Purdue Extension provides education related to nutrition across the lifespan, from pregnancy through the golden years. A variety of programs can be found across the state of Indiana.

Programs

CFS Extension educators in your community might offer one or more of these programs — contact your county Extension office for details.

• Caring for an Older Relative in My Home
  This program explores the demographics of aging, the changing nutritional needs of older adults, signs that indicate an elderly relative is unable to live independently, and the challenges that can be experienced by the caregiver.
• Child Care Culinary Workshop
  Program provides training to child care foodservice staff on planning and preparing meals and snacks that comply with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and MyPyramid.
• Dining with Diabetes
  

  Targeted to diabetics or those at risk for diabetes, it is also helpful to anyone interested in diabetes or friends and family of a diabetic. Classes cover food choice, diet planning, healthy cooking, portion control, medical indicator awareness, and healthy activity levels for those with diabetes.

• Eat Your Way to Better Health
  A statewide program aimed at third-graders helps to increase fruit and vegetable consumption by introducing a school garden activity combined with a nutrition curriculum.  
• Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program
  Targeted to limited-resource households with pregnant women and pre-teen children. Through hands-on learning, participants learn the skills and motivation needed to choose and prepare healthy and safe meals for their families. It is delivered in 14 Indiana counties.
• Exploring MyPyramid with Professor Popcorn
  Curriculum for youth in grades 1-6. The recent 2006 rewrite adapts the 2002 version with information related to MyPyramid and the 2005 Dietary Guidelines. Major concepts included in the curriculum have been linked to Indiana’s health and science education standards.
• Family Nutrition Program
  Available to food stamp recipients in 53 Indiana counties. Through programs in homes and community settings, participants develop the knowledge and skills in nutrition, meal planning, food purchasing, and food preparation and safety. 
• Have A Healthy Baby
  Prenatal nutrition education program consisting of six lessons that emphasize nutrition and lifestyle choices — smoking, drinking, and drugs. The program is research-based and taught by trained, caring professionals.
• Raising Healthy Eaters
  Geared for parents and providers of children ages 2-5, classes include activities, food preparation, and discussion focusing on nutrition, eating behaviors, and parenting.  

Publications

• Altering Recipes for Better Health
• Caring for an Older Relative in My Home
• Eat Better for Less Newsletters
• Forming Good Habits in Children to Avoid Obesity
• How to Select,  Store, and Prepare Fresh Produce
• Kids and Food: If You Don't Like It, Neither Do I
• Nutrition and Aging
• Nutrition Fact Sheet: Thirsty? Sip on This | Spanish
• Nutrition Fact Sheet: What You Need to Know about Sodium | Spanish
• Nutrition Fact Sheet: Feeding Smart from the Start  | Spanish
• Nutrition Fact Sheet: Make Mealtime Family Time | Spanish
• Osteoporosis: What You Should Know
• Searching Foods and Nutrition Topics and Web Sites
• Substitutions & Equivalents in Food Ingredients
• Tables for Macronutrient DRIs
• Top 20 Healthy Recipe Ingredient Substitutions
• Women's Nutrition Issues

Multimedia

• No Bones About It

  Six lessons on DVD and CD designed to inspire early teens to become lifelong consumers of calcium-rich foods. Personnel at eight universities created the lessons, which meet national academic standards for science and health. This package contains a 60-page facilitator's guide, master copies of 24 handouts, one DVD and six CDs that contain games that reinforce the information presented in the interactive portion.

• Nutrition Facts: Reading Labels Makes Sense
  Teaches how to read and understand nutrition labels with a system that is as easy as counting. You will learn how to understand the different sections of the label, compare the nutritional values of different products, and feel confident choosing foods in the grocery store. This approximately 15-minute DVD includes instructions in both English and Spanish.

• Understanding Nutrition Information
  This interactive series of lessons using text, video, and audio will help develop the scientific thinking skills needed to evaluate nutritional claims in scientific literature and popular media. The lessons contain practical examples of legitimate and unreliable health claims. The interactive activities will help develop the knowledge and ability to separate nutrition fact from fads, fallacies, and exaggerations, whether they appear in print, on TV, or on the Internet.

Purdue Web Sites

• Department of Foods and Nutrition
• Indiana’s Food for the Hungry
  Addresses the educational needs of those who work to provide emergency food assistance throughout the state of Indiana. The Web site has a food assistance directory, newsletter, and resources for emergency food programs and the public.
• Nutrition Databases
  

  A centralized place to rapidly access reliable information, descriptions, reviews, and suggested resources on nutrition-related topics of current interest. The databases are a valuable nutrition resource for Extension educators and nutrition professionals with information that is timely and current. Access is currently limited through county Extension offices.

Other Helpful Web Sites

• American Council on Science and Health's Surveys on Nutrition Accuracy in Popular Magazines
• American Dietetic Association
• Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration
• Food and Nutrition Information Center, USDA
• Nutrient Data Laboratory
• Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA
• Indiana Folic Acid Council
• Indiana Perinatal Network
• March of Dimes
• North Central Cooperative Extension Association
• Your Guide to Diet and Diabetes, University of Illinois Extension