CA S E 1

Help, Im Not Getting Any Younger!

Profile of a university professor:

14. 45-year-old formerly athletic male
15. 215 pounds
16. 71 inches tall
17. Exercises no more than once a week. Walks 0.5 miles daily to and from the car while carrying a 10-pound briefcase.
18. Family history of adult diabetes.

I need help! My diet is terrible, and I have been gaining weight and feeling more tired.

I heard that Professor George Dantzig of Stanford once used linear programming to construct a diet. It would be great if you could tell me what to eat dur- ing each day. So, because Im a firm believer in math- ematical models, I want you to use linear program- ming to determine a reasonable diet for me to eat during a week. It is your job to collect data for use in the model.

I have the following requirements for the diet:

14. I like variety. You cannot prescribe a diet in which I eat just one food during the entire week (like 10 boxes of Total cereal). I would like to eat at least 15 different foods during the week.
15. You have to give me something from each of the four basic food groups (dairy, fruit and vegetable, meat, and grains)not Mcfood, frozen food, pizza food, or food on a stick.
16. I like nutrition. You cannot prescribe a diet that does not meet minimum daily requirements for es- sential minerals and vitamins. You cannot prescribe a diet in which I gain a lot of weight. I could stand to lose a few pounds.
17. I hate Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, pears, and organ meats such as liver and kidney.
18. Forget about any canned fruits or vegetables. Yuck.
19. I do not eat any pork or pork products.
20. I am not a big fan of frozen dinners, no matter how nutritious or convenient they are.
21. I dont drink milk with any meal except breakfast.
22. I work for the university, so I have a limited bud- get for food. Try to keep costs less than $100 per week (the lower the better).

Key Questions

14. What should I eat at each meal?
15. If I allowed less variety, would your recommenda- tion change?
16. If I allowed more than $100 per week, would your recommendation change? How?
17. What key minerals and vitamins constrain the solution?