Students Host Annual Health and Nutrition Expo at Utah State

The Dietetics Program at Utah State will host its seventh annual Health and Nutrition Expo Friday, Feb. 29, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., in the Taggart Student Center Sunburst Lounge.

Senior and junior dietetics students, along with health professionals, will present interactive booths with demonstrations and samples to promote healthy living. Everyone is invited and the event is free.

 

The dietetics students said the expo will concentrate on simple things USU students and employees can do to improve their health.

 

Nine seniors in the Dietetics Program will present booths, while 24 juniors will present food demonstrations. Cassidy Allen, a senior in dietetics, will present a booth on volumetrics, a technique for feeling full on fewer calories.

 

The theme for this year’s expo is “What is the Magic Bullet?”

 

“In the media sometimes there are diets or pills that are touted to cure everything,” said Allen, one of the organizers of the event. “These supposedly cure cancer, heart disease and help you lose weight. People want a magic bullet; something they can take that will quickly cure everything, but there is no such thing as a magic bullet.”

 

Clubs and organizations from USU will also participate. Among those are the Dental Club, Outdoor Recreation Center, Student and Employee Wellness, as well as the Ag Science Department. Lee’s Marketplace, Great Harvest and Sun River Farms will all participate with booths and tasty samples, Allen said.

 

USU’s Student Health and Wellness Center is among the groups offering exhibits during the Nutrition Expo. In observance of National Eating Disorders Awareness week, the center is hosting the “Guilt Jeans Giveaway” at its exhibit during expo.

 

“Instead of feeling guilty about not fitting into your too-tight jeans, donate them to a great cause and enter a drawing for fantastic prizes,” said Brooke Parker, USU dietitian.

 

Donated jeans will go to Logan’s Community Abuse Prevention Services Agency to provide clothing for the agency’s shelter clients.

 

Parker also encourages Aggies to observe “Mirror-less Monday” Feb. 25 – that is, to avoid unnecessary self-scrutiny in mirrors – and “No-Weigh Wednesday” Feb. 27.

 

“For one day, don’t weigh yourself,” Parker said. “You’re worth so much more than a number on a scale.”

 

The expo will give USU employees the opportunity to participate in a health screening provided by the Logan Regional Hospital staff. The screening includes a cholesterol panel, diabetes screen, blood pressure and body fat analysis. Participants must pre-register by Feb. 22. For more information contact Sharon at (435) 797-1814.

 

For more information on the expo, contact the Nutrition and Food Sciences Department at (435) 797-2126 or visit the department Web site.

 

Contact: Nutrition and Food Sciences Department (435) 797-2126
Writer: Ben Hibshman, B.hibshman@aggiemail.usu.edu