The School RD: From Classroom to Cafeteria
By Ellyn Cory
Registered Dietitians, also known
as RDs, are health professionals who learn the physiology and metabolism of
food to help clients and patients improve their health. Most of the time,
people think of RDs as working in hospitals, but the truth is RDs are
everywhere. From gyms to grocery stores and everywhere in between, RDs are
there to help. One of these places is in the school district. Every year, more
and more dietitians are being hired to work in health promotion in school districts.
Earlier this year, I worked with one of these dietitians to learn more about
what she does. The main goal of the health promotion dietitian in a school
district is to change the health and eating habits of the students in the
district. Since every school and the population it serves is so different, the
job of health promotion dietitian varies from RD to RD and from school to
school. Some school dietitians plan the menus for the district, some write
grants, and some even are in charge of a gardening program. It is extremely
important that each RD knows their population well and is constantly looking
for innovative ways to encourage healthy habits. School dietitians can target classrooms,
teams and clubs, and entire schools within their district. During my time with
the school RD, we targeted all three of these subgroups.
In the Classroom:
A class of students are most
easily targeted by going into the class and talking to the students. Classrooms
are great places to target students because they are already set up to listen
and learn. At the school district I visited, they had just started a fruit and
vegetable snack program with a grant that the health promotion dietitian
secured. During one of these snack times we went in to the classroom and
educated the classroom on the fruit they got for a snack that day. The students
got to learn about the fruit they were eating and also received a handout to
take home. The handout had a connect-the-dots on it in hopes that the children
would do the activity and want to show it to their parents.
On the Field:
Certain after school
activities, especially sports teams, need more specific nutritional education.
A marching band may need education on staying hydrated and well fueled during
competitions, whereas the football team could benefit from education on
supplements. At the school district I visited, we did one of these educations
before soccer practice for all of the male soccer players in high school. It is
important that the school dietitian builds good relationships with the coaches
or administrators of the after school activities so that they allow her to talk
to their groups. For this education, we focused on protein needs and good
sources of protein.
In the Cafeteria:
To
target the whole school, it is important to choose locations where the whole
school might be as points of education and promotion. A couple of the ways we
can target the whole school is by doing health promotion activities at lunch
time, in the cafeteria, in the gym, and on the playground. These are three
locations where the every student in the school goes. Posters could also be
posted in high traffic areas such as in bathrooms and above water fountains. In
the school district I visited, we posted a promotional bulletin board in the
cafeteria of the middle school and handed out fresh produce snacks to
elementary school students at lunch time.
With
the rise in childhood obesity and the recent move to sedentary lifestyles, the
importance of school dietitians is growing. Check out your district’s website
today to see if they employ an RD, then check out http://www.healthpronet.org/ahp_month/05_05.html
to learn more about Registered Dietitians and where they work.
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