Over years with technology and changes in lifestyle, the consumption of processed food has become very popular. To make cooking effortless, quick and delicious, processed food turns out to be an enormous business today. 【小题1】

Since early ages, people have been preserving food with varied techniques such as salt preservation, fermentation (发酵), drying, and so on. Food is either mechanically (机械地) or chemically processed to increase shelf life and ensure it is free from harmful micro creatures. 【小题2】 What's more, processed food is very popular nowadays because of the taste and flavors it offers to its consumers.

Processed food uses artificial flavors, preservatives, added colors, and many chemicals. It offers a heavy calorie dose and less nutrition, making it an unhealthy option. Besides, some processed food contains too much sugar, salt, and fats, which are extremely harmful to health. 【小题3】

You need to be aware of what you are eating. The way it impacts your health is essential to a healthy well-being. Some lifestyle changes can help to get away from health risks and ensure a healthier lifestyle. Replacing highly processed food with more organic and natural food options is important. 【小题4】

【小题5】 More studies can help in bringing up awareness among people about its harm. Limiting the intake of processed food and replacing it with healthier options can help overcome health risks associated with it.

A new recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics (儿科) says doctors should treat childhood obesity actively.

The problem of being overweight affects over 14 million American children. Doctors say carrying extra weight often results in lifelong health problems. Children can develop high blood pressure, diabetes and depression.

In the past, many doctors thought children would grow out of bad eating habits. They used the method of “wait and see” to decide what to do. But the new guidelines say overweight children should receive operations or take medicine to reduce their weight. The new guidelines recommend weight loss drugs for children as young as 12 and operations starting at 13.

Semaglutide is the drug described in the report. It has recently received approval as an obesity treatment for children 12 and older. It is reported that teenagers have used the drug and reduced their BMI by about 16%.

Ihuoma Eneli, one of the writers of the new guidelines, disagrees with the old guidelines. She said, “Waiting doesn’t work.” She said doctors usually see “a continuation of weight gain and the possibility that children will have obesity in adulthood.” Eneli said the drugs or operations should go along with life changes, which means children need help choosing better foods and finding ways to exercise more.

Dr. Claudia Fox, a weight management doctor at the University of Minnesota, said semaglutide helps her patients have a “possibility of even having an almost normal BMI.” Justin Ryder, a Chicago doctor, said the drug helps patients feel more full than they would be without it. “In addition,” he said, “working out is necessary.”

Dr. Stephanie Byrne, a doctor in Los Angeles, said she still wants to see more research on how semaglutide affects many different children. However, she said, she is glad pediatricians are starting to think differently about obesity. “I definitely think that diet and exercise won’t do it for a number of teens who are struggling with this,” she said.

When plates are set on the table, phones, rather than forks, are at the ready. At this point in our social media entanglement (纠缠)，the fact that the camera eats first is pretty much a given. Sure, some chefs, including Michelin rated star chefs, express their displeasure at this, but efforts to make the table a screen-free domain have mostly fallen flat.

New research from Aston University has found that people are indeed influenced by the food photos that their friends post on social media. For example, for every serving of fruits and vegetables that a person thinks their friends are eating, they’ll eat one-fifth of a serving more. This number makes more sense within the context of the recommended “five a day”, meaning someone who’s being influenced would make a point of eating six portions of fruits or vegetables. Similarly, for every three portions of junk food that a person sees friends consuming on social media, they’ll eat an extra one.

The researchers have suggested that social media can be very beneficial when it comes to people’s choices of food and their diets. Study supervisors Dr. Jason Thomas said, “The implication is that we can use social media as a tool to encourage each other’s eating choice within friendship groups, and use this knowledge as a tool for public health interventions.”

Actually, the daily food situation is somewhat different from everything else posted on social media. People also desire to copy what they see but they need good social media literacy skills in order to grasp what’s realistic and what’s absurd. It is necessary to avoid the fake perfection of social media.

It gets boring trying to figure out what to eat three times a day, week after week, so no wonder people want to take the path of least resistance and eat what their friends are eating. Unfortunately, most of what gets posted is the more time-consuming recipes or the attractively styled restaurant meals. By all means, keep your antennae (触角) out for new ideas, but gather them from food magazines, cookbooks, store flyers, reliable cooking websites, and recommended recipes from friends and family.