Prevent muscle and bone loss by eating your fruits and veggies! Plant foods help preserve bone and muscle.

Meat, potatoes and pasta — the typical American diet is protein and carb heavy! When we eat them, these foods produce small amounts of acid in the body. Over decades, this disrupts our pH levels, leading to an overly acidic environment. For optimal functioning and increased immunity, our bodies require slightly alkaline conditions and consistent hydration.

According to the USDA Nutrition Research Center at Tufts University, acidosis, this slight shift in pH, can trigger muscle wasting and bone loss as we age. Help combat deterioration by eating a diet bursting with fruits & veggies! Spinach, apples, citrus fruit, watermelon, asparagus, and grapes leave alkaline residue behind in digestion and help balance pH. Foods rich in potassium like apricots, avocado & brussel sprouts all help keep muscle loss at bay.

Reduce your cancer risk!

YOU can reduce your cancer risk. Be active by walking 150 minutes a week, drink < 1 glass of alcohol a day, and eat your fruit and veggies.

Think cancer is out of your control? Whether you get the disease may be partially determined by your genes, but for most people, it’s not etched in stone. Most cancer cases are caused by a combination of family history and lifestyle choices. In fact, according to the World Cancer Research Fund, 30 to 40 percent of cancers can be prevented. You can significantly lower your risk by following a few simple rules — many of which you already know.

Get 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week...jogging, walking, bicycling or playing sports with friends. Limit your alcohol intake to less than one serving a day. Women who drink any alcohol will want to consider a folic acid supplement to decrease the risk of breast cancer. People with a strong family history of cancer may want to avoid it altogether. Limit exposure to carcinogens like UV rays and first- or secondhand cigarette smoke. Eat the recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables every day — at least two and a half cups of produce!

An easy way to do this: Make a colorful salad for lunch. Include items that will make you look forward to it like turkey, avocado, walnuts, dried cranberries, apples and low-fat cheese.

March is Nutrition Month! Focus on adding COLOR to your plate with fresh fruits & veggies.

Don’t forget to come up for air when eating! Chowing down and eating until you’re full triples your risk of being overweight.

..Is your food gone before your friends have a chance to taste theirs?!

Many of us inhale our food so quickly, we barely have a chance to register what we’re eating. While that might be okay if you’re a competitive eater, for the rest of us, it’s not a winning strategy! Research shows that this kind of turbo approach to eating, along with not stopping until we’re full, TRIPLES our chances of being overweight.

When we chow down hurriedly, our body doesn’t have enough time to process how much food we’ve consumed. By the time the message that our belly is full reaches our brain, we’ve already eaten too much. Every bite we take has about 25 calories. If you take 10 more bites past the point of fullness, that’s an extra 250 calories every time you sit down to eat! All it takes is 3,500 extra calories to gain a pound of weight, so you can see how quickly pounds can add up. Slow, mindful eating, on the other hand, is associated with weight loss. To slow down your meal, chew each bite 30 times. Resist the urge to shovel more food into your mouth by putting your fork down. Drink water with your meal, and try to savor the food and make your meal last at least 20 minutes.

How can I access nutrition info for RPS Dining foods? ...check out Net Nutrition!

RPS is continuously updating nutrient profiles for foods on campus!

They can be found in our Net Nutrition database.  Check it out today!

Greek Yogurt sold at Union Street Market!

You may have heard about Greek Yogurt and wonder what the stir is about!

...Is it more beneficial? How does it taste? What is so extraordinary about it?

In comparison to its American counterpart, it is thicker due to it being strained, but has DOUBLE the protein per serving! Additionally, it has ZERO grams fat, no high fructose corn syrup, and its' calcium and probiotics (good bacteria which promote healthy gut flora) still pack the nutritional punch of regular yogurt.

But where can I find it?!

It's sold in a variety of flavors on campus at the new Union Street Market (a store on the ground floor of the Cedar building of new appt. housing; corner of 10th & Union St., right across from Eigenmann). Stop by Monday - Friday between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m., or on Sat. & Sun. between Noon and 7 p.m!

healthy weight...healthy knees!

Knee trouble got you down? Choose healthy foods and limit excess calories from sugar-sweetened beverages (soda, sweet tea) to help you lose weight.  For every 1 pound you lose, you remove FOUR pounds of stress from your knees!