JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Providing care and educational tools is the mission for the 673d Medical Group, and was featured during the ‘Ask the Registered Dietitian’ Nutrition and Taste Testing event at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Sept. 29, 2020.
The event was held to educate service members about how food and nutrition effect military readiness, while also offering samples of healthier choices to service members.
“The reason for this event is to expose and explore new menu ideas that service members will like,” said Marci McGill, 673d Aerospace Medicine health promotion dietitian. “While also improving access to high performance/nutrient dense food choices in order to ensure that the physical mental performance of military personnel remain at optimal levels.”
Throughout the event over 100 samples of spicy quinoa and black bean salad were provided. Nutrition education on supplement safety, hydration, sample menus and cooking tips were also featured.
“As the dining facility manager, I feel it is extremely important to be able to educate and offer service members the best high-performance meal they could receive to fuel their bodies,” said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Carlos Segura, Wilderness Inn dining facility manager. “We received a lot of feedback about the recipe prepared for them today and that they would like to have options like these available more often.”
Although this is the first year the ‘Ask the RD’ Nutrition and Taste Testing event has happened at JBER, event coordinators hope to turn it into a monthly affair.
“We hope to do this multiple times per year to establish familiarity and bring the importance of quality nutrition to the forefront of service members daily life,” McGill said. “As the Health Promotion team, our mission is to promote optimizing the health of our military members to influence mission readiness and force protection through knowledge, awareness and self-efficacy in the areas of nutrition, fitness and tobacco prevention. With this event focusing on just that.”
For more information about nutrition or supplement safety visit the JBER Health Promotion Facebook page, HPRC-Online.org, or OPSS.org.