LOH Contest #236: Junk Food? No Thanks, I’ll Cook Instead

Right from time, I was not exposed to eating junk foods but rather homemade meals prepared by my mom and family. We were always reminded how eating healthily is very important for our body. In those days, we were taught the six classes of food: carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, fats & oil, mineral salt, and water. Hehehe, I took you back to those nursery days when we had to sing the song over and over again after the assembly just so we could understand what a healthy meal is classified as.

Growing up, I have always loved cooking my meals, mostly fresh ones, and it was always preferable to spending money on junk every now and then. It doesn't stop us from eating them once in a while though, but they never were part of what makes a healthy food in the real sense.

When I was in university, I always cooked my meals no matter how tired I was after the day's lecture, except on days when I had just spent money on snacks just as an appetizer until I had prepared the main meal. Though, once in a while, I sometimes feel too lazy to cook, and I'd prefer to starve my stomach than buy junk that doesn't add to my healthy lifestyle but rather worsens it.

There's always something exciting about cooking your meals rather than buying junk — that's satisfaction. And knowing you just had a good meal prepared by you or someone else is much more rewarding and helpful. Also, many of these junk foods are high in calories, sugar, unhealthy fats, and things you wouldn't want to see in your meal.

This is exactly the reason I sort of love cooking my meals - to know the quantity of ingredients I would be adding. At that point, I'm in control of the ingredients I add to my meal, so it doesn't get too sweetened, which is potentially risky to one's body system. This is one way I escape the junks for my body and avoid the risk of possible health issues.

There was a time I bought some snacks while in school, and I met a dead cockroach inside it. My money was wasted after throwing it away. Though I had to complain to the seller, it just made me more cautious and it's best to prepare your meal by yourself mostly because of good hygiene. Not all of these sellers are clean.

I also love homemade meals because they are cheaper and allow you to buy in bulk while still saving some to use for the next time unlike buying junk foods in a restaurant where the prices are very high.

Even though junk food is easily made and readily available for people to consume, I still go for a homemade meal, even if I would stay longer preparing it. But at least I know it's something I made myself and would definitely be the best for my health.

Guess what again? I love fresh meals, and I don't get tired of cooking new food each day. Some of my friends were always surprised at how I cook every time, especially when they'd mention having a fridge to help keep your meals, thereby saving you from stress. But I would say since I don't have one yet, I'd just keep cooking fresh meals and since I'm used to it, it's fine.

Maybe when I have a fridge, it would make things easier and stress-free since I could just make a large portion of a meal and keep it in the fridge for later use. But for junk foods, you wouldn't see me jumping at it when there's a good option for the sake of my health.

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