A journal article written by Quick, et al. is the published results of a survey conducted on and around the campus of Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey. The surveyors looked at four dining halls, four fast-casual restaurants, eleven fast food restaurants, and seventeen sit-down restaurants. They used the Nutrition Environment Measures Survey - Restaurants (NEMS-R) for the 32 off-campus restaurants. The NEMS-R was also adapted to accommodate the four on-campus dining halls. According to their observations, "barriers to healthy eating (i.e.,menu notations discouraging special requests, encouraging larger/unlimited servings) were noted only in sit-down and fast-food restaurants and dining halls" (Quick, et. al. A69). What's so interesting about that observation is that the dining halls on-campus, which are supposed to promote healthy eating, actually weren't. Overall, the dining halls did a better job of promoting healthy eating, but "the overall food environment needs considerable improvement" (Quick, et. al. A69). The article did not list any possible improvements for the food environment; it listed mainly statistics and collected data.
This particular survey provides information towards answering the questions of: "how does the college experience affect dietary intake?" and "is it [the college experience] enhancing or diminishing [with regards to dietary intake]?" Just from my own experience, there are fast food and pizza restaurants all along South College Road: Little Caesar's, Domino's, Hardee's, Bojangle's, Wendy's, Cookout, etc. Other than the Japanese Steakhouse and McAllister's across from campus, the majority of food within the immediate vicinity of campus is mainly fast food.
I believe the survey results reinforce our argument, for the most part, that food on-campus needs to be improved; in comparison to the dining halls of Rutgers University promoting "barriers to healthy eating," Wagoner Dining Hall has done something similar in the past; one night, they were promoting a pizza buffet. Pizza obviously isn't the healthiest thing in the world.
I also believe that, in a way, that particular article detracts from our argument. Wagoner Dining Hall has posted labels with information regarding calories, allergen warnings, etc. above different food items; however, these labels don't get changed sometimes, and they should be with every meal rotation. In Dub's Cafe, The Landing, and Hawk's Nest, these labels do not exist at all.
Also, in another article written by Abbott, et. al., a food safety media campaign was created for five different universities across the United States: one Northeastern, one mid-Atlantic, one Northwestern, and two mid-Western. In the article, a survey with regards to food safety was conducted; 59% of the respondents were first- and second-year students. Of that 59%, .82% had never taken a nutrition, food science, or microbiology course, 65% never worked as a waiter/waitress, 83% never worked as a cook/chef/etc., and 92% didn't have any food safety certifications (Abbott, et. al. 1121). Given that information, it would be interesting to see how UNCW ranked by itself in comparison to the five universities in the article.
Conclusion
The information found in the two articles and from my personal experience could provide my group with more questions in need of answers or answer questions already raised. Either way, the information collected here will aid in the completion of our final report.
References:
Abbott, J.M., Policastro, P., Bruhn, C., Schaffner, D.W., Byrd, Bredbenner, C. (2012). Development and evaluation of a university campus-based food safety media campaign for young adults. Journal of Food Protection, 75(6). 1117-1124.
Quick, V., Weiner, A., Shu, E., Kosz, M., Byrd-Bredbenner, C. (2011). Healthfulness of the food environment on/near a university campus. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 111(9), A69.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
tringulationblog
The challenge of healthy eating on campus.
A recent study published by the journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior shows that the average college student is failing to even eat one serving of fruits/vegetables a day (Massa, 2013). With the recommended serving of fruit/vegetables being at 4 to 5 servings a day, this shows the average college student is living a very unhealthy lifestyle. In addition campus's can partly be held to blame for this unhealthy behavior. Right now most colleges view meal services as a source of revenue more than a way to have keep students healthy (Massa, 2013). Processed food is much cheaper than fruits/vegetables for campuses to provide so ultimately you see less variety in fruits/vegetables on a campus and more unhealthy snack foods. Although it has been a little more expensive, The City University of New York has proven it possible to run a healthy meal plan. By taking many surveys CUNY has been able to find out what healthy foods students and faculty like and been able to create enough demand to still make a profit. CUNY has already taken the first step and as the demand for healthier campuses grows, Other colleges now have a blueprint of how to successfully change their campus eating.
