You've never had a problem believing the statement, "you need a good breakfast to have a good day." Breakfast is something you always look forward to eating. Cereal, milk, juice, and toast let you go to school feeling satisfied.

Lunchtime gives you a chance to eat pizza - again. Pizza, fries, and a bottle of water will help you get through the rest of your classes that day.

You are hungry again when you arrive home after school. You are reminded to eat more fruits and vegetables. Celery sticks and an apple are a good start. You decide not to microwave some popcorn (even though popcorn is one of your favorite snacks). You finish your snack with a small bowl of ice cream. Now, you are ready for dinner later that day.

Let's find out if you could eat the same things on the International Space Station (ISS). After all, grocery stores aren't nearby in space. Neither are pizza delivery services.

Astronauts have usually never had any problems with having enough food in space. They even get to choose the foods they will take and eat in space. It surprises many people when they hear that astronauts on the ISS can eat many of the same foods they eat on Earth. They can even eat candy - just not very much. Food for space does have to be prepared and stored differently.

Astronauts can have plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables on the space shuttle. Your relatives would be very happy to hear this! These foods have to be eaten within a few days before they spoil. Refrigerators are not used on the space shuttle or ISS. Breads are also onboard because they don't need special storage. Flour tortillas are especially good to have in space because they don't crumble easily and hold food well.

Space food is placed within one of several categories according to how they are prepared on Earth. These groups include dried, frozen, heated, or natural. This is much better than how the food was prepared for our first astronauts. Food was originally put into metal tubes and squeezed out like toothpaste. Mmmm - tasty! Well, at least it was nutritious.

The dried group includes foods that are freeze-dried. Water in food adds weight to the shuttle when launched. Even one extra ounce of water in each food item can quickly add up. The average cost to launch one pound (16 ounces or .45 kilograms) into space is $10,000! Removing water on Earth and putting it back in before eating it in space saves weight - and money. This water is not necessarily carried into space. It is chemically created when fuel cells make energy.

Foods are never actually cooked in space. The space shuttle and ISS do not have ovens or microwaves. The food can be heated up to 180 degrees but that is not hot enough to actually cook food - it only warms food.

Astronauts have several choices for drinks in space. All drinks are stored as a powder and water is added. These drinks include coffee, tea, apple cider, lemonade, and orange juice. They have experimented with soft drinks in space but a problem occurred. Astronauts found that the gas needed to squirt the soft drink onto their mouth mixed with the liquid. The astronauts swallowed the gas, which caused them some discomfort and embarrassment later.

Astronauts need the same kinds of nutrients that everyone needs on Earth. The same goes for calories, vitamins, and minerals. Some exceptions are iron and Vitamin D. Medical tests with astronauts have discovered they produce fewer red blood cells while they are in space. Iron is needed for new blood cells to form. Other medical tests have shown astronauts lose bone material on long-duration space flights. Vitamin D is needed for bones to stay healthy. Vitamin D is produced when we are in sunlight. Therefore, astronauts on the ISS take Vitamin D supplements.

During the long trip through space on the way to a destination such as Mars, the astronauts will likely store and prepare their foods as they do now. But once on the surface, they may need to actually grow fresh food to add variety to their diet and to reduce the amount of stored food that they will need to bring with them. Astronauts may be able to use the soil on Mars to grow their crops or they may need to use a hydroponics plant growth system. Hydroponics systems are designed to grow plants in water - not soil. All the nutrients the plants need will be in the water. Special lighting gives the plants artificial sunlight. Growing crops also boosts morale of the crew by bringing part of the Earth with them as they journey so far away from home. We can be sure astronauts will miss certain foods from Earth on a mission to Mars. Are there any foods you would miss if you could not eat them for three years?