Young Naturalist

What's on your plate?

People are just like any other animals...we've gotta eat! Of course, the way we chow down compared to other animals is very different. We have a lot more choices about what to eat and how to serve it up. Plus, most of us don't have to chase down our dinners!
Do people fit into any of the groups shown in Special Feature? Yes! In general, humans are omnivores: we eat a mixture of meat and plant foods. Sure, you might pay your little brother to eat anything off your plate that might be a fruit or vegetable; but your body is still built to use these plant foods for energy.
Sometimes, it's hard to tell what goes into making the foods we eat. Think about chocolate cake and cheese curls, for example! These foods have been processed (PRAH sest). During food processing, raw foods, such as fruits, vegetables, grains, meat and fish, are changed. They are cooked, frozen, mixed with other ingredients and packaged to sell.
Although raw foods may not be your favorite snacks, they are the healthiest foods to eat. They're also what the rest of the animal world is eating. Think about the foods you eat. Can you name the raw foods that go into them? Here's a picture to get you thinking. Did you already know which raw foods these tasty treats are made from?

Visit your own kitchen for a food scavenger hunt! Check off these things if you can find them on the shelves or in the fridge:

2 raw foods
processed food made from vegetables
processed food made from fruit
meat product
bread product
locally made food
freeze-dried food
canned food

SUGAR CANE
Your favorite soda pop is basically a mixture of sugar, water, gas, flavoring and sometimes coloring. Most sugar is made from either sugar cane or sugar beets.
Juices squeezed from these plants are boiled and turned into sugar crystals.

POTATOES
These potato chips are made from sliced, fried potatoes. In the United States, the average person eats more than 30 pounds of potato chips, french fries and other processed potatoes every year!

COW MEAT
Hamburgers are made from cow meat, called beef. Beef is ground into small pieces and formed into patties to make hamburgers. When a cow is killed for its meat, it weighs a little over 1,000 pounds. Not all of this meat is made into hamburgers. It's also cut into larger pieces such as steaks or chops, or mixed with other meats to make products such as sausage and bologna.

MUSTARD
Ever wonder how mustard got its name? It comes from the plant that's used to make it. Whole mustard seeds are ground into powder. These seeds are sharp in flavor. The powder is mixed with salt, spices, lemon juice and vinegar to make the yellow stuff you squirt on your hamburgers and hot dogs.

WHEAT
This hamburger bun is a kind of bread. Most bread is made from a kind of grass called wheat. Wheat seeds, called grains, are turned into a powdery flour. The flour is mixed with other things like milk, eggs, and sugar to make a dough. The dough is baked to make bread.

grocery bob.GIF How did North Americans eat
before modern times, Dr. Bob?

Today, most of us get our food from the grocery store. It comes in neat little packages and cans like the ones I'm holding. People's eating habits were a lot different not even 200 years ago. Mealtimes involved fewer foods and more work. Take pioneers living in the mid-1800's for example. They had to grow and harvest their own fruits and vegetables. They raised or hunted animals for meat, and cut them up for the table, too! If they wanted cheese and butter, they had to make it. Cooking involved chopping wood for the fire. Storing involved salting foods and keeping them in cellars. Or, pioneers created "freezers" by cutting blocks of ice during winter, packing them in sawdust and keeping them in caves. The pioneers' Native American neighbors worked hard for food, too. The Great Plains Indians' life centered on hunting buffalo. They depended on it for food and for many other uses, too. Buffalo skins were used for teepees, clothing, shoes, ropes, bags, battle shields and drums. Bones were used for digging tools and jewelry. Horns were used for drinking cups and spoons. When it came to feeding their families, pioneers and Native Americans didn't want to waste anything after working so hard for it. Everyone helped with growing, collecting and preparing food. What do you know about the foods you eat? How much of your time is spent growing, collecting or preparing food?


	[herbivores] [carnivores] [omnivores]