Synopsis:

This letter is addressed to the Operations Manager in Peregrine dining hall, Danielle Halbert. Speaking to an Operations Manager, I believe,  is the best to present my perspective and ultimately seek to a change. Students’ usually choose meals that fascinates their appetite which I think is very risky. Since most student did not put the nutrition value into consideration, their health will be affected without them knowing. Therefore, I wrote this letter to speak my point about the importance of implementing nutrition labels in university dining hall.

 

 

Small Label Huge Impact

Dining halls in universities serve as an important part of college students’ daily lives. Before coming to campus, students must choose a specific meal plan that allows them to access the dining halls. When I first entered the dining hall, I was more than shocked. From first sight, all I noticed was high calories, deep fried, and high sugar foods that were being served plate after plate to the students. At that moment, I was not aware of other places to eat so I decided to try the food in the dining hall. I didn’t eat much, knowing that the food is extremely unhealthy if you consume too much. This eventually caused me to spend additional money on food that should be covered with a meal plan. This happens for weeks until I realized that I was spending too much money, so I decided to cook. Ultimately, I discovered that cooking has impacted my academic progress because the time I spend cooking could be used in homework and projects. In addition, these conundrums could be avoided if nutrition labels were present in dining halls so students like me could build a healthy meal plan that is less time-consuming and expensive.

The meals that are provided and consumed impact the student physically, mentally, and possibly emotionally. With the buffet style of nearly every dining hall, students are motivated to eat as much as they desire, which can eventually become harmful. In most of the dining halls, like Peregrine, food that is high in sugar, fat, calories, and salt are served nearly every day with a high percentage of students enjoying eating it. However, they are not aware of consuming too much which can lead to numerous health problems and changes in physical appearances. While these conundrums exist, there is a solution to it: nutrition labels. Nutrition labels can provide information that consumers need, which prevents them from exceeding the daily limit of a particular nutrient. Universities should implement nutrition labels in dining halls and online so students will have a better understanding of what is being absorbed into their bodies.

Food choice has always been one of the major factors that can impact one’s life, including the academic lives of college students. However, many students are not aware of the impact food has on their health, even though it is present in their everyday lives.  At nearly all universities, dining halls are always the number one choice for students. The buffet-style operations and variety of meal choices are attractive to students, leading them to exceed their daily nutrition limit. Unaware of the calories and ingredients they are consuming, students will notice a change in their physical health. For example, in general students gain around 10-15lbs in their first year on campus. As a student at the High School for Health Professions and Human Services, I also learned that excessive sugar intake can cause a decrease in cognitive function and memorization. Therefore, taking precautions and knowing nutritional content of the food one consumes is necessary.

Nutritional labels can prevent the college students from exceeding daily nutrient intake and also provide necessary information to students who need to know what they are eating.   For example, labels could warn students who are allergic or prohibited from consuming a specific meal that they might accidentally eat without knowing.  People who are diagnosed with health issues and or on a diet tend to use nutritional labels more frequently than others: “Diners who were obese, reported higher stress, had previously taken nutrition courses…were more likely to be aware of nutrition labels” (Christoph 1404). In addition, nutrition labels are necessary in dining hall settings so the consumers can organize their meal plans and choose the right one for themselves.

If the campus dining halls provided nutritional labels, then students like me could save time and money by not cooking while also having access to a healthy meal plan. Personally, as an undergraduate at SUNY New Paltz, I have experienced a dining hall without sufficient nutritional information about the food provided. Eventually, I become more involved in cooking for myself, which occupied my time to prepare the food, marinate it, and wait for the kitchen to be available. Since there is only one kitchen in my dorm, it usually takes at least half an hour just to enter the kitchen.

Some might think that nutrition labels are unnecessary and only for a particular population such as students with health conditions. However, during the 2009-2010 academic years, a survey was conducted among 487 students in Yale University to examine their preference of nutritional information, in which 88% of the responders indicated that the information provided influenced their food choice occasionally (Martinez 322). With the high percentage of undergraduates who stated that they might be influenced by a nutritional label, this study suggests that universities should establish nutrition labels in dining halls.

 

Nutrition labels should be an indispensable part of every university dining hall. Students wouldn’t know which nutrients they are eating if there’s no labels on the food. While most universities are not using nutrition labels in dining halls, surveys taken by varieties of students had proved that the nutrition label should be implemented. After using nutritional labels in dining halls, students will be more likely to organize their time more efficiently and have a healthier diet.

 

 

 

 

 

Work Cited:

 

 

Christoph, Mary J., et al. “The Influence of Nutrition Label Placement on Awareness and Use

Among College Students in a Dining Hall Setting.” Journal of the Academy of Nutrition

             and Dietetics, vol. 116, no. 9, Elsevier Inc, 2016, pp. 1395–405, doi:10.1016/j.jand.2016.05.003.

 

Martinez, Olivia D., et al. “A Survey of Undergraduate Student Perceptions and Use of

Nutrition Information Labels in a University Dining Hall.” Health Education Journal, v ol.

