Links

Michele’s website: https://www.jmu.edu/healthcenter/AboutUs/people/all-people/cavoto-michele.shtml

Transcript

0:02 Intro: Hi there! Welcome to Well Dukes, brought to you by The Well. Each week, you'll hear conversations from a variety of JMU staff and students that we hope challenge what you know, think, or do in regard to your own health, and helps you be Well Dukes.

0:21 Jordan: Hello there. Happy March, Mikayla. 

0:25 Mikayla: Happy March to you as well. It's National Nutrition Month!

0:28 Jordan: Yeah, so we are starting off the month with an episode on diet culture.

0:36 Mikayla: Yes. So this episode, we have one of our Well Peers, Hanna Serrano, junior dietetics major, and she interviews Michele Cavoto, our Registered Dietitian here at JMU. And they have a great conversation. 

0:48 Jordan: Yeah, for sure. Michele was really great to listen to. And I learned some stuff myself, Hanna and Michele really get into just kind of what diet culture is. And it's really interesting to hear the two different perspectives, one being a professional dietitian, but then also coming from Hanna, who is a college student. They talk about some of the kind of popular diets and then really just some advice and suggestions if someone is wanting to make lifestyle choices around eating healthier. 

1:17 Mikayla: Awesome, let's get to it.

[Musical Interlude]

1:22 Hanna: Hi, Michele, it's so nice to meet you.

1:25 Michele: Nice to meet you as well, Hanna.

1:28 Hanna: Michele, you work as a dietitian in the JMU Help Center. Can you tell the listeners more about your role and how you serve students?

1:35 Michele: Sure. I am a registered dietitian, as you said, so my role is all about nutrition therapy and nutrition information. So, if a student is diagnosed with something that partners with a dietary treatment, something like IBS, or prediabetes, that therapeutic pieces... I can help them know more about that, learn more about that, and then work with them to change their diet so that they're healthier. A lot of the students that I work with are just students interested in developing better, healthier lifestyles for themselves, including a healthier diet, and I'm happy to meet with those students as well. And then I do work with eating disorder recovery clients who are-- for whom a change in their dietary behavior as part of their recovery plan. So I help walk them through, again, getting to a healthier place with a diet.

2:28 Hanna: That's awesome. You're a great resource here for students. Do you mostly meet with them one on one?

2:35 Michele: I do. Most of my day is spent one on one with students, I do participate in the HOPE team that stands for a team that helps students overcome problems with eating and exercise. HOPE stands for Help Overcoming Problems with Eating and Exercise. And that's something that I do as a part of a group, not involving students necessarily as part of that group, but other professionals that help us, help me, and help the other professionals work together as a team to get a student from point A to point B in their eating disorder recovery. But yeah, one on one is probably most of my day.

3:12 Hanna: All right. And that's great that you guys work together to try and help people overcome the barriers and boundaries. Would you be able to explain the difference between a dietitian and a nutritionist?

3:24 Michele: Yeah, sure. And that's confusing. Because in the state of Virginia, and many other states in the nation, they can actually-- anyone can call themselves a nutritionist. There's no regulatory agency that regulates that one use of that word. But in order to be a registered dietitian, someone would have gone through a scientific training part of the health program in college, most of us now have a master's degree or beyond. So some advanced education, and then sit and take a national board exam, which qualifies us to be a registered dietitian. So especially in the state of Virginia, if this is your home state, I would recommend if you're going to work with someone on nutrition therapy, meeting with a registered dietitian is the one credential that you can count on. But again, anyone including people who are trying to sell supplements people are trying to sell you health food in a health food store can call themselves a nutritionist so be very wary about that label for sure.

4:28 Hanna: Thank you. That's great advice because I do know those words get used interchangeably a lot. So March is National Nutrition Month and is there a theme this year and also how do you celebrate it? 

