College students have many things to think about. Budgets, grades, organizations and their future. Usually a student’s last thing on their mind is their health.
Many students have a diet that consists of fast food and poor nutrition. This unhealthy diet could eventually lead to obesity-related diseases, such as heart disease, cancer and type two diabetes.
“When I am in school I get fast food. Cheap stuff like McDonald’s, Little Caesar’s or any cheap combos,” said UTRGV senior, Kevin Barron.
Luckily, UTRGV offers The Human Environment Animal League (HEAL). A club that allows students to remember that health is not something they should take for granted.
“Providing students with information on how to improve their health is important. Our body is the only one we have and we must take care of it,” said Beatriss Flores, HEAL vice-president.
The HEAL club has an alternative diet to that of the common American one. It is the plant-based diet.
“Plant-based sources of food provides nutrients that are low in saturated fat, high in fiber and full of antioxidants. This diet also helps prevent chronic diseases of the modern world,” Flores said.
A plant-based diet is similar to that of a vegan diet. It consists of plants including vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes and fruits. The diet excludes any animal products such as meats, dairy or any animal based foods.
“The primary goal of HEAL is to spread awareness of how a plant based diet and lifestyle can affect one´s health, the environment, and be ethical toward animals.” said Zachary Hurtado, HEAL’s president.
After joining HEAL, Edgar Araguz noticed a change in his lifestyle.
“I love to run, but I wasn’t very good on keeping a diet,” said Araguz. “When I’m running I track my heart rate and I’ve noticed it decreased”
HEAL is not only a club in which members can better their diet and health, but a place where they can learn about where food comes from and the process of manufacturing food with animals.
“We promote a compassionate lifestyle where we try to avoid animal exploitation. Non-humans are living-beings seeking to live and avoid danger and harm. We should try to exclude cruelty and exploitation to other animals for food, clothes and other things,” said Flores.
HEAL believes companies that distribute animal meat from cattle and fish are unethical because they fail to have proper care for the animals.
“Studying mechanical engineering I am familiar to how manufacturing plants work and basically their main goals are efficiency and cheap labor,” Araguz said. “I don’t believe I can make a change on their ways of processing animals, but I can choose to not be part of it by minimizing the consumption on how animals are treated”
To make college students aware of their health, HEAL attends local events such as the Healthy Hearts 5K, the UTRGV event Dance your Heart Out and UTRGV’s Farmer’s market in the hopes to share information about cardiovascular health and a plant based lifestyle.