1 . What Kids Eat for Lunch Around the World

Australia

While Aussies are largely lunchbox people, Australian schools have indoor and outdoor canteens, where students order from a menu of snacks and standard dishes like hot dogs, meat pies, and sausage rolls.

Brazil

Brazil began one of the world’s oldest school feeding programs in 1955, providing lunch for more than 43 million children. The Guideline 2009 limited processed foods and sugars and required schools to offer students one third of their daily nutritional requirements. A school lunch might include meat with vegetables, rice and beans, fresh-baked bread, salad and banana.

France

Unsurprisingly, France takes food seriously, especially school lunches. Each lunch usually has a multicourse meal including a raw vegetable starter and dairy course and a warm main meal with more vegetables, followed by a dessert.

Cuba

Cuban schools provide free lunches that usually feature rice, beans, hard-boiled eggs, vegetables such as sliced tomatoes, and a dessert. Children bring their own drinks and sometimes some snacks from home.

Japan

In Japan, children are typically used to at least trying every food on their plates out of respect for its preparation. A traditional lunch usually consists of local and seasonal ingredients that result in healthy meals such as hearty soups and stews, grilled fish, seasoned rice, and fried noodles. Each lunch contains a specific number of calories.

1. What is the main feature of Brazilian lunch?

A．It’s free of charge.	B．It’s nutritionally balanced.
C．It’s served off campus.	D．It’s ordered in the canteens.

2. What do French lunch and Cuban lunch have in common?

A．Neither has milk and eggs.	B．Neither has rice and noodles.
C．Both include drinks and snacks.	D．Both include desserts and vegetables.

3. What do we know about Japanese lunch?

A．It is prepared by the elders.	B．It is limited in diversity.
C．It is made from fresh ingredients.	D．It contains too much fat.

2 . Can the way you sleep affect your eating habits?

Most adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night, yet about 35% of Americans routinely miss the mark.     1    .

It may help you control your added sugar intake

Got a sweet tooth?     2    . A 2018 study looked at the impact of extra sleep on eating habits with some participants who were healthy yet frequently slept between five to seven hours per night. One group was arranged to receive a 45-minute counseling (咨询) session with information about sleep recommendations and simple strategies to help them sleep more. Those who received the sleep advice lowered their added sugar intake by 10 grams per day, even though they didn’t hit the recommended sleep target of seven to nine hours per night.

    3    .

If you’re not sleeping well, it will be harder to manage desires. Researchers found that after a short night of sleep, people who looked at images of unhealthy food, such as doughnuts and candy, experienced increased activity in areas of the brain associated with reward and pleasure. Meanwhile, the same brain hot spots showed a significantly weaker response to healthy food.

It contributes to overeating

When you get inadequate sleep, you feel hungrier. Plus, it’ll take longer to feel full because of lower leptin (瘦蛋白) levels.     4    . It was found in a 2019 study among women who usually slept seven to nine hours per night that after they were instructed to get a third less sleep, they reported feeling hungrier and having increased appetite the next day.

    5    . Those who received counseling increased their sleep by about 1.2 hours, and they reduced their daily calorie intake by 270 calories. The researchers predicted that, the impact of extra sleep alone could result in a 26-pound weight loss over three years. Therefore, those who got more sleep naturally cut down on their calorie intake.

A．Getting adequate sleep may help

B．The impact of extra sleep was dramatic

C．It could make you less vulnerable to desires

D．Here’s how sleep influences your eating habits

E．It could help slow down the burning of calories

F．Unsurprisingly, this could lead to serving yourself bigger portion sizes

G．People who suffer from consistently bad sleep tend to have poorer quality diets

3 . Think back to the last time you shopped for fruits and vegetables. You may have noticed some items labelled with the word “organic”.     1    

“Organic” refers to the way food is grown. To be labelled as organic, food production must meet strict guidelines. These can be different depending on where you live. In the United States, organic foods must be grown or raised without using pesticides or chemical fertilizers.

    2     That changed after the Industrial Revolution. During the 20^th century, many ideas that were used by factories and big businesses were put into action on farms. This helped some farms grow larger and produce more.

The organic movement was started to get back to the old traditional ways of farming. Why? Many believe the chemicals and pesticides used in modern farming can be harmful to your health.     3     And those who support the organic movement also point to its benefits for the environment.

Have you ever compared organic and non-organic foods at the grocery store? If so, you know that organic food tend to cost more. This happens for many reasons. Organic farming produces fewer crops.     4     Additionally, organic farms spend more money taking care of the animals they raise. These and other factors drive the cost of organic food up.