4:42 Michele: Yeah, there is a theme, I do celebrate it. It's called... The theme this month is “Personalize your Plate.” So every year they pick a new theme and I actually love this one because nutrition is not a one size fits all plan for anyone, it's not. It's looking at the cultural diversity in our nation, look at the tastes for our students that have changed over the years, our international students. It's a melting pot, and we want to have everyone's food choices reflect who they are. So not just everybody eating the same thing. Most dietitians are not going to hand you a diet and say, “Go eat this,” they're going to try to find out where you are with your culture, with your social behaviors, and what fits best into your lifestyle. It's going to encourage everyone to make informed decisions based on what they want their life to look like. How do they like to spice up their life? And let's get that in there?

5:47 Hanna: That's awesome. Yes, I totally agree with what you just said, that nutrition is not one size fits all. Because there are many different factors like you were mentioning culture that play into people's dietary choices. So is there anything that you do to celebrate National Nutrition Month? 

6:03 Michele: Yeah, I like to try a new cuisine, actually. So it's a little bit a little hard here in Harrisonburg. We're not exactly the, you know, taste of all nations here. But I do either with my husband or with another fellow dietitian, and try to explore another cuisine once a year. I haven't gotten to this year’s, yet. But I have a feeling. There's a South African restaurant over in Charlottesville that I'm anxious to try. So I'm hoping to get that in before... It won't be before the end of the month, because that's right around the corner, but soon.

6:35 Hanna: That's awesome. Yes, I know there is a variety of restaurants here, but the South African one is one that I haven't heard of before. So that's awesome. So today, Michele, the topic of this episode is diet culture. In your opinion, what does this phrase mean to you?

6:54 Michele: The phrase, to me, means that the focus is on dieting, rather than health. Unfortunately, I think we have in this nation, especially a culture when we talk about food, so often gets mal-aligned with calories or fat grams or protein. And, and my role as a health professional is to get our student body and those that come to me for help to look at food as a whole. Nutrition as a whole, not just one ingredient, one nutrient, one food that they need to restrict or eat more of, but what does the whole picture look like? Are you getting all your vitamins and minerals? And are you eating a healthy diet? Not are you dieting to look a particular way or have a particular body physique? So I think there's nothing wrong with exercise and dieting and focusing on being healthy. But that's where the focus should be health, not diet.

8:00 Hanna: I agree. I think sometimes when people hear the word “dietitian,” they think that you're going to give them a diet, like the ones that they hear so commonly, but from what you're explaining, it doesn't seem like that is actually the case.

8:13 Michele: I agree, because I think some students come in and they expect me to tell them everything they're doing wrong. And sometimes I think I surprise them a little when I say, “Well, I like that you enjoy chocolate. I like that you enjoy it, let's find a way to fit that into your diet, into your lifestyle so that it's appropriate.” And it feels good instead of feels bad when you do that. And I think sometimes that they're expecting me to kind of wave my finger at them and say “you shouldn't be doing that.” And that's not really what promoting health is about... promoting health is about getting you to a place where you enjoy some of those things that are not necessarily so good or so healthy for us. They're there for pleasure, we want to enjoy them. But we got to fit them into our healthy lifestyle. How can we fit them in appropriately?

8:55 Hanna: Yes, I totally agree. I know when I hear the word diet culture, I often think of restriction, like you were saying, and focusing on eating, you know, not eating that chocolate or eating, you know, only fruits and vegetables all the time. But there is definitely a balance that can come with eating healthy.

9:13 Michele: Yeah, and should come-- and should come with eating healthy, because so many of the fad diets are out there, and I know we're gonna talk about that in a minute, but so many of them focus on just one nutrient that you have to take out. And everything will be fixed. And, and so often when I'm working one on one with a client, and when we talk about a food group they may be leaving out of their diet. I will look at, in my mind's eye, what's the nutrient that missing then and how we're going to fix that. And if we can't get them to eat that particular food group, which I hope I can move them a little in that direction. But if I can't, can I get them to the place where they've recognized that that's a hole in their diet. There's something missing that we need to fix what's broke before we can make everything better. So, um, yeah, so I'm rambling. But there you go.

