to consider decaffeinated coffee or herbal tea to reduce intake of caffeine.
• Avoid cigarette smoke.
• If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation.
• Season foods with herbs and spices instead of salt (to avoid too much sodium).
• Drink lot of water every day, the recommended amount for adults is eight glasses of eight ounces.

NYU offers assistance with nutrition planning through the Nutrition Services at the University Health Center (212) 443-1122.

Self-Assesment

• Do you make yourself sick because you feel uncomfortably full?
• Do you worry you have lost control over how much you eat?
• Have you recently lost more than 14 lbs in a 3 month period?
• Do you believe yourself to be fat when others say you are too thin?
• Would you say that food dominates your life?

Tips for Buying Food

• Plan a menu. Make a list of foods you need to buy based on your menu. When you go to the store, buy only the items on your list. This helps save time and money. Do not go shopping when you are hungry.
• If you are going grocery shopping in a supermarket (large store) for the first time, take someone with you who is familiar with the layout of the store and the types of food sold there. Or just walk through the store briefly before you begin to shop, to get a sense of the layout.
• Read the label on the package before buying any food item. The nutrional content should be listed. Also, labels of perishable foods (eggs, cheese, milk, meats) will include a date which indicates the last day the item should be purchased.
• Many supermarkets publish weekly advertisements of discounted items and promotional "coupons." Most often the discounted price advertised is only honored if the coupon is cut out of the paper and presented at the time of purchase. Coupons are also included in many newspapers, especially on Sundays.
• Many stores have generic or "house" brands. These are the same types of products, but unlike the "name brands" are not the ones advertised on television or in magazines. Sometimes the quality may vary, but often it is similar and the cost is significantly lower.

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