Eating Habits in Spain and Superstitions
Eating Habits in Spain
My topic is eating habits, and I’d like to share my opinion about the eating habits of Spanish people. The first thing I’d like to say is that the eating habits of Spanish people have changed in the last few years. I personally think that there are two main reasons:
- Some people don’t have the workplace near their homes, so they don’t have enough time to go home for lunch. Therefore, they have to eat quickly in fast food restaurants such as Burger King and McDonald’s, which don’t provide as healthy food as they claim.
- Fast food is cheaper, and people prefer to eat it and save money due to the economic crisis.
Regarding the Mediterranean diet, most experts agree that it’s particularly beneficial, and I agree. It has some characteristics that are healthy. For example, with a Mediterranean diet, we can eat fresh vegetables, olive oil, and fruits like apples, bananas, peaches, and more. In my opinion, this diet has a lot of vitamins A, B, and C, and above all, vitamin E, which is considered a powerful antioxidant. Besides, we can get a lot of minerals from this diet.
Regarding the restaurants that offer “healthier” menus, I’d like to say that I’m not so sure about this. I personally think that most restaurants are more interested in offering a good price on their menus than controlling the quality of the food they provide. However, it’s certain that most restaurants offer salad in their menus, which is a healthy dish.
I agree that doctors are worried about what children and teenagers eat. We can hear from the news that there are a lot of children who have overweight problems. Doctors say that this is not good because they could develop a chronic illness related to the cardiovascular system or cholesterol. I personally think that some things could be done to change the situation. One of them is that the government should promote exercise or create campaigns to explain the risk of an unhealthy diet. Regarding the dining rooms in primary or even secondary schools, I think that the government should have more control over the food they provide.
In conclusion, I personally think that people should be more concerned about their eating habits because it can influence their quality of life. Here we have the Mediterranean diet, so let’s benefit from its advantages for our health!
Superstitions
Superstitions developed because of both good and bad things that have happened to people. Whether lucky or unlucky, people associate a number, an object, or an action with what happened and begin to think that was the cause. Pretty soon, other people start believing that, too. In the U.S., 7 is considered a lucky number, and 13 is considered unlucky. Tall buildings often don’t have a floor numbered 13. Some people won’t sit down for a meal with 12 others. Some actions people consider lucky include finding a four-leaf clover, carrying a rabbit’s foot, knocking on wood, and putting a horseshoe over the front door of your house. On the other hand, you’ll have bad luck if a black cat walks in front of you, if you break a mirror, if you open an umbrella in the house, or if you walk under a ladder. There’s a superstition for practically every occasion and every situation. Baseball players think it’s bad luck to put one bat across another. They believe that the bats will lose their strength that way. Actors don’t wish each other “good luck” before a performance; they say “break a leg” instead! Brides and grooms aren’t supposed to see each other before the ceremony on their wedding day. The bride is supposed to wear “something old, something new, something blue, and something borrowed” for good luck and a happy marriage.
Natural Disasters
A natural disaster is the effect of a natural hazard that leads to financial, environmental, or human losses. What is the worst natural disaster, in your opinion?
- Floods are opposed to Droughts. A drought occurs when it has not rained for a long time. The land is too dry, and it is impossible to grow any plants. A drought may lead to a famine, where there is not enough food for the people, and they begin to starve (die from not eating).
- A tornado (or whirlwind) is a very large column of wind that turns around quickly.
- A hurricane (Atlantic Ocean), typhoon (Pacific Ocean), or tropical storm (Indian Ocean) is an intense storm, which usually occurs in late summer. They are the result of strong winds and heavy rains.
- Volcanic eruptions send red-hot lava flowing. Lava is a type of liquid rock called magma.
- Earthquakes occur when pressure is released, which causes the ground to move and shake violently. If the ground shakes under the water, the shock wave hits the beaches and the mainland, causing huge waves that travel at high speed, called tsunamis.
- A mudslide occurs when rocks and earth are full of water and lots of rain slide down. This is different from an avalanche, which is the great movement of snow on a mountain. The snow becomes too loose and slides down, mixing with air and water.