USDA's My Plate

MyPlate is a great tool to use when planning your meals; it's the new version of the Food Pyramid (remember that?) but it's more user-friendly. The USDA recommends that we eat: 

Fruits: A little less than 1/4 of your daily food intake

Fill half your plate with fruits and veggies

Protein: A little less than 1/4 of your daily food intake

Eggs, nuts, beans, legumes, lean meat, poultry and seafood. Try to keep half of this lean meat

Vegetables: 1/4 of your daily food intake

Fill half your plate with fruits and veggies, and vary your veggies

Grains: 1/4 of your daily food intake

Whole wheat, brown rice, and oatmeal are great grains! Try to keep at least half of this as whole grains

Dairy: One glass of 2% milk suffices 

   Nutrition at Elon

• Dining at Elon

• Chick-fil-a in Moseley

          Less Healthful: Deluxe Chicken Sandwich (500 calories, 21 grams fat, 33 grams protein, 1659 milligrams sodium)

          More Healthful: Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich (290 calories, 4 grams fat, 28 grams protein, 780 milligrams sodium)

• Topios in Moseley

Less Healthful: Philly Cheesesteak Calzone (845 calories, 41 grams fat, 42 grams protein, 1479 grams sodium)

More Healthful: Bruschetta Pizza (350 calories, 13 grams fat, 15 grams protein, 763 grams sodium)

• Freshii (new!) in Moseley

• Freshens Energy Zone

Less Healthful:  Citrus Mango (390 calories, 7 grams fat, 67 grams sugar, 1 gram fiber)

More Healthful: No Sugar Added Mango Beach (70 calories, 7 grams fat, 5 grams sugar, 1 gram fiber)

• Pan Geos

Less Healthful: Bowtie Ballet (966 calories, 50.5 grams fat, 33.2 grams protein, 1013.9 milligrams sodium)

More Healthful: Splendente Penne Parmigiano (400 calories, 20.5 grams fat, 9.9 grams protein, 386 milligrams sodium)

• Varsity Sports Grill

Less Healthful: Mozzerrella Sticks with Marinara (2040 calories, 122 grams fat, 77.3 grams protein, 6010 grams sodium)

More Healthful: Hummus and Toasted Pita (218 calories 8.5 grams fat, 6.3 grams protein, 467.6 milligrams sodium)

      Sign up for a SPARKS! nutrition program here! We'll come to your class, hall, organization, etc.

We offer this helpful guide in a pocket size, lamenated version so you can carry it around! Simply request or attend one of our nutrition presentations offered by SPARKS! or stop by the SPARKS office in Koury 154A.

Nutrition Resources

      Healthy Eating for Vegetarians (My Plate)                                

      10 Tips to help you cut back on salt/ sodium

      Eating Better on a Budget

      10 Tips for Choosing Protein

     How to help a friend with an eating disorder

Answer: Omega 3 Fatty-Acids and Protein. Proteins help create amino acids, which help create neurotransmitters, which run your brain. The best places to find Omega-3's are in fish, walnuts, hazelnuts and cashews. Now go get that A!

Question: Are the nutrition facts for the retail locations accurate? Because various sources provide different information in terms of calorie counts and things along those lines.

Response: Good question. The short answer is that we hope the facts we present are accurate but we can only rely on the information provided by the retail locations themselves, which you can find an example of here. These nutrition facts are intended only as a guide so we can more carefully select our foods but are unlikely to be precise due to variations in ingredients and preparation methods. If we've listed information that you feel may be incorrect, definitely let us know!