The healthy dish: eating right during college life

This fall, think healthy. Studies show it works better than concentrating on just losing weight. When you eat well and exercise, you will likely feel more comfortable in your body, gain an ethereal glow and be able to concentrate on the more important things in your young, collegiate lives [HTML_REMOVED] that is, your studies.

On a nice afternoon in the U-District Whole Foods, senior Emily Haug was found scanning the bulk food grains.

"I come here partially for the bulk food, and they just have more variety in terms of vegetarian options," she said.

Now living off campus, Haug recalled days of stocking her miniscule dorm refrigerator with carrots and tofu freshman year.

"There are a lot of things you can cook that really don't take up much time," she said. "Stir fries are always really easy and it's easy to get a lot of healthy things in there. Brown rice is really easy to cook and you can make extra and have leftovers the next day."

If you're the type of person who spends half a day at a bookstore or caf[HTML_REMOVED] to study, invest in a few good food storage containers, a box of zip-close bags and an insulated lunch bag with an ice pack. The habit of buying healthy food will follow. The point here is to be prepared for finding yourself stranded on campus with 'naught but Thai food or teriyaki on the Ave [HTML_REMOVED] again. By the time senior year rolls around, you might regret not having saved all that extra food money for something more useful, like a new piece of software.

Beauty Foods

More than makeup or trendy clothes, being healthy is a powerful element of beauty that sparkles and radiates like nothing else. You want to look alive. For beautiful, healthy eyes, choose leafy green vegetables (like spinach, kale or beet greens), which contain fair amounts of lutein and zeaxanthin [HTML_REMOVED] antioxidants known to promote healthy eyes.

Vitamin E is another great antioxidant; copious amounts of it can be found in sunflower seeds. Add them to salads or carry a small bag of them around to maintain healthy skin and hair and to give your immune system a nice boost.

Yogurt supplies magnesium, potassium and calcium. Look for containers that include probiotic cultures like Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum (Bifidus). Nonfat or soy is ideal, with no more than 250 calories per serving.

Better Snacking Behavior

Let's talk about sweet potatoes. They're great for potassium, fiber and vitamins A, C and E. You can cook them in the microwave for a quick snack or bake one for a deliciously satisfying sweet treat for only 160 calories.

According to the American Dietetic Association, stress often leads to a craving for carbohydrates because they boost serotonin, which has a calming effect. Going for complex carbohydrates will leave you satisfied longer. The night before your first major quiz, rather than reaching for a bag of chips or candy, try baking a sweet potato instead.

Vitamin A helps promote normal vision. Some of the best sources of it are carrots, sweet potatoes, and canned pumpkin. An easy snack idea is to carry a small container of hummus, a few carrots and a small bag of greens in an insulated lunch bag with you to school. It makes for a quick fix that's delicious, nutritious, won't weigh you down, nor leave you hungry.

Kumquats are in season and are super convenient (eat the whole bite-sized thing, leaving the seeds). Apples, blueberries, grapes, kiwi, melons and plums are also in season. Take advantage of the bounties of fall harvest.

Residence Life

Many canned foods can be richer in some nutrients than their raw counterparts. Lycopene is more readily available after being heat processed. This makes spaghetti dinners ($1 whole wheat spaghetti and $3 sauce at Trader Joe's) even more awesome [HTML_REMOVED] especially if you make it whole grain and add a few vegetables of your own.

If you can't handle cooking in the dormitory kitchenettes, try keeping nuts, berries and ready-to-eat packages of vegetables like raw broccoli and cauliflower. Take the time to research the foods that interest you [HTML_REMOVED] you might be surprised with what you may find.

The walnut's omega-3 fatty acid content far surpasses that of other nuts. It promotes heart health like no other nut. Eat them in moderation [HTML_REMOVED] like all nuts, they're very high in fat [HTML_REMOVED] but definitely try them; they're an easy alternative to fish.

Roots are good because of the nutritional value and long shelf life. Carrots will keep in the refrigerator for weeks. Sweet potatoes should be kept somewhere cool and dry, preferably not in the refrigerator. Beets can be saved for up to one and one-half weeks and are spectacular in more ways than one. The greens should be cut 1 inch from the root and stored separately from the beets; they are milder than Swiss chard but you can cook them up in similar ways (try adding them to egg dishes). The beet itself stains like crazy and is like eating rubies when grated over a salad.

Seattle Life

Attention out-of-state students: Seattle is cloudy. The sun's rays are the best source of vitamin D available, but Seattle's heavy clouds cover blocks the sun. Seek other sources of it if you want to live. Other sources include milk, cod liver oil and fish. This is the area where vegans are left with few options: white button mushrooms and Super Supplements.

Seattle loves farm fresh and organic produce. But what if you'd rather not make a complete transition to organic? The Environmental Working Group made a handy dandy Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce to help the fellow consumer decide when it is worth it to buy organic.

Vitamin C is used up very quickly by the body, so it is very important to absorb it continually. According to the U.S.Department of Health and Human Services, smokers (and those who are exposed to secondhand smoke) should further increase intake of this antioxidant since much is used up to clear up smoke-related free radicals. Important for many things like healthy teeth, bones and iron absorption, you can get vitamin C from most fruits and vegetables; red bell peppers are an amazing source of them. One red bell pepper contains more than three times the amount of vitamin C found in an orange. Frozen peaches and orange juice are also great sources.

[Reach reporter Amanda Ahn at features@thedaily.washington.edu.]