As a student, how often do you exercise, play basketball, watch TV…? We did a survey in No. 39 Middle School. The following form shows the results (结果).

Salted fish is a common food that is popular in the south of China. It is chewy (有嚼劲的) and adds a salty flavor (滋味) to other dished. But eating too much salted fish can give you cancer (癌症), according to a list of cancer-causing foods that was published by the China Food and Drug Administration.

Salted fish is produced with a large amount of salt, which later turns into nitrites (亚硝酸盐). When nitrites reach our stomach, they turn into another kind of chemical that can cause cancer, Huang Yufang from the Cancer of Guangzhou Medical University told Xinhua News Agency.

So does this mean we can’t eat salted fish anymore?

“People don’t need to worry too much. It has to do with how often you eat certain foods and how much of them you eat,” Huang said. If you really like eating salted fish, you can eat a small amount once or twice a month. You should also eat more fruit and vegetables that are rich in vitamin C, as this can help to prevent the formation (形成) of nitrites.

In fact, there are many foods we often eat that are thought to cause cancer, such as pickles (咸菜), certain fried foods and even red meat, such as pork, lamb and beef. Although these foods may cause cancer, it doesn’t mean a person will get cancer just from eating them, according to the World Health Organization. Cancer is caused by many different factors, such as one’s genes (基因), environment, lifestyle and eating habits. As long as one has a balanced diet, one doesn’t need to avoid cancer- causing foods completely, Fang Yu, a doctor from the Beijing Cancer Hospital, told People’s Daily.

What is the secret to a healthy diet? Whether you’re already slim or trying to lose weight, one of the best things you can do is reduce the size of your bowls and plates. A study has found that changing from a twelve-inch to a ten-inch plate leads people to eat 22 percent fewer calories. In this way, you’d be reducing more than 5,000 calories a month from your diet. 【小题1】

By devoting a few minutes to planning for healthy meals, you can improve your own health and that of your family. Studies from UCLA suggest that a home-cooked dinner takes only about ten minutes longer to prepare, on average, than serving processed or ready-made food. 【小题2】 And don’t forget: Obesity, diabetes (糖尿病), and heart disease all lead to doctor and hospital visits, which take a lot of time.

Slow the pace of your meals. Pay attention to what you’re eating. 【小题3】 After a pause (中止), you’ll likely find that “almost full” is full enough. Studies show that simply by eating at a leisurely pace, you could drop up to 20 pounds a year.

【小题4】 All your family members should treat the dinner hour as special. Kids who eat with their parents are less likely to eat junk food, less likely to overeat, and less likely to be overweight. 【小题5】 And families who eat together are far less likely to be troubled by eating disorders, and smoking, according to several studies.