The Bachelor of Science in biobehavioral nutrition and wellness launched in fall 2021. It offers students the chance to “dive deep into the relationship between human health, mindfulness, nutrition, metabolism and food as medicine,” according to its website. Although many universities offer undergraduate nutrition degrees, UAB’s new major is unique in emphasizing the “interaction between the science of nutrition with physical, mental and emotional well-being,” said Douglas Moellering, Ph.D., associate professor and director of Undergraduate Programs in the Department of Nutrition Sciences. “There is a lot of data showing a link between cognitive ability, mood and the food choices we make.”
Response so far has been strong, Moellering says. After its first semester, the program had signed up 16 students; it is on track to have close to 80 enrolled by fall 2023. One current student was drawn to nutrition after her mother had a heart attack. Another already has his own fitness company and wants to add a degree in nutrition to be able to expand his offerings. “Many students want to involve themselves in a preventive wellness and healthy lifestyle opportunity,” Moellering said. “They all want to help themselves and their families and communities live healthier lives.”
“When I read the degree page, I felt I had found a place I belonged, that aligned with my interests,” said one current student when asked what attracted her to the major. Another student said that “working in health care made me realize how nutrition is the foundation to many diseases, but it isn’t talked about enough.”
Jobs plentiful
According to the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in health and wellness-focused occupations through 2030 will grow faster than the 7.7 percent average growth rate for all occupations. Some jobs are particularly hot. Athletic trainer jobs are projected to grow by 23 percent, adding 7,000 new positions to the 30,000 jobs available in 2020. Jobs for health education specialists are projected to grow by 12 percent, adding 7,600 new jobs to the 2020 total of 61,100. And jobs for dietitians and nutritionists are projected to grow by 11 percent, adding 7,800 positions to the 2020 total of 73,000. In separate research from LinkedIn for the company’s 2022 Global Talent Trends report, there has been a 13 percent increase in job titles that reference “wellness” or “culture” since 2019.
Graduates from the Biobehavioral Nutrition and Wellness program “can work as fitness trainers, nutritionists, wellness teachers, counselors, health providers — and they can teach K-12 science as well,” Moellering said. He noted that job growth is linked to the fact that “seven of the 10 health problems that the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] lists as main risk factors for chronic disease are nutrition-related,” including heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes and cancer. The new major also aligns with UAB’s status as the first U.S. university to join the International Health Promoting Campuses Network and adopt the Okanagan Charter, “which calls for us to invest in health and wellness in every facet of the university,” Moellering said. “This is the perfect opportunity for us to launch this program.”