My time at the National Agricultural Library (NAL) was spent working at the Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC) with the Food Stamp Nutrition Connection team. The teams primary focus is to provide resources for nutrition educators.

My first week at the rotation was spent receiving a brief overview of the entire FNIC organization including many of the individual services such as WIC Works and the International Bibliographic Information on Dietary Supplements (IBIDS) Database. I received training on how information is loaded onto the web site to conform with government regulations, the purpose of metadata, and various uses for the internet in today's world.

For one week of the rotation I worked with the web and reference team to answer the publics' general nutrition questions. On NAL's web site there is an option to "Ask an Expert" a question about nutrition. These questions had to be researched and answered. Each answer must be worded carefully in order to comply with requirements. Information specialists on the team are not allowed to give individual dietary advice regarding a specific diet or disease. Often I would encourage them to see their doctor or locate a registered dietitian in their area. Due to this requirement of not giving specific advice, it was important to make sure the answer I provided was general and focused on providing credible resources for the person to refer to. Working on the web and reference team was a great learning experience because it allowed me to research specific nutrition information and increase my writing skills as an educator.

Another brief assignment was to write review articles about two educational resources developed my the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension. This project entailed critiquing the resources and making reviewers comments in regards to the effectiveness of the resources, how they would be best used, and any additional information that users should know about them.

To read Rochelle's comments about Update Your Plate click here and read "Reviewers Comments".

To read Rochelle's comments regarding Searching for Ways to Keep Costs Down click here and read "Reviewers Comments".

My main project at the Library was to update and redesign the General Nutrition Resource List for Seniors. The Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC) originally designed this Resource List as a quick guide to help consumers obtain educational materials and information regarding nutrition for older adults. The last update was done in August 2003. My job was to review the resources already listed and determine whether they were still credible and if the links still worked. After doing that I searched for updated resources to add to the list. The criteria I was looking for included: credible resources, dealing specifically with nutrition, and developed with older adults as the target audience. I redesigned the organizational structure so users could search by topic instead of type of publication. The publication will still be under revision for quite some time after my departure, but the basic structure was completed.

My update of the General Nutrition Resource List for Older Adults

International Food Information Council
Length of rotation: 3 weeks
Worked to enhance partnership relations with leading companies by following media trends and helping organize materials.

This International Food Information Council showed me what it was like to be on the cutting edge of dietetics. The organization is supported primarily by food and beverage industries and has developed many partnerships with leading organizations. Their primary goal is to convert scientific nutrition information into consumer friendly materials.

It was fun to be involved with the latest nutrition collaborations and to work within a company that is following media and consumer trends in an effort to address the current nutrition concerns of Americans. During my time at IFIC, they released their 2007 Food and Health Survey: Consumer Attitudes towards Food, Nutrition and Health. I was able to proofread some of the final drafts to make sure that information was accurate and that the many graphs matched the text. I also looked for wording that was confusing and suggested ways to make it more consumer friendly. It was interesting to be a part of the media launch and get a small glimpse into how releasing such a large and much anticipated document to America happens.

Another project included researching media coverage--both in the United States and internationally--regarding formula fed infants and obesity. This was done at the request of an IFIC Foundation partner. I used the Lexis Nexis search engine to obtain the information and then formatted it into an understandable document. This project helped me see the importance of using the correct search terms in an effort to find the exact information you are looking for. Click here to view one of the last drafts of the report.

I participated in many collaboration meetings regarding functional foods and the latest trends in fats. I also researched and summarized information about child feeding behaviors. The plan was to use this information to create an updated publication regarding the topic. Click here to see a sample.

My time here was well spent as I learned to focus on consumer needs and try to look for trends and information that determines how consumers view nutrition and health lifestyles.