Food for (Optional) Thought

Six months after calorie cards disappeared from the dining halls, they have made a comeback—in a less controversial form. Instead of cards being placed directly next to the food, nutrition printouts will be located in separate spaces within each dining hall. We appreciate the efforts of Harvard University Dining Services to provide nutritional information for those who wish to access it while balancing concerns about the association between calorie counting and eating disorders.

Providing easily accessible information about dining hall food certainly helps students navigate their dining options. The old calorie cards, however, were a flawed method of encouraging healthful eating habits because the number of calories contained in a food item is not the only measure of its healthfulness. In fact, focusing only on calorie counts can lead to very unhealthful eating behavior, and many students pointed out that publicly displaying such information could be harmful for students already struggling with eating disorders. HUDS made the right decision to support those students by removing the cards from beside each dish.

Now, students can choose whether they want to examine the nutrition cards, which provide more comprehensive information about the food items offered in the dining halls—a complete nutritional breakdown, ingredients, and serving size suggestions. The cards also contain interesting facts about some of the dishes, such as country of origin, as part of a general culture of food education. HUDS has clearly put a great deal of thought and time into a more holistic approach toward promoting healthful eating.

In general, it has been gratifying to see HUDS being more open and transparent about its dining decisions and more receptive to student feedback. The new website design is a great improvement, with easier access to menu information and a link to HUDS executive director Ted Mayer’s blog on dining at Harvard. The blog provides detailed information on HUDS programs like the Food Literacy Project and the activities of the HUDS Student-Faculty Advisory Committee. It also posts answers to student questions about Harvard dining and indicates changes that have been made in response to student requests. We hope that HUDS will continue this trend of improvement and increased attention to student input.