All foods and drinks can fit into a healthy diet, but some are best eaten less often. This includes foods and drinks high in free sugars (calories), which contribute to tooth decay.
Eating a meal before drinking can help to slow the rate at which alcohol is absorbed. Choose a garbage plate, piled with fatty foods like cheeseburgers or red hots.
1. Water
Water is one of the most abundant and important compounds on Earth. It’s tasteless and odorless but can exist in solid (ice), liquid, or gaseous states.
Water and food pairing is a fun way to discover your preferences. Try hosting a blind tasting with your friends and family. We recommend choosing a mineral or spring water for the best taste. Then experiment with a variety of brands, including bottled water from Evian, Saratoga Springs, Smartwater, Voss, and more.
3. Tea
The tea plant, Camellia sinensis is cultivated around the world for its leaves which are steeped in hot water. It is one of the most popular drinks in the world and it was first described in English as a beverage in 1657; Samuel Pepys drank it in his diary a year later! Milk and sugar are common additions. Tea is more nutritious than vegetable and fruit juices which contain high levels of sugar.
4. Fruit
Fruits are the seed-bearing structures of flowering plants, and they promote animal dispersal in a mutually beneficial relationship. They are generally sweet and often eaten as desserts or added to savory dishes such as avocado on toast or blackberry crumble. Botanically, a fruit develops from the ovary or ovaries of a flower and can be categorized as simple, aggregate, or multiple. Learn more about these fruits in our classroom resources.
5. Meat
Meat is the flesh of animals, including cattle and other mammals. It is a rich source of protein and other nutrients, especially those necessary for human life. Also known as an aliment, food, provisions, fare, grub (slang), rations, sustenance, victuals, and tidbits.
Bobst Library allows food and drinks in designated areas to protect our collections, equipment, and furnishings and to foster an environment conducive to intellectual pursuit.
6. Fish
Fishes (plural: fish) are ectothermic chordates that live primarily in water. They have a cranium, gills that are useful throughout life and appendages in the form of fins. They inhabit a wide range of environments, from deep oceans to mountain pools. They are an important source of protein. They are classified in the superclass Osteichthyes.
They are an important part of the human diet and are eaten all over the world.
7. Bread
Bread is a type of food that is made from flour or meal, mixed with liquid ingredients such as milk or water, sometimes with yeast or another leavening agent, and baked. It is a major food worldwide and has become part of secular and religious rituals, and a feature of language and culture. It is also a staple for many animals.
See the countable and uncountable English food vocabulary word lists.
8. Pasta
From Sunday dinners with nonna to cheesy baked perfection at college, pasta is one of the most loved carbohydrates on earth. It’s a specific type of noodle made from an unleavened dough of flour mixed with water or eggs and then formed into strips, cords, or other shapes, cooked by boiling or baking. Learn more about the history of this beloved food at The History Kitchen.
9. Vegetables
Vegetables are mostly herbaceous plants whose edible portions are eaten cooked or raw as the principal part of a meal to complement starchy foods and other food items. The word is derived from the Latin vegetables and may refer to any plant parts: roots, stems, leaves, flowers, or fruits.
They are low in calories and provide important nutrients such as vitamins A, C, K, folate, potassium, and fiber. A diet high in vegetables is associated with a reduced risk of heart disease and cancer.
10. Nuts
Nuts are a common feature of vegetarian and Mediterranean diets. [2] Four prospective studies have reported that nut consumption is associated with a reduced risk of CHD [1,3,4,15].
Nuts are nutrient-dense foods rich in bioactive macronutrients. Roasting enhances antioxidant properties, improves lipid composition, and produces unique roasted flavors through the Maillard reaction. Nuts also contain L-arginine, an endogenous vasodilator. [16]