Is organic food worth the extra cost? Some people believe it is. They may think it tastes better or just prefer to eat food that has not been grown using chemicals.     5    They are still trying to find a major difference between organic and non-organic food in terms of safety, nutrition, or taste. Still, others argue that the environmental benefits of organic food make it worth the price.

A．Have you ever wondered what that means?

B．The cost of production is also usually higher.

C．For most of history, almost all food was organic.

D．Many people are willing to pay more for organic food.

E．Some also think organic foods are naturally more nutritious.

F．Are you wondering if organic food is right for you?

G．Scientists have studied organic and non-organic foods for many years now.

4 . Parents annoyed by their little ones’ picky food choices often sigh in anger, thinking, “They’ll grow out of it by college.” Maybe not, suggests a new study from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Some young people continue their picky eating into early adulthood, often restricting their diets to 10 foods or even fewer. Such a deficient diet can mean they’re not getting the fibre and vegetables they need, which could be a health problem. They study also suggests picky eaters may also be experiencing other challenges such as social phobias (恐惧症), including around eating. The social phobia is the fear of being judged by others during everyday activities, often resulting in fear or embarrassment.

For the study, researchers surveyed 488 Midwestern college students. About 40% of the students were identified as picky eaters. And about 65% of those respondents said they ate fewer than 10 foods. “We asked participants to just tell us what challenges around picky eating might have had or any benefits they might see, and people answered differently in terms of what has an effect on them,” said co-author Lauren Dial, a doctoral student at Bowling Green State at the time of the study.

Many indicated they’d eat less or not at all outside the home. One 19-year-old man said he’d drink water half the time “due to my picky eating”, according to the study. Another 18-year-old said, “Sometimes there are some awkward comments when I am eating with my girlfriend and her family.” A 23-year-old woman said her parents would get frustrated at her refusal to try the foods she was served.

“Picky eating does have a lot to do with the presentation of foods (how they’re presented on a plate), and the texture (口感) of foods (is it a consistent texture),” Dial Said, “but there’s also fear of trying new foods and that might play into picky eating.” By learning more about picky eating in adults, the researchers said they may be able to determine how best to intervene (干预) before the problem becomes more severe for some people.

1. What can best replace the underlined word “deficient” in paragraph 1?

A．Limited.

B．Low-fat.

C．Balanced.

D．High-fibre.

2. What were the participants asked to do during the research?

A．Record how often they eat out.	B．Ignore what influences their eating.
C．Express how picky eating affects them.	D．Count how many kinds of foods they prefer.

3. How does the author mainly develop paragraph 3?

A．By presenting data.	B．By providing examples.
C．By following time order.	D．By making comparisons.

4. What can be inferred about picky eating the last paragraph?

A．It has something to do with family traditions.

B．It can be easily cured by researchers.

C．It often comes along with serious mental illnesses.

D．It can have both physical and mental reasons.

5 . Plant-based foods are good sources of healthy nutrients. These include different types of dietary fibre, vitamins, minerals, and a range of “phytonutrients”, which plants produce to help them grow or protect them from diseases and pests.

A review of research published in May 2021 found those who ate the most plant foods were less likely to die from any cause over follow-up time periods that varied across the studies from 5 to 25 years, compared to those who ate the least.

Tomatoes are a fruit. They’re rich in vitamin C and “lycopene”, which is a carotenoid. Carotenoids are pigments produced by plants and give vegetables their bright colours.

A review of six trials asked people to consume tomato products equivalent to 1 — 1.5 large tomatoes or 1 —1.5 cups of tomato juice daily for about six weeks. The researchers found people who did this had reduced blood levels of triglycerides (a type of fat in your blood that increases heart disease risk), as well as lower total and “bad” cholesterol levels, compared to those who didn’t have any tomatoes.

Another review of 11 studies tested the effect of tomatoes and lycopene on blood pressure. Researchers found consuming any tomato products led to a large decrease in systolic blood pressure (the first number that measures the pressure at which the heart pumps blood). However, there was no effect on the diastolic pressure (the second number which is the pressure in the heart when it relaxes). In the group who had high blood pressure to begin with, both systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreased after eating tomato products compared to placebos.

A review of studies included a total of 260, 000 men and found those with the highest intakes of cooked tomatoes, tomato sauces and tomato-based foods had a 15 — 20% lower risk of developing cancer compared to those with the lowest tomato intakes. Keep in mind connection doesn’t necessarily mean cause and effect, though.

1. What does the first paragraph focus on?

A．Vitamins and minerals are healthy nutrients.	B．Phytonutrients prevent plants from diseases.
C．Plant-based foods contain healthy nutrients.	D．Phytonutrients help plants grow healthily.

