Dining services adds nutrition facts to daily menu

Alyssa Morlacci
September 3, 2012

With nutrition facts now available for Dining Services’ daily menus — a health initiative that’s new this semester — it’s easier than ever for campus diners to choose which food items to stock up on and which to leave behind.

Before classes began, Kent State executive chefs compiled nutrition facts for the menus that change daily at Eastway Cafe and Kent Market, and the facts are listed at those locations, said Dining Services director Richard Roldan. Nutrition facts for more locations and items that are served every day are available on the Dining Services website.

“We talk about nutrition and people wanting to understand what they eat,” Roldan said. “So for us it was important that everything was out there and the information was available.”

On average, students gain three to 10 pounds during their first two years of college, and most students gain that weight during their first semester, said nutrition outreach coordinator Tanya Falcone.

There is a misconception that eating healthy on campus is impossible, she said, but with the facts, students have more choices than they might realize.

Pointers for campus eating as

suggested by Tanya Falcone:

1. Keep meals at a maximum of 500 calories and 15 grams of fat. This is based on the 2,000 calorie diet that plans for three meals and two smaller snacks.

2. Split meals that have larger amounts of calories and grams of fat with a friend or eat half and save the rest for later.

3. Look for items that are grilled instead of fried.

4. Eat healthy foods during a craving. For example, instead of eating three pieces of pizza, have one piece and a salad.

Students can request advice on what to eat and what not to eat from Tanya Falcone and the Nutrition Outreach Program by emailing [email protected] or stopping by room 200 in Nixon Hall.

“[Students may] see me every day, twice a day for the entire time they’re in college and it’s completely free,” Falcone said.