10:07 Hanna: Yeah, I totally agree. I think that when you hear “diet culture” and think about cutting out things, you don't think about those vitamins and nutrients that are still found in those foods that you then have to kind of find other alternatives for. So that is a really good point. What are some current popular diets that you hear of often?

10:27 Michele: Um, one of the ones that I hear a lot about is the Paleo diet or the whole-30 or the trying to really go back to the basics of raw foods and really controlling carbs against processed carbs in their diet so much... that that can sometimes get to the place where major food groups like the dairy food group are completely missing. The grain group if they're, unless they're eating, chewing on raw seeds, the grain group is completely missing. So it's, it's really hard sometimes to get good whole nutrients, things. Things like calcium, things like magnesium, things like enough, well, they're getting enough fiber. But getting enough B vitamins would be a good example of what might be missing if you took grains out, processed grains out of your diet on a regular basis. So yeah, do they work? Let's talk about that, because we need to address the fact that people lose weight on those diets very often. Yes. But most diets when you're actually, they’re actually analyzed. Most fad diets, people who lose weight on them lose weight on them because they cut their calories. Now, not eating dairy foods. So there goes Kline’s ice cream and there goes my smoothie with yogurt. And so if they're not doing that, they're cutting calories. And that's where the weight loss comes from. The hard part is: are they sustainable? Can I live without pasta the rest of my life? Do I want to live without pasta the rest of my life? That's really what the, I guess, the guide I would use when I'm advising someone whether they should follow through with an attempt on a particular diet-- is this something you can see yourself doing for the rest of your life? And most fad diets I'm going to say would be no. Probably one that does fit into that a little bit might be veganism, vegetarian and veganism. They can be very healthy, but you know, not so healthy, sometimes. Potato chips are vegan, you know, you live on that? Gummy bears are vegan, you're gonna live on that? So again, it's all about balancing and appropriateness. And I'll stop there and let you guide the next question.

12:50 Hanna: Yeah, no, that’s totally okay, I was gonna ask, if you maybe if somebody was thinking about starting one of these diets, they should probably seek the help of a dietitian, right, to see how it would fit into their lifestyle?

13:03 Michele: Yeah, if they want to start a diet I, but, I am not a big diet fan. You know, for a dietitian, I'm just gonna be honest with you about that, I'd much rather have a student take a look at where they are with getting a really good, well balanced diet, eating healthy foods most of the time. And finding out where the calories that are either leading to the weight gain or prohibiting from losing weight are coming from. My guess is they're not coming from fruits and vegetables; they’re not eating too many fruits and vegetables. They're probably eating pizza at midnight on a weekend. Maybe they're having six or seven beers instead of two or three beers on a weekend. So where are those calories coming from? And can we make it, can I help them, can they help themselves make healthier choices, that would naturally bring their caloric intake in line with their caloric need, where they won't have to worry about weight? And if they can do that, if they can do it to lose a little weight and get where they want to be weight wise, if that's what they want to do. Then once they develop that healthy diet, the healthy lifestyle, then weight management becomes just a, just a kind of a tweak, it doesn't become a major overhaul. You don't have to change anything major. You just need to think maybe my portions are too big because I'm still gaining weight. But I'm getting all the nutrients I need. I'm getting all the food groups in. I'm just not getting where I want to go with my weight. And so then it's a matter of just, again, a mild adjustment rather than a major overhaul.

14:34 Hanna: Yeah, I think that's a great point. Because with a lot of those diets, the fad diets that you see, they want you to make a complete change or do something very drastic, like you said. I know one place where I see a lot of these diets being talked about is on social media. And I know that that's a big influence, but do you know of any other places that might influence that culture?

