No Thanks! Dear “Junk Food”

Problem Definition 4 Relying on “junk food” most of the time for the daily dietary needs. 4 Just filling up the stomach to satisfy the hunger. 4 Hyperacidity and associated complaints consequently.

Problem Definition continued…... 4 Eating a large meal in the night compensating for the junk food in the day. 4 Indigestion and “bloated stomach” feeling at the end of the day. 4 Loss of appetite and disturbed sleep eventually. 4 Ending up spending comparatively more than necessary on food and a whole lot on antacids!

What's So Junky About 'Junk' Food? 4 Many snacks, such as potato chips, fast-food cheeseburgers, and fries, have high levels of fat, sugar or salt. 4 Most of these are made using saturated fat, which comes from animal products, hydrogenated vegetable oils and tropical oils -- coconut and palm -- providing smaller amounts. Only animal fat provides cholesterol.

What's So Junky About 'Junk' Food? 4 Sodium mostly comes from salt added to foods during processing and most junk foods are rich in salt. 4 Eating too much fat, especially saturated fat and cholesterol, increases blood cholesterol levels, and therefore increases the risk of heart disease.

What's So Junky About 'Junk' Food? 4 Too much fat leads to overweight and increases the risk of some cancers. 4 Dietitians recommend that no more than 30 percent of your calories come from fats, and not more than 10 percent of these calories should be from saturated fat. 4 Junk food is generally way beyond all these recommendations.

Problem Flow Chart

Problem Flow Chart continued…

Changes to the Environment / System 4 Carry a lunch pack from home for the lunch at work. 4 Carry no loose change in the wallet. 4 Practice carpooling and use HOV to reach work place in time. 4 Always go to lunch along with a buddy who eats regularly at the cafeteria.

Changes to the Environment / System 4 Reach the cafeteria in time by tagging along with the designated buddy. 4 Return home early by practicing the same carpooling and using HOV. 4 Eat early. 4 Remove Television from the bedroom.

Changes to the Environment / System 4 Never buy or keep any kind of snack food in the house. 4 To facilitate that always do shopping with another designated buddy (wife in my case) to check the dietary habits at home. 4 Always fill the refrigerator with healthy food supply so as not to affect the cooking at home.

Personal Changes 4 Wakeup early in the morning. 4 Always eat breakfast before leaving for work. 4 Set an alarm in the watch to remind lunchtime. 4 Keep a sticker on the wallet reminding not to buy junk food. 4 Set alarm to wake early the next day.

Changes adopted 4 All of the changes especially the environmental / system changes were chosen (the basic methodology of CQI). 4 Executed over a period of 58 days starting from September 23rd to November 13th, The data thus obtained was analyzed using the “Time in between chart”.

The Data

Data continued …….

Frequency Chart

The Chart Of Success.

Analysis 4 The two failures that are above the “Upper Control Limit” suggest the return to poor habits. 4 They are significant as they are way above the expected upper limit. 4 The rest of the failures below the Upper Control Limit in the chart suggest relapses.

Analysis 4 Though initially there was not much of a success or break in the habit, in course of time the habit changed. 4 This project of personal improvement is a success both physically and statistically.

Future Course Of Action 4 Eat a variety of foods. 4 Balance the daily food with physical activity to maintain a healthy weight. 4 Choose a diet with plenty of grain products, vegetables and fruits. 4 Choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol. 4 Choose a diet moderate in sugars. 4 Choose a diet moderate in salt and sodium.