72, no. 3, SAGE Publications, 2013, pp. 319–25, doi:10.1177/0017896912443120.

 

Persuasive Research Essay Revised

 

 

 

 

Andy Yang

Professor Rigolino

ENG160

14 October 2021

Small Label Huge Impact

Dining halls in universities’ serves as an important part of college students’ daily lives. Before attending campus, students were given a specific meal plan that allows them to access the dining halls. When I first entered the dining hall, I was more than shocked. From first sight, all I see is high calories, deep fried, high sugar foods that are being served plates by plates to the students. At the moment, I was not aware of other places to eat so I decide to try the food in dining hall. I didn’t eat as much knowing the fact that the food is extremely unhealthy if you consume too much, eventually causing me to order food online which is not covered by the meal plan. This happens for weeks until I realized that I’m spending too much money, so I decided to cook. Ultimately, this delays my academic progress in which the time I used to cook can be effectively used in homework and projects. After all, these conundrums can all be avoided if nutrition labels are present in dining halls so students like me can build a healthy meal plan that is less time-consuming and expensive.

The meals that are provided and consumed impact the student physically, mentally, and possibly emotionally. With the buffet style of nearly every dining hall, students were motivated to eat as much as they desire, which can eventually become harmful. In the majority of the dining halls, like Peregrine, food that is high in sugar, fat, calories, and salt are served nearly every day with a high percentage of students enjoying eating it. However, they are not aware of consuming too much which can lead to numerous health problems and changes in physical appearances. While these conundrums exist, there is a solution to it: nutrition labels. Nutrition labels can provide information that consumers need which prevents them from exceeding the daily limit of a particular nutrient. Universities should implement nutrition labels in dining halls and online so students will have a better understanding of what is being absorbed into their bodies.

Food choice has always been one of the major factors that can impact one’s life, including the academic lives of college students. However, many students were not aware of the impact of the food has on their health even though it is present in their everyday lives.  At nearly all universities, dining halls are always the number one choice for students. The buffet-style operations and variety of meal choices are attractive to students, leading them to exceed their daily nutrition limit. Unaware of the calories and ingredients they are consuming, students will notice a change in their physical health. For example, a study shows that students gain around 10-15lbs in their first year on campus. As a student at the High School for Health Professions and Human Services, I also learned that excessive sugar intake can cause a decrease in cognitive function and memorization. Therefore, taking precautions is extremely necessary for the consumers.

If the campus dining halls provided the nutritional labels, then students like me could save time while having access to a healthy meal plan and save money. Personally, as an undergraduate at SUNY New Paltz, I have experienced a dining hall without sufficient nutritional information about the food provided. Eventually, I become more involved in cooking for myself which shortened my time to prepare the food, marinate it, and wait for the kitchen to be available. Since there is only one kitchen in my dorm, it usually takes at least half an hour just to enter the kitchen.

Some might think that nutrition labels are unnecessary and only for a particular population such as students with health conditions. However, during the 2009-2010 years, a survey was conducted among 487 students in Yale University to examine their preference of nutritional information, in which 88% of the responders indicated that the information provided influenced their food choice occasionally (Martinez 322). With the high percentage of undergraduates stated to be influenced by the nutritional label, it still has not been established in most universities.

Nutritional labels can prevent the college students from exceeding daily nutrient intake and also provide necessary information to students who need to know what they are eating.   For example, labels could warn students who are allergic or prohibited from consuming a specific meal that they might accidentally eat without knowing.  People that are diagnosed with health issues and or on a diet tend to use nutritional labels more frequently than others: “Diners who were obese, reported higher stress, had previously taken nutrition courses…were more likely to be aware of nutrition labels” (Christoph 1404). In addition, nutrition labels are necessary in dining hall settings so the consumers can organize their meal plans and choose the right one for themselves.

Nutrition labels should be an indispensable part of every university dining hall. Consumers will need to obtain not only the nutrition but also the information about it that may potentially affect their physical or mental well-being. While most universities had not established nutrition labels in dining halls, surveys taken by varieties of students had proved that the nutrition label should be implemented. After establishing nutritional labels in dining halls, students can organize their time more efficiently and have a healthier diet.

 

 

 

 

 

Work Cited:

Martinez, Olivia D., et al. “A Survey of Undergraduate Student Perceptions and Use of

Nutrition Information Labels in a University Dining Hall.” Health Education Journal, v    ol. 72, no. 3, SAGE Publications, 2013, pp. 319–25, doi:10.1177/0017896912443120.   

           

 

  Christoph, Mary J., et al. “The Influence of Nutrition Label Placement on Awareness and Use

            Among College Students in a Dining Hall Setting.” Journal of the Academy of Nutrition                    and Dietetics, vol. 116, no. 9, Elsevier Inc, 2016, pp. 1395–405,

doi:10.1016/j.jand.2016.05.003.