Healthy Eating Habits and Dining Halls: 10 Tips for College Students

You're on Your Own, so Learn to Forage Wisely

If you’re a new college freshman living and dining on campus, the freedom to select what and when you eat each meal represents one of those little transitions into adulthood. Without Mom or Dad there to lovingly ensure a well-balanced diet, you may face a cafeteria full of choices that make healthy eating habits hard to keep up. Here are ten tips for college students using dining halls.

1. Opt for traditional dining halls.
If you have a choice between a fast food court and a more traditional dining hall with buffet options, go for the latter. Chances are that you’ll get more variety, and you can control the portions, the sides, and other details more easily to keep healthy eating habits on track.

2. Look Around!
Take some time to explore everything that’s offered. First-year college students, especially during the early weeks, move in packs and are afraid to strike out on their own – even for things as simple as navigating layouts of dining halls. Don’t be afraid to explore, as you might find some healthy foods lurking on a side table or in the back of a salad bar. One girl I know didn’t realize that hummus and pitas were a daily option at her cafeteria until about a month into the semester!

3. Be creative.
Think beyond the pre-fabbed, line-style menu. Just because an entrée like a chicken breast is lined up with side items like mashed potatoes, gravy, and fried cauliflower with cheese sauce doesn’t mean you need to eat that combination. Maybe you’d rather get just the chicken breast and slice it up over a hand-crafted bed of greens from the salad bar or some brown rice from the Chinese food line? Especially in the all-you-can-eat dining halls, you can inventively combine meats, vegetables, fruits, carbs, and other items to create something healthy that you also find palatable.