Food and Health
Food is a daily need that all Mississippians have in common—we all need to eat, and most of us love to eat! But food choices also have a significant impact on health, from getting a breakfast boost that powers up our brains for a successful day to fighting heart disease. The MSU Extension Service strives to make sound, science-based information available and understandable to help Mississippians of all ages make positive decisions about their health and wellness.
Extension is the home of the Office of Nutrition Education, which administers two federally funded nutrition education programs—the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) and the Family Nutrition Program (FNP), known nationally as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education (SNAP-ED).
Extension also offers the ServSafe training for personnel working in our state’s restaurants, school cafeterias, and food businesses. We also provide the TummySafe training for those working in child-care centers.
“Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, and not merely the absence of infirmity.” — World Health Organization, 1948
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Extra sweets around the house for Halloween can haunt anyone’s good intentions, but a few healthy tricks can make this holiday fun for everyone.
If you like one-pot meals but want a little more variety in your dinnertime favorites, sheet pan suppers are the way to go! If you line your pan with foil, you’ll spend less time at the stove top AND the kitchen sink. (Photo by Jonathan Parrish/Cindy Callahan)
When the weather begins to cool down, I start thinking of wintery foods. But let’s face it: in Mississippi, it’s not going to be cold for a while! Instead of heating up the oven, you can save time by making a “baked” potato in the microwave! (Photo by Jonathan Parrish)
Leftover rice – whether you’ve brought it home from a local restaurant or cooked it yourself – is the perfect foundation for a fun and easy weeknight supper: fried rice. But if you’re not careful, fried rice can be chock full of calories and sodium.
Here are some tips for making your fried rice healthier! (Photo by Jonathan Parrish)
Mississippi State is launching a comprehensive initiative to help Mississippians battle obesity with a $5.5 million grant awarded to MSU Extension by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Success Stories
For anyone relying on Pinterest, Facebook, or other online recipe sites to plan healthy meals, Marilyn Lunsford is encouraging those home cooks to look in a different, more local place.
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