15:00 Michele: You know, I hate to say this, but sometimes it's family. Sometimes it's a sister, an aunt, a mom who's gone on a diet and lost a lot of weight. And that, you know, and and unfortunately, some of our students have grown up in a diet culture where their mom either had struggled herself with an eating disorder, or I'm saying, “mom”, because 99% or 95% of the time it's female. Or that the person who produced the menus in the house was always, “No, we don't have ice cream in our house, no cookies never come in the door,” those kinds of restrictive things so that when someone does ultimately find themselves free, maybe they've got their license, maybe they're away at school for the first time. And oh my gosh, that's french fries, every lunch and dinner, I can't have french fries at home. Let me eat them here. You know. So I think sometimes it's family, that you probably see it on social media more than I do. I hear it more coming through family and friends, my roommate, my sister, my aunt - that kind of thing.

16:05 Hanna: Yes, I know, for sure, with social media, I think it's kind of not a parent that, you know, you're getting these images of, you know, changing your diet, and you should look thinner, or try and fit a certain standard. But I definitely think that with a lot of social media comes comparison. And that's a big thing in diet culture. I know for a fact that when I see the words “diet culture”, that's what I think of is comparison or trying to change your body to look a different way. And I think that's a constant message you get with diet culture is, you know, however you're eating right now is not how you should be because there's a new, interesting diet that focuses on something different.

16:45 Michele: Yeah, it's, so you bring up a good point, because when someone's considering making a change like that, they really should look at where the message is coming from. So if it's, it's coming from somebody who's producing a product they want to sell you, it's Slimfast, or it's something else. Just be aware that you know, that that we live in a capitalistic society. But we also can be taken advantage of because of that, you know, who doesn't want a quick, easy fix? The reality is there isn't in a diet and a healthy lifestyle, there's no quick fix, you want to have a lifelong, sustainable fix. And so just again, be aware of the source. If you're getting information online, reputable sources, or any kind of a hospital setting a clinical setting, again, not a weight loss clinic, but something like at the Mayo Clinic, any of the university sites that are going to have nutrition information available on them, are probably going to be reputable. But if it's a marketing and organizational site, it might be trying to sell you something. So just be aware of that.

17:59 Hanna: Yes, I did, I definitely would say that, that plays into diet culture, too, because that - somebody is trying to make a profit off of you feeling like you need to change your appearance. And that should not be part of the equation. I know, just to bring up social media again, I know a big trend right now is what I eat in a day. I've seen them on Tiktok, and YouTube. And I think it's just kind of important to remind everybody that that's only one, you know, one snapshot of a day or even just a couple hours and that, like you had mentioned earlier, nutrition, it's not one size fits all. So if you see somebody eating one way that might not work for you. So just to be really aware of the messages that you're receiving from social media.

18:46 Michele: Yeah, good point. So if a new habit or new, something you're trying is sustainable, is something you can keep up and it's part of a healthy choice. It's not like four hours at the gym every day, but it's 30 minutes at the gym every day or five days out of the week. That's, that's a good place to go. With diet, would be okay, I'm taking a look at my diet and I realized that I probably only get one fruit a day. And, and maybe if I don't have lettuce and tomato on my sandwich, I'm not having any vegetables. Let me work on building that up. And what I would suggest they do is not like a light switch on the wall, flip it and all of a sudden I'm eating six or seven servings of fruits and vegetables day. But hey, maybe this week I can shoot to do better. I'm going to do one of each. Make sure I get one whole serving of each every day and just try to build it that way. If you're not doing any dairy right now and you're not lactose intolerant, I'm missing a major source of nutrients. Maybe I can add a yogurt to my fruit for a snack. Maybe I can have string cheese with my apple. Maybe I, you know, look for what you need to change to get better at personal self-care, taking care of your own physical needs. And the weight loss will settle itself out. You know, for women, it's hard to lose weight anyway. So I think it would just focus on building healthy habits, the weight will take care of itself.