2. Why do tomatoes look bright red?

A．Because of placebos.	B．Because of lycopene.
C．Because of triglycerides.	D．Because of phytonutrients.

3. How does the author support the theme of the text?

A．By analyzing causes.	B．By stating arguments.
C．By explaining statistical data.	D．By providing research results.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．A Beneficial Plant-based Food	B．A Source of Healthy Nutrients
C．Researches into Deadly Diseases	D．Connections between Food and Health

6 . Starting at university or college can be a big challenge, especially if you’re living away from home for the first time. You are faced with big questions such as, “Who’s going to do my washing?” “Who’s going to tidy my room?” And, most importantly, “How am I going to eat?” Yes, living on your own means cooking for yourself, and when you’re living a student lifestyle, this could be a recipe for disaster.

Students, in the UK at least, often rely on generally available food such as baked beans or cheese on toast. And for the more adventurous, there’s “spag bol” — spaghetti bolognaise(肉酱意粉), that is, cooked spaghetti served with a ground beef and tomato sauce — a budget-friendly solution. If you make a huge pan of it, it can probably last you a whole week! Other low-cost options include jar sauces and oven pizzas.

Recently, a British supermarket suggested that rose harissa paste, organic cider vinegar and Swiss bouillon powder were the important food materials needed for the “student cupboard”. But are these items considered essential and affordable for someone on a budget?

As a matter of fact, living on a budget is certainly one barrier to eating a well-balanced diet. What’s more, some young people don’t know much about cooking, and for many young students, there are more fun things to go and do than just stay inside and cook. That’s where takeaways and microwave meals come in.

What should a health-conscious student really have in his or her food cupboard? Jack Monroe, a food writer and campaigner, has words to say: baked beans, lemon juice, canned tomatoes and tomato ketchup, described as “salt, sugar, vinegar and tomato all in one handy squeezy bottle”. And should that not appeal, you can always wait till your next visit to your mum and dad for a square meal!

1. What does the author indicate by “this could be a recipe for disaster”?

A．Cooking is difficult for a student.	B．Students must cook if they live alone.
C．It is important to live independently.	D．Learning to cook will cause disasters.

2. What is the feature of “spag bol”?

A．It is delicious.

B．It is healthy.

C．It saves money.

D．It needs little skill.

3. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．How well-balanced diets can be realized.

B．How students can eat healthily with limited money.

C．Why living on a budget is common among students.

D．Why students choose takeaways and microwave meals.

4. Why does the author write the last paragraph?

A．To advocate visiting parents.	B．To offer some tips.
C．To promote health consciousness.	D．To introduce a writer.

7 . A teenager from the UK almost died because of an addiction to unhealthy exercise.

Lisa Fouweather, 19, was so addicted to working out that she ran half marathons before breakfast. She started to practice running, hoping to become excellent at her running club, but quickly became addicted.

She was hardly eating to keep in shape. The teen’s meals would only include a few pieces of food from her “safe foods” list which was mainly fruit and vegetables. She would avoid anything containing sugar or fat. “I would throw my orange juice and bread out of the window when my parents left the room,” she said. At one point, her weight dropped to just 75 pounds — around 34 kg.

This helped to improve her running in the short-term when, in fact, her whole life was falling apart. It affected her education as she would turn up late to school every day to finish her morning running. She said, “Six-mile runs became half marathons, all on an empty stomach before breakfast. Upon my return, I would eat only fruit.”

However, although warned by her parents, Lisa refused to admit she had a problem and wouldn’t give up her way of working out until one day she had a heart attack after her running and was rushed to hospital, where she was diagnosed with anorexic (厌食症) and banned from exercise. “I was told that I could have died because my heart was under great pressure.” She was given dieting advice by doctors to help treat her eating disorders. Thanks to hard work and professional help, she managed to put a stop to her extreme exercise and dieting and has been in recovery for nearly three years.

Lisa said, “I want people who are going through the same problem as I did to know that there is help and support out there, and don’t wait until you’re at breaking point to seek that help.”

1. Why did Lisa start practicing running at first?

A．To become great at the running club.

B．To keep in shape.

C．To help her with her diet.

D．To improve her education.

2. Which of the following is NOT the reason why Lisa ended up in hospital?

A．She ran half marathons on an empty stomach.

B．She had an unhealthy way of eating.

C．She didn’t get any warning from others.

D．She wouldn’t quit her wrong way of exercise at first.

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．There are many people going through the same problem as Lisa did.

B．Lisa can provide help and support to people with the same problem.

C．You can wait for help if you’re going through the same problem.

D．People with the same problem should ask for help in time.

4. Which section of a website might this passage probably be taken from?

A．Science.	B．Technology.
C．Health.	D．Nature.