Information from this article can be very helpful in proving our point that UNCW needs to change to a healthier service. It shows how unhealthy students are living and emphasizes that the only reason colleges have meal services is to make a profit. In addition it shows that colleges can achieve the best of both worlds by providing students with healthier eating options and still turn a profit.
Healthfulness of the Food Environment on/near a University Campus
This article helps include into support our research in general just because it shows that the system as a whole around campus's is to just serve students whatever they can make the most profit on no matter how it affects of the students eating it. The article does state that on campus meals provide healthier food choices in some areas comparatively but this is still minimal and needs much improvement.
Development and evaluation of a university campus-based food safety media campaign for young adults.In this article the authors addresses the need for a more effective movement towards educating our youth on making better health decisions. They go on to explain that for a healthier food campaign to truly become more successful we need to do a better a job of tailoring the message to our specific target audience. "Designing effective campaigns involves careful study of the target population and working with them using a community-based participatory research model" (abbot et al., 2012). Through their research they were able to find that food education information resonated much more effectively when it was uniquely tailored to specific cultures in different colleges.
This article is great to support our overall research for many reasons. First it gives it gives proof that through providing information to students you can help them change their dietary habits. In addition it makes a very valid point that in order to make a change that is receptive to students, administrators must know their student body and figure out way to educate them about health in a way that resonates through the student body. With this knowledge it helps prove that it is a possible feat for college campus's to make their campus's healthier.
References
Abbot, J. M., Policastro, P., Bruhn, C., Schaffner, D. W., & Byrd-Bredbenner, C. (January 01, 2012). Development and evaluation of a university campus-based food safety media campaign for young adults. Journal of Food Protection, 75, 6, 1117-24.
Massa, A. (2012, July 13). Food for thought: The challenge of healthy eating on campus. Retrieved February 23, 2015, from http://college.usatoday.com/2012/07/13/food-for-thought-the-challenge-of-healthy-eating-on-campus
V. Quick, A. Weiner, E. Shu, M. Kosz, C. Byrd-Bredbenner, Healthfulness of the Food Environment on/near a University Campus, Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Volume 111, Issue 9, Supplement, September 2011, Page A69, ISSN 0002-8223, http://0-dx.doi.org.libcat.uncw.edu/10.1016/j.jada.2011.06.256. (http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.libcat.uncw.edu/science/article/pii/S0002822311009667)
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Collaboration in Groups
This is for our ENG-204-003 class.
2/4/2015
Collaboration in groups is very important. It requires equal effort and delegation from all parties, as well as equal understanding of purpose, goals, and the intended audience.
As for our group, good communication is also a must; without it, everything else will fall apart. To create quality work, we must create a professional environment in which to collaborate. We must also favor the ideas of the collective whole over the individual. Everyone will be held accountable for their fair share of work, as well as meeting deadlines on or before time.
2/6/2015
We completed a team analysis: Jacob had driver (17%), Daniel had innovator (23%), and Brandi had both innovator and driver (17%).
In order to complete this project, we have decided to give roles to each other.
We have compiled a list of essential questions:
2/4/2015
Collaboration in groups is very important. It requires equal effort and delegation from all parties, as well as equal understanding of purpose, goals, and the intended audience.
As for our group, good communication is also a must; without it, everything else will fall apart. To create quality work, we must create a professional environment in which to collaborate. We must also favor the ideas of the collective whole over the individual. Everyone will be held accountable for their fair share of work, as well as meeting deadlines on or before time.
2/6/2015
We completed a team analysis: Jacob had driver (17%), Daniel had innovator (23%), and Brandi had both innovator and driver (17%).
In order to complete this project, we have decided to give roles to each other.
- Brandi
- writing
- editing
- research
- Daniel
- formatting
- research
- Jacob
- research
- analyze
- writing
We have compiled a list of essential questions:
- What are the benefits of nutritional food?
- How does the college experience affect dietary intake? Is it enhancing or diminishing?
- How does this affect classroom performance, if at all?
- What is the general consensus of UNCW students in regards to food on-campus? If meal plans were not a concern, where would students most likely eat? What does this say about the quality of food on campus? (survey)
- In comparison to other institutions, where does UNCW's quality of food rank?
- Is the quality of food on campus worth the amount that students pay for meal plans?
- What is UNCW doing or not doing in order to deliver quality foods to the students and faculty of the university?
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