Xinhua News Agency, Nanchang - Report by Feng Yun: The team members from Jiangxi Province in China's 28th Antarctic expedition team will soon depart from Nanchang at the end of this month. On November 3, the entire team will set sail for Antarctica aboard the "Snow Dragon" polar scientific research vessel.
It is well known that Antarctica is the coldest, windiest, and driest place on Earth. A question of interest to many people is: What do the Antarctic expedition team members eat in Antarctica? Yu Wanshan, a researcher in preventive medicine at Nanchang University who has personally participated in an Antarctic expedition and served as the head of the compilation team for the "Chinese Polar Expedition Team Nutrition Reference Standards," was recently invited by our reporter to reveal the diet of the Antarctic expedition team members.
The vegetable options are limited in the Antarctic menu due to the unique climate of the continent, which prevents local food production. All food for the expedition team is transported from their home country. Due to the long distance and the fact that the coast of Antarctica is frozen for much of the year, supply ships can only arrive once annually. Therefore, the biggest challenge for Antarctic expedition team members is the lack of fresh produce. Although it is possible to grow vegetables using nutrient solutions, the Antarctic Treaty strictly prohibits the introduction of non-native species to protect the pristine environment of Antarctica. This means vegetable seeds cannot be brought to Antarctica.
So, what is the alternative to vegetables? We learned that a typical daily menu in Antarctica might include: Breakfast - congee, powdered milk, steamed bun, egg, meat-filled bun, milk, fried pancake, marinated beef, sausage, peanuts, pickled mustard greens. Lunch - rice, steamed bun, braised pork, spare rib fungus soup, braised fish, onion scrambled eggs, dehydrated vegetables, raw Chinese cabbage (eaten with sauce). Beverages - beer, wine, fruit juice, cola. Dinner - rice, noodles, braised pig trotters, boiled mutton, stewed fish, marinated beef, tomato egg soup, dehydrated vegetables, cold mixed black fungus.
Meat consumption must be significantly increased to adapt to life in Antarctica. As the saying goes, breakfast should be eaten well, and Antarctic breakfasts best reflect this scientific principle. There are many varieties of breakfast foods, good flavors, and rich nutrition. The energy produced by these nutritious breakfasts far exceeds that consumed domestically, allowing expedition team members to work energetically throughout the morning.
From the menu, we noticed that there is a lot of meat. Would this increase the risk of cardiovascular disease? According to analysis and calculations, the meat consumption of Antarctic expedition team members is three times higher than the Chinese nutritional standard. Even those who dislike eating meat domestically find themselves unconsciously enjoying it in Antarctica. However, blood tests have not shown elevated levels of blood lipids or cholesterol. The extremely cold climate and strong winds in Antarctica require greater caloric intake. Indigenous people in the Arctic consume 500-800 grams of meat daily and rarely suffer from cardiovascular diseases. It seems that humans need to significantly increase their meat consumption to adapt to life in the polar regions.
Expedition team members often drink white liquor during fieldwork to keep warm. Vegetable consumption in Antarctic stations is restricted because vegetables lose much of their volume when cooked. To satisfy their cravings, chefs have invented ways to eat vegetables raw, such as dipping raw Chinese cabbage leaves in sauce instead of cooking them. Antarctic team members usually adapt quickly to this method and find raw vegetables more flavorful. This is because the gastrointestinal tract craves raw vegetables when the diet lacks sufficient vegetables. Eating raw vegetables provides richer nutrients by preserving various vitamins in their natural state. Thus, consuming raw vegetables is a healthy practice for Antarctic expedition team members. Of course, if they go too long without fresh vegetables, the main concern is vitamin C deficiency, which can be supplemented by drinking some juice with each meal.
There is an ample supply of high-quality white liquor available free of charge at the Chinese Antarctic station. Even team members who don't typically drink alcohol may consume a little or bring some with them during field expeditions, primarily because white liquor helps against the cold. However, health care doctors advise team members not to drink large amounts of beer in the cold Antarctic environment because heat resistance requires high-calorie intake. While beer is sometimes called "liquid bread," it lacks protein and fat. Consuming too much beer could affect the absorption of proteins and fats, reducing one's ability to withstand the cold. Additionally, drinking too much beer leads to frequent urination, which is inconvenient when wearing full-body suits during field expeditions and increases the risk of catching a chill.