第三篇 Eat Healthy
"Clean your plate! " and "Be a member of the clean-plateclub! " Just about every kid in the UShas heard this from a parent orgrandparent. Often, it's accompanied by an appeal: "Just think aboutthosestarving orphans in Africa!" Sure, weshould be grateful for every bite of food. Unfortunately,many people in theUStake toomany bites. Instead of staying "clean the plate", perhaps weshouldsave some food for tomorrow.
According to news reports, US restaurants are partly to blame for thegrowing beUies. A waiterputs a plate of food in front of each customer, withtwo to four times the amount recomme.nded by thegovernment, according to a USAToday story. Americans traditionally associate quantity with valueand mostrestaurants try to give them that. They prefer to have customers complain abouttoo muchfood rather than too little.
BarbaraRolls, a nutrition professor at Pennsylvani'a State University, told USA Todaythat res-taurant portion sizes began to grow in the 1970s, the same time thatthe American waistline began toexpand.
Healthexperts have tried to get many restaurants to serve smaller portions. Now,apparently, some cus-tomers are calling for this too. The restaurant industrytrade magazine QSR reported last month that 57 per-cent of more than 4, 000people surveyed beljeve restaurants serve portions that are too large; 23percent had no opinion; 20 percent disagreed. But a closer look at the surveyindicates that many Americans who can't af-ford fine dining still prefer largeportions. 70 percent of those earning at least $ 150, 000 per year prefersmal-ler portions; but only 45 percent of those earning less than $ 25, 000want smaller.
It'snot that working class Americans don't want to eat healthy. It's just that,"after long hours at low-paying jobs, getting less on their plate hardlyseems like a good deal. They live from paycheck topaycheck, happy to save alittle money for next year's Christmas presents.
Parents in theUnited Statestend to ask their children
A.not to waste food at meals
B.to save food for tomorrow
C.to wash the dishes clean
D. not to eat too much at meals