20:15 Hanna: Yes, I think that's great advice, making those small changes can make a lifetime of a difference. So Michele, we like to end each episode with a main takeaway for our listeners. Is there some piece of advice that you would like to share with our listeners to end on?

20:32 Michele: Yeah, I do. I would like - I thought about that, because I knew I might be asked to end this some way. I would like to suggest that our listeners or readers - see how old I am. Listeners, think about eating a rainbow every day. So looking for color in their diet, which will automatically introduce good, healthy fruits and vegetables pretty consistently. So you know, not Skittles and they talk about, “eat a rainbow Skittles”. I'm talking about - eat a rainbow with your meals when you're putting your lunch together. When you're putting the breakfast together. If you're having oatmeal, can I add blueberries? If I'm having a sandwich for lunch, can I add some roasted pepper or tomato to it, something that's going to give it some color, eat a rainbow every day, you're going to be healthy for it.

21:20 Hanna: That's great advice and can go with anybody no matter whether they're out to eat or eat at home or in the dining hall. I know one major takeaway that I've gotten from talking with you today is moderation. And everything belongs in our lifestyles in moderation. And that's just something that I will definitely keep in mind after talking today.

21:40 Michele: Well, thank you, I'm glad that you found something valuable to walk away with. That's great. So Hanna, let me ask you a question. What would be - what do you have a fun story or a fun fact to tell that involves nutrition and food and diets? 

21:55 Hanna: Ah, let's see. I know personally, I have a real interest in diet culture and body image. I think it's something that everyone can always work on and improve. I know I'm pretty active on my social media. And so I get a lot of those, you know, different messages that I was talking about earlier. So I just know that that's something I'm really passionate about.

22:19 Michele: That's great. And is this gonna be a career choice for you?

22:23 Hanna: I hope so, yes. I mean, I like to live my life this way. And I love to tell people about, you know, different resources. And speaking to professionals. 

22:36 Michele: And I think there's a lot to be said for peer to peer as long as it's appropriate and healthy. Because, again, with eating disorders, I've seen it go the wrong way. But sometimes, if you notice a friend not doing so well, missing meals pretty consistently, maybe not eating well balanced diet, making sure that not necessarily play food police and ask them about it. But maybe, you know, bring them an apple from lunch if they didn't have lunch, or just just find a way to involve them in making a healthy diet more part of their lives as well and part of your part of your socialization as well. You know?

23:13 Hanna: Yes, I agree that peer-to-peer aspect is really big, because a lot of people feel the same thing, but don't know how to talk about it. So I think, like he said, like, not to believe anybody but just to have a conversation and say, you know, how are you feeling today? And y'all can, you know, get a lot from people out of that. 

23:32 Michele: And keep the conversation about health rather than weight or, you know? It’s interesting, I had a student last week and I, you know, part of my assessment is, is knowing what they weigh. And she said, “Oh, I haven't weighed myself in months. And then a bunch of us decided to get on the scale and check our weights. And that's why I came to see you because I'm like, well I weigh so much”. And she was not out of the healthy weight range, but she was heavier than her peers. And that brought up all kinds of trouble stuff. So I think keeping it really healthy about you know, I keep using the word “healthy”, and I don't know a better word to use to really not focus on any one unhealthy aspect - restricting their diets, eating too little, you know, some of the self-harm stuff we see around dieting. So kudos to you for being one of the up and coming. I appreciate that.

24:27 Hanna: Thank you. Thank you. I really appreciate that. I just wanted to ask you one final, fun question. [Michele: Okay!] If you could be a fruit, what kind of fruit would you want to be?

24:41 Michele: I actually would be a pomegranate. I love pomegranates. I grew up eating them. And I love that you get to peel them and pop them open and you never quite know where those seeds are going to land. And I'd like to think that as myself, I like to surprise people every once in a while with what I say, with what I do. And I think So you know, one of that little paragraph flying off on the edge is is fun. And it's, it's, it's juicy and it's red and sweet and I love it. So that would be me.

