Nadeen Haidar
Secretary of the Nutrition Society
Lets just set some things straight: although it may vary from person to person, the recommended average caloric intake for an adult is around 2000 calories - and no, eating less is not better than more; it’s just as bad. How to keep count of what you’re eating then? Well, the most obvious answer would be to read the back of all the packaged food you eat - but, hey, most of the things we usually eat on Bliss don’t come with a nice wrapper that gives us all the nutrition facts we need; so here’s a guide to foods typically found right off campus:
| Food Item |
No. of Calories* |
| Manooshet Zaatar |
277 |
| Saj Cheese Akawi |
435 |
| Saj Cheese Kashkawan |
529 |
| Saj Cheese Halloum |
453 |
| Saj Turkey and Cheese |
390 |
| Saj Chicken and Cheese |
390 |
| Lahmeh Ba’ajeen |
380 |
| Chicken Shawarma Sandwich |
475 |
| Meat Shawarma Sandwich |
504 |
| Sheesh Tawook Sandwich |
488 |
| Falafel Sandwich |
500 |
| Fatoosh |
125 |
| Tabouleh |
108 |
| Big Mac |
450 |
| Pizza (1 slice) |
290 |
| Fries (small) |
296 |
| Nutella and Banana Crepe |
400 |
| Plain Bagel |
300 |
| Croissant |
235 |
| Doughnut (glazed original) |
200 |
| Nescafe 3 in 1 |
71 |
| Nescafe & condensed milk |
86 |
| Orange Juice |
39 |
| Tea (W/ 2 cubes sugar) |
21 |
*All values are averages and may vary from one food outlet to another depending on ingredients and serving size.
Don’t overdo it with the counting though, I mean our brains are busy enough. Just increase your awareness of what is going into your system. The key is not minimizing your intake: don’t starve yourself; you need the calories to get you through a long and stressful day at AUB. The trick is to go for “rich” calories rather than “poor” ones. “Rich” as in carrying nutrients, for example; while a Doughnut/Nescafe for breakfast might contain almost the same number of calories as a Manooshet Zaatar with some orange juice for breakfast, rest assured that the latter will serve you better. Ignorance is bliss, just not on Bliss Street. Bottom line: you need to watch what you eat, and “Sa7tein”!