Group to study Mediterranean food system health benefits, with help from Turner Award | University of Missouri Extension
Food market in Cortona, Italy. Ann Cohen photo.
Group to study Mediterranean food system health benefits, with help from Turner Award
"In Italy, eating is a sensory experience that feels centered, like there's a peace between food and life," says Ann Cohen, University of Missouri Extension associate state specialist of nutritional sciences who is studying the Mediterranean diet.
The region's cuisine emphasizes ample fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans and olive oil, and of course, wine. Dairy products, fish and poultry are eaten occasionally and red meat less frequently. This type of diet has been linked to longer life, reduced risk of heart disease and cancer and other chronic diseases. But the diet's health benefits are credited to much more than the mix of foods.
"For example," says Cohen, "Italians typically eat slowly. They eat less and savor it more. They usually don't eat between meals. And many still grow much of their own food or purchase it from local sources."
Such aspects of the food culture, including freshness, artful preparation and differences in mealtime traditions, are part of an attitude toward eating that combine to make the Mediterranean diet healthful. Also related are lifestyle factors and even land use and development patterns that encourage physical activity and strong social and community ties. For example, cities and towns are close together and some do not allow auto traffic in core areas. People walk and bicycle more frequently or take the bus or train. In the evenings, after a leisurely dinner, many families still take a stroll together and visit with neighbors.
Students will experience and study these elements of food and lifestyle during a three-week study abroad program that Cohen is co-leading next May with Dale Brigham, MU Extension state specialist for nutritional sciences. The group will experience the sights, smells and tastes of urban and rural life in Italy, with visits to Parma, Modena, Ferrara, Lucca and San Gimignano. In Florence, students will attend sessions at Apicus International School of Hospitality, a culinary institute that features courses in food photography and writing along with cooking and restaurant management. They will also visit local food markets and hike through the celebrated Cinque Terre, a string of five coastal villages connected by walking paths.
The goal is to enhance awareness and knowledge of MU students and faculty of the Mediterranean region's food and related physical and cultural practices, according to Cohen. This will be the first year for this study-abroad opportunity. (Applications, due Nov. 30, 2007, can be obtained from Cohen or Brigham.)
"Along the way, each day, questions will be posed to the participants, asking how we can bring some of the elements of Italy's rich food environment into our own lives, communities and teaching," Cohen says.
This opportunity to learn from the world is due in part to private support from the Ronald J. Turner Global Education Award. Cohen was selected as the 2007 recipient of the award, which helped underwrite her travel to scout venues and plan for the course. Cohen, whose other projects include the school-based Jump into Action nutrition program and the three-year Healthy Lifestyle Promotion Community, has been with MU since 1993.
This was only the second year the Ronald J. Turner Endowment provided funding for the Global Education Award. In 2006, the first grant went to Sharen Hunt, 4-H youth specialist and county program director in Platte County and West Central Missouri. The support allowed Hunt to participate in the Globe Program, a series of monthly presentations through the World Trade Center of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce. Hunt used the information to develop new workshops and tours for the 2007 Kansas City 4-H Global Conference. The connections she gained with Kansas City's major corporations also benefited the Northland Ethnic Festival.
The Ronald J. Turner Endowment Fund provides an annual grant for a faculty or staff member within extension to support global education efforts. It was established by contributions from faculty, staff, colleagues and friends in honor of Dr. Turner's decade of service as the executive vice president for outreach and extension and director of cooperative extension.
Positano Duomo and view of the Amalfi coast. Ann Cohen photo.