Purpose.: Assess the effectiveness of the integration of vegetable demonstration videos and tasting experiences into a college nutrition course to influence students' readiness to change vegetable intake, self-efficacy for vegetable preparation, and usual vegetable intake. Design.: Quasiexperimental, preintervention-postintervention comparisons. Setting.: College nutrition course. Subjects.: Of the 376 students enrolled in the course, 186 completed the online assessments (145 female, 41 male; mean age, 20 years). Intervention.: Participants viewed online vegetable preparation videos and participated in vegetable tasting experiences that featured four target vegetables, one vegetable each month for 4 months. Measures.: Preintervention and postintervention online surveys determined usual vegetable intake, readiness to change vegetable consumption, and self-efficacy of vegetable preparation. Analysis.: Chi-square distribution and paired sample t-tests were used to examine differences preintervention and postintervention. Results.: Stage of readiness to change vegetable intake shifted from contemplation toward preparation (p < .001). Self-efficacy of vegetable preparation increased and postintervention self-efficacy was associated with total and target vegetable consumption (p = .001 and p = .005, respectively). The average intake of asparagus, one of four target vegetables, increased (p = .016); similar changes were not observed for target or total vegetable consumption. Conclusion.: Online vegetable demonstration videos may be an effective and cost-efficient intervention for increasing self-efficacy of vegetable preparation and readiness to increase vegetable consumption among college students. More research is needed to determine long-term effects on vegetable consumption.

The female athlete triad (triad) is prevalent among aesthetic athletes, including dancers. However, there is limited research regarding triad knowledge or triad educational interventions among collegiate dancers. This study was intended to help correct that shortage. Participants (N = 24) completed two questionnaires: one assessed demographics, triad risk, and disordered eating (DE) risk; the other measured triad knowledge before and after viewing a 10-minute triad video. Twenty-seven percent of participants were found to be at risk for DE, 27% were at risk for the triad, and 8% were at risk for both. Significant improvements in triad knowledge were observed following the educational video; 4.08 ± 1.83 pre-intervention to 6.75 ± 0.09 post-intervention out of a possible 7, p < 0.001. There were no differences in triad knowledge when comparing freshmen and sophomores to juniors, seniors, and graduate students. This research confirms that triad education should be a continuous component of collegiate dancers’ curricula to promote their overall health and wellness, and that the triad video can be an effective educational tool for supporting that goal.

Students are required to complete supervised practice hours prior to becoming Registered Dietitians and Physician Assistants. Research suggests that environmental and social factors affect dietetic interns’ diets during their internship, although these factors have not been studied among physician assistant interns. This cross-sectional study utilized an online survey to compare dietetic interns’ (n = 81) and physician assistant interns’ (n = 79) fruit and vegetable intake, food security, barriers to healthy eating, and empowerment for making healthy dietary choices during an internship. Differences were assessed via independent t-tests and chi-square distributions. The significance was set at p < 0.05. Dietetic interns had a higher vegetable intake (p = 0.002) while physician assistant interns had higher rates of food insecurity (p = 0.040). Dietetic interns reported a greater impact on their dietary choices due to mental fatigue (p = 0.006), while physician assistant interns’ dietary choices were more heavily impacted by peer influence, interactions with patients, and interactions with preceptors (p < 0.05). There was not a group difference in overall empowerment (p = 0.157), although both groups rated empowerment for asking for help with food and nutrition challenges the lowest of the empowerment sub-items. Addressing interns’ unique needs may support students’ educational success and wellbeing once they are professionals, promote a diverse workforce, and ensure optimal care for patients.