Mindfull

Eating  breakfast and lunch is important for your health and mind, 

because if you do not eat, then you are unable to function as properly as you could be

throughout the day. This means that you will not be able to perform as well at work, school, or even at home. There are many people who cannot afford to buy healthy foods because despite popular belief, these items actually are more expensive than other foods, even at fast food restaurants. 

 

Fast food restaurants can play a significant role in many college students’ lives since students are often  so busy with school and work that they do not have time to go buy groceries and prepare meals for the  week. This leads to depending  largely, on fast food restaurants for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This is not to say that fast food is a bad choice— many people frequent these establishments regularly everyday— but rather, fast food can be a viable option for people or students who are on a budget. 

 

Oftentimes, you can buy a meal for $3 to $4, if you take advantage of value menu food items and/or using coupons. This is pretty cheap compared to purchasing food at Cal Poly Pomona, which can  cost anywhere from $5 to $9 for a full meal (not including tax). While there continues to be many long lines of students who choose to eat at these costly restaurants on a daily basis, this does not mean that they are all that happy about paying so much money for food ; eating on campus may be their only option because they may not have enough time between classes to go all the way back to their cars and drive off campus to buy cheaper food (plus, there is no guarantee that they will be able to find a parking spot upon return). 

 

Many students struggle with financial burdens and would appreciate being  able to purchase cheaper food instead of having to be subjected to the expensive food options on campus. The school obviously can decide how food will be priced, but  they are deciding to have us pay exorbitant prices for food, or starve. I, myself, try to starve instead of paying $7-9 at, for example, Panda Express until I am able to leave campus to pursue other cheaper options. Thus, it is important to not judge people who do not always eat “healthy,” because maybe it is more important for students or people to just eat cheaply, as this is a life option that is much more doable and livable. If I am able to save a considerable amount of money by simply eating fast food, then I am doing what I am okay with doing. Also, as I started by saying that healthy food is more expensive than fast food, this is true because even fast food restaurants offer salads and protein bowls for twice the amount of money that “regular” food costs, and it doesn’t even fill you up all the way. If this university refuses to offer better options for you, the students that are the ones paying to attend this institution, then it is not anyone’s fault if they do not want to support an institution that is trying to swindle money out of them. They should focus more on providing cheaper food options, and maybe students will be happy to frequent these eating establishments. If enough students were to gradually stop eating at these on campus restaurants, then perhaps change could be made.