Nutrition: Nutrition and Wellness

Nutrition is the study of how nutrients and food components function at molecular, cellular, and whole-body levels to impact human health and disease. Students are grounded in fundamental sciences as they develop nutrition-specific competencies in nutrition and health, foods, nutritional assessment, wellness, life cycle nutrition, and/or metabolic biochemistry.

The nutrition program prepares students for entry-level positions in health care, education, or the biotechnology industry, or entry into post-baccalaureate professional programs. Nutrition faculty have expertise in clinical nutrition, sports nutrition, and food science, as well as assessing risk factors of chronic disease risk (i.e. obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular, cognitive) in diverse populations (pediatric, young adult, older adult).

Students who complete the Nutrition and Wellness option are prepared for jobs in agencies or businesses that have an emphasis on health and wellness, including schools, fitness centers, and non-profit or community organizations.

• Demonstrate how to locate, interpret, evaluate and use professional literature to make ethical, evidence-based conclusions and decisions.
• Use current information technologies to locate and apply evidence-based guidelines and protocols.
• Apply critical thinking skills.
• Demonstrate effective and professional oral and written communication and documentation.
• Demonstrate an understanding of cultural competence/sensitivity.
• Describe basic concepts of nutritional genomics.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the scientific method and how it is used to generate knowledge in nutrition science.
• Understand basic concepts of statistical analysis.