SMITH CENTER, Kan. – Staff from Smith County Memorial Hospital and Post Rock Extension have partnered to host “Ask a Dietitian: Intro to Healthy Eating” on June 27 at the hospital conference room.
The event, which begins at 5:30 p.m., will include a meal prepared by chef and registered dietitian Stephen Smith and a discussion with both Smith and Ashley Svaty, Post Rock’s Nutrition, Food Safety and Health agent, about adapting home cooking for a healthier lifestyle. A fee of $5 will be collected at the door to cover food costs.
“We hope to attract participants from a variety of stages in life,” Svaty said. “Ideally the session will include a mix of individuals who are adapting to doctor-recommended diet changes, those that want to increase health to reduce medications like insulin or blood pressure meds as well as those who are trying to learn and teach other family members to be healthy.”
Participants will go home with tips for healthy cooking at home as well as recipes from the meal at the event. Smith and Svaty both hope the session is an interactive time for participants to ask questions about anything related to diet or cooking at home.
One trend Smith and Svaty have seen in recent years is a reduction in cooking at home.
“People aren’t cooking at home anymore,” Smith said, who is a Culinary Institute of America trained chef. “There are a million excuses—time, energy after a long day, lack of know-how, etc. I want to help our participants understand that cooking good food does take some time, but if you shop and plan well, it can be like any other habit in our lives. It can be fun!”
The dinner is one both Smith and Svaty hope to replicate in the future.
“We’d like to use this first opportunity to get to know what topics are of interest to our community,” Svaty said. “Between the two of us, we hear a wide variety of questions and this will give us a chance to share our knowledge and also connect members of the community who may be able to help each other.”
The two organizations share a common goal.
“Increasingly, individuals are connecting food with health and we want to create a space for conversations and to help provide solutions,” Smith said.
To register for the dinner event, visit postrock.k-state.edu or contact Ashley Svaty at asvaty@ksu.edu or (785) 282-6823.