Off-Campus Food The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Wasabi Chef’s Special Sushi Roll Calories –229 Price –11.95 Ruby Tuesday Club House Salad Calories –898 Price –8.99 Panera Bread Smokehouse Turkey Sandwich Calories –720 Price –7.89 Au Bon Pain Riveria Salad Calories –360 Price –6.49 Dunkin’ Donuts Bacon, Egg & Cheese Calories –550 Price –3.89 Baskin-Robbins Chocolate Oreo Shake Calories –2,600 Price –3.49 Outback Steakhouse Aussie Cheese Fries Calories –2,900 Price –7.99 Uno Chicago Grill Classic Deep Dish Pizza Calories –2,430 Price –10.99
students eating habits, yet by making prices higher for the healthier food it pushes some students into eating junk food,” said Valerie Reale, also a senior Nursing major. With University enrollment increasing each year, more food options are constantly
80% of UMass Dartmouth students report gaining weight while attending college. being created on campus. In 2011, the Oak Glen Scoop Shop was opened, and this past school year the Scally Wagon was created. The Scoop Shop is a standard ice cream shop, while the Scally Wagon is a truck that circulates around campus, feeding hungry students as late as 2 a.m. The truck’s offerings include a pretzel cheeseburger, french fries and onion rings. The Scoop Shop, located in Oak Glen residence hall, is only open Monday through Thursday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. While these two dining facilities may not have the healthiest food, their late--night hours are certainly appealing to students. The Marketplace (formerly known as Residential Dining, or “Res”) is the only dining option on campus that has a dietician
involved in its food planning. Each day this nutrition specialist helps the chefs to prepare one meal option that is less than 800 calories. Although the Marketplace has attempted to provide healthier foods to the student body, it closes at 7:30 p.m. on weeknights, and on weekends is only open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., then 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. With such limited hours, students are forced to find other places to eat on campus – places that do not offer the same healthy options. When it comes to food, busy, cashstrapped students usually look for the cheapest option that they can obtain quickly. The University could help promote healthy eating by lowering prices for healthier options. Even making a small change, such as labeling calorie counts on food items, could have a positive effect. For example, in recent years the food chain Panera Bread has provided a menu board that lists the number of calories per serving next to each menu item (one French baguette = 150 calories). A recent Stanford Graduate School of Business studyat New York City Starbucks locations reported that the average number of calories per purchase actually went down after calorie counts were posted. The combination of more knowledge of calorie counts and lower prices for healthy foods may lead more students to make better, healthier food choices. d
On The Web UMass Dartmouth students can check out these two websites to help with healthy food and lifestyle choices: http://www.dineoncampus.com/umassd/ The dining services home page offers a “Total Health” section for students that offers: • Nutrition info • Recipes • Calorie Counter • A registered dietician who gives answers to common nutrition questions http://www.umassd.edu/livewell/ LiveWell is the website of the Office of Health Education, Promotion, and Wellness at UMass Dartmouth where you can find: • Health guides, • Self-assessments, • Student Health 101 wellness magazine • A comprehensive list of “Wellness Resources.”
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