By Myranda Tarr
Special to UM News

 CORAL GABLES, Fla. (September 16, 2015) – Monday, September 21 begins the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA)’s Healthier Campus Initiative #HealthyCampus Week, and the Patti and Allan Herbert Wellness Center is teaming up with UM Dining, University Communications and other campus departments to highlight and promote UM’s health and wellness initiatives. Throughout the week, UM departments will join the #HealthyCampus national conversation on social media to highlight actions taken within the past year to foster and cultivate a healthier UM campus.

In November 2014, the University of Miami joined 19 other colleges and universities to become part of the Partnership for a Healthier America’s Healthier Campus Initiative. The three-year commitment is designed to make college and university campuses healthier by adopting guidelines around nutrition, physical activity, and programming.

“Campuses across the nation are stepping up to make healthier choices easier, and this week we are shining a spotlight on their efforts during PHA’s inaugural Healthy Campus Week,” said PHA CEO Lawrence A. Soler. “Colleges and universities have a unique opportunity to impact the health habits of the next generation and, thanks to campuses like the University of Miami, the future is looking bright.”

With the assistance and support from PHA and the entire UM community, the changes and improvements made through the Healthier Campus Initiative will encourage thousands of UM students, faculty, staff, and campus guests to choose the healthier alternative to all aspects of daily life.

“We want to make the healthiest choice the easiest choice at UM,” said Scott Levin, executive director of the Department of Wellness and Recreation at the University of Miami. “So we are continuing to find new ways to educate the UM community and provide resources that support healthy living.”

In its commitment to PHA, UM outlined several health and wellness initiatives concentrating on three main areas: food and nutrition, physical activity, and wellness programming. Food and nutrition quickly became the leading priority this past year as UM worked to offer more wellness meals, designate healthier food and beverage options, and make available a registered dietician nutritionist to students.

Students have access to a wellness meal, branded as “Balanced U,” in both of the on-campus dining halls during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For each wellness meal available, healthy icons are placed at the food service counter, on UM Dining’s website and the University of Miami smartphone app. The four Balanced U icons denote meals that are vegetarian, vegan, are considered to be “balanced,” or are created for people who are avoiding gluten.

In an effort to teach students about nutrition, UM has a registered dietician nutritionist available for personal nutrition assessments and counseling to all students. In addition, the Herbert Wellness Center offers a computerized dietary analysis to members of the UM community.

Meals earning the “Balanced” icon represent menu options with both balanced nutrients and appropriate portion sizes. Specifically, a balanced meal contains fewer than 600 calories, 25 grams of total fat, five grams of saturated fat, natural trans-fat, and 600 milligrams of sodium.

Alyson Marquez

“Together, the full set of wellness icons provide UM students with an easy-to-understand way of knowing what’s on the menu and which items will fit their dining needs even before entering the dining hall,” said Alyson Marquez, UM Dining’s registered and licensed dietitian nutritionist.

In the coming years, the University will continue to implement and promote additional programs and services to build an environment that encourages healthier choices on campus. Future initiatives include implementing a local food procurement program that increases procurement of local and sustainable foods, providing plant-based food options at all food stations, and offering a service-learning program available to all students that focuses on nutrition and physical activity.

Participate in Healthy Campus Week by joining the conversation on social media using #HealthyCampus; tuning in to PHA’s Twitter chat on Tuesday, September 22 at 2 p.m.; entering a photo sweepstakes by sharing a photo highlighting how you stay healthy on campus and tagging #HealthyCampus; or by attending “UM’s Largest Yoga Class” on September 22 at 5:30 p.m. in the Herbert Wellness Center’s Centre Court.

For more information about Healthy Campus Week, PHA’s Healthier Campus Initiative, or ‘UM’s Largest Yoga Class,’ visit miami.edu/wellness.