Campuses:
Welcome to the Healthy Foods, Healthy Lives Institute! Our mission is to increase and sustain the University's impact in the interdisciplinary arena of food, agriculture, and health by building the University's capacity in research, learning, and community engagement.
This website is your portal for learning about what’s going on at the Institute, gathering health and wellness resources, and becoming a part of the Healthy Foods, Healthy Lives community.
2012 University Research and Graduate Student Research Request for ProposalsThe Healthy Foods, Healthy Lives (HFHL) Institute is pleased to announce the release of our Spring 2012 University Research and Graduate Student Research Request for Proposals.
The focus of the University Research RFP is to fund new, interdisciplinary faculty research teams that include members from at least three distinct disciplines and that produce research that has a high potential for growth and for becoming self-supporting over time. The priority areas for focus are food protection (safety), prevention of obesity and diet-related disease, and food policy. Within these priority areas, of special importance is the integration of agriculture and health sciences. We are also requesting Graduate Student Research applications to fund student research and/or other activities related to broadening interdisciplinary learning in the areas of food, agriculture, and human health. Graduate student research requests should seek to establish cross-disciplinary learning and engagement. Funds for both grant programs will be distributed through a competitive review process.
For more details, you may view or download the RFPs here.
Mark your calendar for Food Day 2012 - October 23 & 24!Last year's Food Day celebration at the University of Minnesota was a huge success and this year we want to create even more awareness and excitement around healthy, affordable, and sustainably produced food. Please stay tuned for more information about this year's two-day Food Day event in Coffman Memorial Union's Great Hall and Theater. This year's plans include a free food expo, panel discussions (October 23) and an all-day film series (October 24). Learn more about Food Day 2012 efforts that are being planned all around the country.
HFHL Director Mindy Kurzer co-authors analysis
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (04/09/12) — Menopausal women can find relief from hot flashes by taking soy isoflavone supplements, a new study from the University of Minnesota and other research institutions has found. Past studies have yielded similar results but individual studies were considered inconclusive. For the new analysis, researchers evaluated 19 past trials from 10 countries to reach broader conclusions. The statistical analysis of the findings involved trials that included 1,196 women for hot flash frequency and 988 women for hot flash severity. The results are published in Menopause, the Journal of the North American Menopause Society.
Read UMNews article here.
Read more about the study here.
(Photo: iStock Photo)
HFHL Institute is pleased to announce the funding of five grants this round. A big "Thank You" to Robert Jones, Senior Vice President for System Academic Administration, who has agreed to co-sponsor two projects. These additional funds have allowed us to support a total of five Community-University projects this year. View a PDF of the Spring 2011 awarded grants here.
Look for our Fall University Research Grant RFP in September 2011.
HFHL Researchers Highlighted For Determining Capacity to Grow Local FoodWDIO, the ABC affiliate in Duluth, recently aired a news story about HFHL grantees, David Abazs and Stacey Stark, and their research entitled “Defining the Agricultural Landscape of the Western Lake Superior Region: Realities and potentials for a healthy local food system for healthy people.” Abazs, Stark, and their research team concluded that the Western Lake Superior Region has enough land to satisfy the population with locally grown foods in all of the food groups. They have begun working on various projects to accomplish their goal of sourcing 20% local food by 2020.
View the news story here.
Read more about their research here.
Click here to learn more about this exciting new undergraduate course.
Fill out this brief form describing your research interests in Food Policy, Food Safety or Obesity/Chronic Diseases.
Check the Student Opportunities and Student Resources pages for info about other food, health and agriculture-related student organizations, internships, volunteer opportunities and more.
