Poor dietary patterns are the leading causes of chronic disease worldwide. Promoting better nutrition in the population requires approaches informed by the nutrition, social, behavioral, and health sciences; local knowledge and experience; and best practices for designing, implementing, and evaluating nutrition policies and programs.
The 42-credit Public Health Nutrition concentration prepares you to apply the science of nutrition and epidemiological principles to programs and policy, systems, and environmental approaches that promote healthy dietary behaviors. You will also have the opportunity to take electives that allow you to further tailor your education in areas like nutrition and sustainable food systems, and nutrition and physical activity for chronic disease prevention. The Public Health Nutrition concentration is housed at the Colorado State University (CSU) campus of the Colorado School of Public Health. CSU is a land grant institution with an active interdisciplinary team of food systems scholars and a strong history of chronic disease prevention in Colorado, the US, and globally.
You will come away with an understanding of:
- how the under- and over-consumption of macronutrients and micronutrients can lead to poor health outcomes;
- how to critically review the nutrition literature, analyze nutrition and health data, and assess dietary intake;
- and how to apply planning and evaluation strategies to nutrition programs that focus on addressing the social determinants of health and food systems issues.
Examples of career paths that you could pursue after completing this program include designing nutrition campaigns or programs for communities; working with non-profits to improve access to healthy foods; working in local, state, or federal government to evaluate and monitor nutrition programs; and working with international non-governmental organizations to inform the development of food and nutrition policies abroad.
Alumni have gone on to many exciting career opportunities including:
- WIC Vendor Specialist with a state health department
- Policy and Prevention Specialist with a county health department
- Healthy Hearts Educator with a healthcare system
- Wellness Coordinator with a school district
*This MPH concentration is only offered in-person at the CSU campus and is not available as a remote degree program.