00:05Noodles once were my daily crave, until they led me into a health cave.
00:13Now I strive for meals that give.
00:20Noodles, the aroma, the flavor, I just feel like, oh my god, these noodles are good.
00:28But then, if you are a show biz, you can't be a ball, you have to be an eight soon.
00:48Junk food is ultra-processed food that has low nutritional value.
00:52It is often high in salt, fat and sugar in very unhealthy quantities.
01:01My name is Nakia and I'm 30 years old.
01:05I love noodles.
01:08Ultra-processed foods are heavily engineered products, designed with improved shelf life,
01:13texture, flavor and appearance in mind.
01:16This makes them super tasty, so they're able to trigger strong cravings.
01:23When I started poetry when I was two and a half, when my school needed a toddler to say
01:29their anniversary poem, I proceeded from there to winning talented kids in 2019.
01:35I was actually the first sport to reach the grand finale.
01:42There was this organization called the CVF, Climate Vulnerable Forum.
01:47I became their thematic youth ambassador.
01:52There are some times where I feel tired, bored and then I like spicy food.
01:58That's where noodles come in.
02:05Ultra-processed foods are designed to hit what's been called the bliss point.
02:09They combine fat, carbs and salt in ways that stimulate the brain powerfully.
02:15This encourages overeating.
02:17Well, I'm not a fan of sweets, but then if I get to the point where I have to eat
02:24it,
02:24I eat it non-stop.
02:26But I like the drinks.
02:28I like Sprite, malt.
02:32Unlike whole grains, vegetables and fruit,
02:35ultra-processed foods don't have enough fiber or nutrients to fill you up.
02:39They're digested quickly, which makes you feel hungry again faster.
02:45When I turned eight, my weight started increasing.
02:50I started growing big arms.
02:52I started growing stretch marks on my hands, on my waist, on my ties.
02:59People criticised me.
03:02People are mean, you know.
03:04The world can love you, but there's just one person who just won't let you sleep.
03:11The act of eating can also be a coping mechanism.
03:15Emotional eating occurs when you mainly eat to suppress or soothe negative emotions like stress,
03:20anger, fear, boredom, sadness or loneliness,
03:25instead of simply eating when you are hungry.
03:31I started getting infections here and there.
03:34I had some issues with my breast, so I visited the hospital.
03:38It was hurting on the inside.
03:40As soon as we got to the hospital, the nurses would say,
03:44Oh, this is Nakiyat.
03:45This is Nakiyat.
03:47This is Nakiyat.
03:47This is Nakiyat.
03:48You know, she's a child star in Ghana.
03:50But some of them were complaining,
03:52You are growing big.
03:54You are growing big.
03:56I was thinking breast cancer.
03:58And so then I was worried.
04:00It was a scare.
04:02A very huge and great scare.
04:04So the doctor advised us and told us the food that she's eating is developing a whole lot of fats
04:10around the body parts.
04:12The doctor was advising he has to curtail eating processed food and noodles and those things.
04:18I just needed vegetables to be put on the table and me being forced to eat it.
04:29Hi.
04:30Walking to any supermarket, all you see are processed foods.
04:33You look into a typical primary or high schoolers bag.
04:37Hardly do you come across fruits, nuts.
04:41It's just all junk food.
04:43Because the flavor has been enhanced.
04:44So it gives you this taste or this feeling to the brain that you will not normally have with your
04:50naturally made meals that we cook at home.
04:53You need to have a good relationship with food.
04:56No.
04:56I don't want you to see food as punishment.
04:59So you see, the food can actually be healthy this way.
05:02This was homemade and it's still very nice.
05:06My health is everything because I want to achieve a lot of things.
05:10For now, I'm doing so well.
05:12I think I'm the best human being on the free program right now.
05:17Yes.
05:17All the cheers for me.
05:19Thank you very much.
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