What We Can Do to Create Healthier Campuses

Colleges across the country have implemented numerous health initiatives because of the growing recognition that creating healthy campuses positively affects recruitment, retention, and student satisfaction, and they can provide the foundation for a life well-lived. Additionally, the concept of a duty of care has come to encompass a greater number of foreseeable risks that colleges have an opportunity and responsibility to mitigate.

The future of America might just depend on preventing preventable conditions. More than one third of American adults are obese and on campus the situation is not much better among the 19 million college students. Estimates indicate that by 2030 more than 50 percent of the population will be obese. Hundreds of billions of dollars are spent as a result of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and tobacco and alcohol consumption. Higher education can also play a role in raising awareness about important issues such as climate change, compassion for all animals, and environmental protection.

Food

College campus food service has become part of the college experience and increasingly it is an important profit center for many colleges. It can also increase cultural awareness and be an important way for colleges to Support students’ well-being.

Many college students are malnourished – they consume too much fat and do not meet the recommended daily allowances for dietary staples such as fruits, vegetables, fiber, and whole grains. Despite a growing awareness of the impact of food production and consumption on Climate change and public health efforts to encourage healthful eating, many students lack the practical skill of being able to prepare their own meals – they don’t know how to cook.

Providing students with food preparation skills gives students an important tool in their health education backpack that they can use throughout their life, and cooking classes are popular. Importantly, young adults who prepare their own food eat less fat and consume more fruit, vegetables, and whole-grains. Providing food preparation classes in residence halls and providing students with kitchens/stoves enables them to gather with friends while they take an active role in their health.

Ideally, colleges would provide plant-based recipes in their food preparation courses to promote health through diet and dining services would offer at least one desirable vegan and gluten-free entrée at each meal. This would Support the small, but growing minority of individuals who have adopted these diets for health, environmental, and/or ethical reasons. It will also encourage healthier eating among those who are inclined to make healthy choices when they available.

Smoke-Free Campuses

In 2011, 324,830 acres in the U.S. were used to grow tobacco, not food. Worldwide, in 2012, 10.6 million acres were devoted to tobacco production. Globally, over 15 billion cigarettes are smoked every day and several trillion non-biodegradable cigarette butts are littered each year. Many of them are washed into the water supply and negatively affect aquatic ecosystems.

College students are more likely to smoke than the average adult, but 72 percent don’t smoke and 82 percent either don’t smoke or don’t smoke daily. Among college students who smoke most begin smoking prior to attending college. However, the freshman year is an important year in determining smoking behaviors.

The number of smoke-free institutions has tripled in the past four years. Currently, in the

United States there are 1,514 smoke-free campuses. Implementing a tobacco-free policy on campus is one of the most effective methods to improve health across campus. A tobacco-free policy can be expected to lower smoking uptake, provide incentive to quit for those who smoke, radically reduce exposure to secondhand smoke, and decrease the costs associated with the collection of cigarette butts.

John Auerbach, Distinguished Professor of Practice and Director of the Institute on Urban Health Research at Northeastern University, said that since going smoke-free in August of 2013 Northeastern University has seen a dramatic drop in on-campus smoking. Auerbach said, “We have a large international student population – as much as a third of our 21,000 student body. Since international students contribute to the rich diversity of a campus and often pay full tuition, universities like ours have been concerned that anti-smoking policies might discourage their attendance. But we haven’t seen any evidence that this policy has had a negative impact on recruitment or retention of international students or any other segment and we’ve heard the same message from other universities”. Wendy Pernal, Project Director of Smoke-Free Policy at Northeastern added, “We’ve had parents say that it’s a positive that their son or daughter can go to a campus where they might not pick up smoking because it’s smoke-free.”

Alternative Approaches to Health

Many colleges invite therapy dogs to campus during final exams to help students cope with stress. However, at Stephens College, stress is alleviated by the year round presence of about 30 foster animals and 60-70 other companion animals. Alissa Pei, Director of Residence Life at Stephens College, said Pet Central “is hugely beneficial for students. It gives students the opportunity to care for somebody else and not just focus on themselves.” Pei said, “On a beautiful day, our students are laying out in the residence quad, tanning and doing homework, and their dogs and cats are right next to them. Having pets on campus is a much better alternative to smoking.” She concluded, “Our culture has shifted into this very animal-friendly society. Our president has a bowl of candy in her office for students right next to a bowl of dog treats for their pets.”

Taking Action

Healthy Campus 2020 provides a framework and a toolkit to assist those who want to create or strengthen programs and policies that will make their campus, and by extension the world, a healthier place. Students can work with the Student Government Association to implement changes they want to see in the world. The college campus provides students with the opportunity to practice what they have learned about social justice, environmental stewardship, and respecting their own and others’ health. Is there a better place to start changing the world than a college campus?

Co-Author – Genevieve Fasano

Lead Image Source: COD Newsroom/Flickr