Student Brain Food

Eat Well, Study Better

Lauren Lucien

• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN:
  9781137297044
• eBook ISBN:
  9781350315426
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Study Aids
• Subtopic: Study Guides

A unique student cookbook, Student Brain Food shows how good nutrition and eating well can help boost academic performance. Lauren Lucien, a graduate of Kingston University, UK, started collecting recipes whilst in her final year of study. Having learned which food helped her to study better and how to plan and budget for her meals, Lauren shares her best recipes to help you fuel your body and mind for student success. Over 100 simple, tasty recipes, each come with step-by-step instructions and colour photographs. Drawing on the author's own experience, you'll find everything to support your student lifestyle - including nutritious fruit smoothies to keep you energised before a morning lecture; hearty stews and fish dishes to sustain you during assignment writing or exam time; creative recipes to make for friends or on date night, such as vodka salmon pasta and mini movie pizzas; and sweet treats to reward yourself with after completing deadlines or to take to societies. The book also includes handy information and tips on cupboard must-haves, shopping on a budget, preparing commonly used vegetables, food hygiene as well as temperature conversion charts.

1

FORWARD THINKING AND PLANNING FOR SUCCESS

YOUR SHOPPING LIST FOR THE WEEKLY FOOD SHOP

Fresh: Milk, eggs, fruit for packed lunches and snacks, vegetables (greens, potatoes, carrots, stir-fry, onions, garlic), cheese, yoghurt, butter, sausages, meat (see also frozen).

Dry: Bread, cereals/oats, noodles/pasta, rice, nuts, stock cubes.

Jars/cans/bottles: Baked beans, tinned tomatoes, tuna, sweetcorn, sugar, olive oil.

Frozen: Meat (chicken, mince, beef, lamb), tofu.

BASIC FOOD HYGIENE

Some quick dos and dont’s

Do keep cheese in an airtight container. You can alternatively use a plastic food bag and tie a knot at the top.

Do keep your fridge at 3–5°C to prevent food decay.

Do check the Best Before date on your food. With certain foods this is more to do with quality than whether you can still eat it or not. For example, lettuce may have started to go brown at the edges or fruit may have become soft, but you can still eat it. When it comes to meat and fish, though, stick to the Best Before date – don’t risk it!

Don’t miss the signs of decay: shrivelling, mould, a bad smell and sliminess.

Don’t pick off mould that you can see and then eat the food. For example, in a slice of bread the green mould actually shows the later stage of decay; there may be tiny white mould spores within the bread that you aren’t able to see with just a quick look.

Don’t use the same chopping board for cutting up meat and preparing vegetables – the mix of bacteria can lead to food poisoning.

Food poisoning

Food poisoning happens when the food you eat has been contaminated. The common symptoms of food poisoning are feeling sick, vomitting, stomach cramps and diarrhoea. These symptoms don’t always arise straight away – sometimes they may even show up three days after consuming the food.

Here are five simple ways to avoid food poisoning:

1Wash your hands thoroughly with hot water and anti-bacterial hand wash or soap. Do this between handling different types of food, like raw meat and vegetables, or after touching a pet or the bin.

2Use separate chopping boards for meat and vegetables and keep raw meat separate from everything, as juices from the meat can contaminate surfaces and other foods.

3Thaw food in your fridge, not on the side, so that it cannot reach room temperature.

4Only reheat food once.

5Avoid eating shellfish or fish that has been left out at room temperature.

According to the HPA (Health Protection Agency), Salmonella bacteria are a frequent cause of food poisoning. Most people recover without treatment after 2–3 days, but if you become seriously ill you may need hospital care because the dehydration (fluid loss) caused by the illness can be life threatening. See www.hpa.org.uk/Topics/InfectiousDiseases/lnfectionsAZ/Salmonella/ for more information.

E. coli food poisoning is another common form, particularly after eating meat that is not cooked through properly, for example at a BBQ – so always check before you bite! According the UK National Health Service website, E. coli is ‘bacteria found in the digestive system of many animals, including humans. Most strains are harmless but some strains can cause serious illness’. See www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Food-poisoning for more information.

The student fridge

Even the way you organise your fridge can prevent food wastage and food poisoning. See the opposite page for how a heal...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• FOREWORD
• ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
• INTRODUCTION
• HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
• 1 FORWARD THINKING AND PLANNING FOR SUCCESS
• 2 TOOLS OF THE TRADE
• 3 USEFUL INFORMATION
• 4 GET COOKING!
• 5 USEFUL RESOURCES
• INDEX