25:12 Hanna: That's a great answer. I love that. Thank you again for joining us today.

25:14 Michele: Thank you, Hanna.

[Musical Interlude]

25:18 Mikayla: So, as always, such a great episode here on the Well Dukes Podcast. Something that stuck out to me was Michele saying that she tries to try a new cuisine every National Nutrition Month. So Jordan, are you trying anything new this month? 

25:32 Jordan: I know, I really liked that she said that too. And that is something I can try to aspire to. I can't say I really have tried to venture out to a cuisine, but I did recently try Taste of Thai, that's in Harrisonburg. I've had Thai food before, but I just haven't actually gotten to any of the restaurants here. And so yes, maybe I'll continue that. But yeah, I like that, too. [Mikayla: That's awesome.] Yeah, such a great conversation between Michele and Hanna. And I think also really great for Hanna, who wants to be a dietitian in the future, just to have that conversation with Michele. And Michele made so many good points when it comes to talking about college students, and, you know, dieting and then even how they talked about, you know, where it kind of comes from, like, where diet culture comes from? And what are some of the things that influenced diet culture? And Hanna really made great points talking about the use of social media, and how people are getting that, you know, getting ideas around the food that they eat. 

26:38 Mikayla: Yeah, I agree. That's something that has been kind of sticking out to me recently, is just kind of scrolling through Instagram and seeing what information is out there. What information possibly are students seeing, and that's something that I've noticed is a lot of dieting reels, or just posts and things that people are doing. And Michele made such a great point when she was talking about diet versus food, and looking at food as more as a holistic health perspective, or from more of a holistic health perspective. That, can you live without that food item for the rest of your life and kind of taking it more from the perspective of a balanced mindful experience versus eating to lose weight or eating, eating a certain way for a certain amount of months to receive the beach body, right? And so I just think that they made such great points of where diet culture comes from, where are students seeing it? What information are they gathering from this? And is that the way that we should be viewing food? 

27:38 Jordan: Yeah, absolutely. Like, let's say it one more time, that nutrition should be seen as a whole and that the focus should be on health and not diet, like Michele said. And I also... Yeah, like I loved how really she talks about when people think about diets. So many of them are not sustained because it really does have to become an entire lifestyle change. And Michele made that good point that I think anyone should really consider: can I live the rest of my life like this? Can I live the rest of my life without eating pasta or dairy or meat? And you know, there are some actual, kind of, diets like a vegan diet where people are absolutely able to sustain and be healthy about that. But, man, when she asked that question, I thought about it, I immediately was like, “No, I would not want to live the rest of my life without pasta, you know?” What would you... What's something you cannot live without, Mikayla? 

28:32 Mikayla: Oh, my goodness. I love noodles. And I took this BuzzFeed quiz the other week, and it was like being an expert on bland foods, and I love all of them. I am such, like, a mashed potato. I love my buttery noodles. So I'm not that exciting I guess in terms of food, but yeah, I could not go without noodles. How about you?

28:55 Jordan: I would say... Oh, I love junk food. Like it would, I love eating fruits and vegetables. I'm not a picky eater. But man, I do love junk food. I love Oreos. I love Doritos. I thought it would be really tough to really completely cut out junk food. And so like Hanna said, it's all about kind of moderation to like it is okay. Michele says it's okay for people to like chocolate. Gosh, chocolate tastes so good for a lot of us. So really, yeah, like they said kind of that holistic approach to finding the balance. That really makes it, you know, what feels sustainable, but also make someone feel happy about it. 

29:45 Mikayla: I feel like that brings up a great point in terms of balancing. There's a correct way to balance and what you don't want to do is in Jordan, you and I were talking about this earlier, this concept of “drunkorexia,” this concept that, “hey, I'm going to balance myself,” I use those with quotes, air quotes. “I'm just, I'm not going to eat my food here, I'm going to save my calories so that I can drink them later.” And so I feel like this is a great time to bring this up with all the information that Michele provided with us, our previous episode being about eating disorders, and folks viewing that as balancing. But that's not the kind of balancing that we're talking about. So Jordan, can you kind of go a bit more into that and bring some light to this concept of drunkorexia that we're seeing in college students? 

