NUTR 360 Disseminating Nutrition Information

Extension Nutrition Education is a program that offers free nutrition programs to people that qualify for public assistance. The goal of these types of programs is to increase the knowledge people have and to sharpen their skills about nutrition in order for them to learn how to eat healthy on a budget. These programs are divided by individuals or specific groups (like by age, culture, ability, etc.) in order to ensure those participating are receiving the appropriate education. These programs are extremely important and beneficial to many individuals experiencing financial strain but still need to learn the measures that need to be taken in order to fulfill a healthy lifestyle. Extension Nutrition Education programs play an important role in many states, including Pennsylvania. Specifically at Penn State, The College of Agricultural Sciences has an Extension Nutrition Education program. This specific program is focused on giving lessons, showing food demonstrations, giving out newsletters and handouts, and providing hands-on cooking lessons for individuals of various audiences. Some examples of these audiences include families with young kids, pregnant women, parenting teens, school-age youth, preschoolers and their parents, and adults and seniors. This program is very useful to these audiences because it focuses on the changes that need to be met in order to maintain good nutrition and health. These programs are not just limited to the central Pennsylvania area. In fact, these programs are all across the USA with the main goal of helping those stay healthy without having the luxury to spend tons of money at the grocery store every week.

One of the most well-known Extension Nutrition Education programs is called SNAP-ed. This federal program supports the SNAP program, which is designed to help those that are eligible make healthy food choices. SNAP-Ed supports the SNAP program by providing educational programs that will hopefully encourage people to make better food choices although they might be on a tight budget. Just like the Penn State program, SNAP-Ed programs are offered to individual and group settings. By making this program offered to tons of people across Pennsylvania and the rest of the United States, it really promotes healthy eating for all social classes. People should not have to sacrifice their health just because they have limited resources. SNAP-Ed aids in this because it teaches how people can stay healthy even if they cannot afford to buy expensive food.

Emily Marvin

Resources:

http://www.nifa.usda.gov/nea/food/fsne/about.html

http://extension.psu.edu/health/nutrition-links

http://extension.psu.edu/health/nutrition-links/about

Throughout the nation, there seems to be a lack of nutritional knowledge, with rates of obesity, type II diabetes, and heart disease rising consistently. Occasionally, this is due to the circulation of false information from the media. However, sometimes, poor decision-making comes from inadequate resources, especially in low-income populations. When people aren’t given the proper tools to be able to afford a healthy lifestyle, basic nutritional education may not be sufficient. This is why we have programs, such as extension and SNAP-Ed.

The extension nutrition programs aims to offer a variety of nutritional services to people of low-income backgrounds. It offers basic nutrition education, along with tips on how to shop within a budget, how to prepare healthy meals, and how to ensure that food safety practices are being met. These programs are free to the public, and they are offered in every county in Pennsylvania.

In addition to the extension program, there is also an education program associated with SNAP, the largest federally funded program to low-income families in the nation. SNAP provides people with inadequate resources with food from grocery stores. However, many of these food options are unregulated, so the recipients of this program have the freedom to choose whatever foods they desire. Therefore, the SNAP-Ed program exists to educate the participants of SNAP on how to stretch their stipends to accommodate a healthy lifestyle. This program extends nationwide and provides quality education to SNAP participants around the world. It focuses on the dietary guidelines for Americans, encouraging the consumption of whole grains, vegetables, and dairy, along with physical activity.

These two programs are extremely beneficial to people that can benefit largely from nutrition education. With SNAP-Ed and extension programs, the quality of nutrition education in the state of Pennsylvania, in addition to the nation as a whole, will improve substantially.

http://extension.psu.edu/health/nutrition-links/about

http://www.fns.usda.gov/core-nutrition/core-nutrition-messages

According to Isobel Contento’s book, Nutrition Education: Linking Research, Theory, and Practice, Nutrition Education is any combination of education strategies, accompanied by environmental supports, designed to facilitate the adoption of food and nutrition related behaviors conducive to health and well-being. If nutrition education is extended across a vast area to a large number of people, then it is simply stated, an expanded (extension) food and nutrition education program (EFNEP). This is a program designed to assist limited resource audiences in acquiring knowledge, skills, attitudes and changed behavior necessary for nutritionally sound diets, and contribute to their personal development and the improvement of the total family diet and well being. EFNEP is operated in over 50 states including American Samoa, Guam, Micronesia, Northern Marianas, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

In Pennsylvania, extension nutrition education is run by Nutrition Links which provides thousand of Pennsylvania’s limited resource citizens with education on topics such as food and nutrition safety, food preparation, and food budgeting. Nutrition Links oversees the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) and Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Tracks (TRACKS) for Penn State Cooperative Extension.  With the combination of these two federal programs Nutrition Links is able to provide nutrition education across the lifespan to low-income audiences.

One extension nutrition education program that may be familiar to you is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-ed). It is the nutrition education component of the USDA’s SNAP program. It is a federal/state partnership that supports nutrition education to those eligible for the program (low-income). The goal is to improve the likelihood that persons eligible for SNAP will make healthy choices within a limited budget and choose active lifestyles consisted with current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and MyPlate. In Pennsylvania, the program is called Pennsylvania Nutrition education Tracks. As you can see there is at least one program per country.

All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands provide nutrition Education for SNAP and eligible low-income individuals.  Nutrition Education ranks high on the public agenda and interest is widespread.  Extension Nutrition Education programs have increased awareness of nutrition education in schools, worksites, and communities.
<http://www.panutritiontracks.org/public/partners_psnl.asp>

<http://www.nifa.usda.gov/nea/food/efnep/about.html>

<http://extension.psu.edu/health/nutrition-links/about>