30:30 Jordan: Yeah, drunkorexia is not an actual, like, clinically diagnosed thing. It's kind of more just this term used for when someone restricts their caloric intake or kind of restricts their eating, meaning they might be skipping meals throughout the day, because they know that they're going to be consuming alcohol later that night. And so they're aware of the calories in that alcohol. And so when they're on this very narrow mindset of like, “I can, I must stick within these parameters of X amount of calories,” rather than thinking about the nutritious facts and like the nutrients that they need for their body, if they're focused solely on number of calories, they might skip meals so that they know that they're going to be consuming a lot of high calories in, like Michele said, you know, five, six drinks on that weekend. And there are drinks that are super high in sugar, that I think people don't realize too, like. So if you're mixing alcohol, mixing liquor with things like soda, and cocktail juice and stuff, you know, that's kind of the hidden calories. And another kind of behavior that goes along with this drunkorexia is also that someone may be engaging in purging behavior. So, meaning that they'll kind of make themselves throw up to try to create room or so that when they consume all that alcohol, they don't feel as sick. And, and both of those are dangerous behaviors, those are not behaviors we want to see happening. Because having food in your system is a protective strategy, and is something that you want to have if someone is going to be engaging in drinking that same day or weekend or something. 

32:06 Mikayla: Yeah, and I feel like that is very common with college students, just this whole culture of being able to drink as much as you want on the weekends or drinking to keep up with folks, but then also not wanting to gain weight and the pressures of things like the freshman 15, and whatnot. So there's a lot happening there. But I'm glad we were able to just take a moment to acknowledge that phenomenon that students might be engaging in, and shed some light on it. And so something to keep in mind too is if you are receiving nutrition advice from social media, or from someone else, making sure that they're not encouraging you to do things like this to, to go without eating so that you can enjoy your favorite ice cream or your favorite alcoholic drink, you want to be making sure that you're getting that information from reputable sources like Michele. So we want to bring up that there are different categories of folks that work in the nutrition industry. So we have nutritionists, but we also have registered dietitians. And so a key takeaway here is, Michele is a free resource to you as a JMU student, and she is a registered dietitian. She makes a great point in this episode that really anyone can be a nutritionist. So you might be getting advice from somebody that doesn't have a solid educational background in nutrition, and just being aware of that. So what we always recommend is getting the information from someone who has gone through the training has the proper set of skills, educational backgrounds, such as Michele, and if you need to make an appointment with her or you're interested in talking more with her, we will also have a link in this description of how to make an appointment with Michele.

33:41 Jordan: Yeah, for sure. And it like you said, we often see this, especially on social media, people giving away nutrition advice. And the thing there to remember is, like we've said in previous episodes when we talk about eating disorders and body images that everyone is different. And so a diet or, you know, diet modifications may work well for someone but that doesn't mean it's necessarily going to work well for you. So, yes, Michele is free, and she is here on Mondays and Thursdays, so she does work part time with us. But she is still seeing students and it's just nice to have someone to talk to, again, like it doesn't have to be that anyone has specific diet, dietary constraints or restrictions or anything. Sometimes it's just how to make healthier choices when eating at D-Hall or E-Hall. You know, when we have these almost like seemingly unlimited options of food, she can also help there. And so as we've been saying March is National Nutrition Month, so we will be posting some information, just a lot of, like, fun facts on nutrition trying to, you know, help students make healthier behaviors, healthier choices when it comes to the food that they're eating. So follow us on Instagram @JMUWellDukes for all of that this month and if you are listening to this for HTH 100 your passcode is “vegan.” So that is like the type of diet, vegan. So remember, be Well Dukes.