The Student Health Services, as well as the Psychological Services, hosted a Health Fair last week for the benefit of students looking to educate themselves about a healthy lifestyle.
Located in the Quad, both the Student Health and Psychological Services had several booths set up with different events. Aside from a panel of health experts from the Student Health Services, there were raffles, sleep hygiene, mediation, and massages.
“We had nearly 200 students complete at least four of the activities offered during the health fair,” said Jo Buczko, a coordinator for Student Health Services.
According to Buczko, the Health Fair was a way to inform students about the health services offered at PCC.
“We often find students who pay their health fee multiple times without knowing the services that are available to them on campus,” said Buczko. “So this gives us a chance to demonstrate how their health fee is serving them.”
With support from the Student Services Funding, Health Services was able to get enough money to host the event because of the success they had during the fall semester with their Mental Health Awareness Week event.
During the Health Fair students were given passports to be filled out every time they completed an activity at each of the individual booths. These passports went towards a raffle where the participants had the chance to win a prize.
One of the more popular stops was the sleep hygiene booth where students had a chance to win prizes.
“We have the sleep hygiene quiz,” said Lindsey Ibarra, an intern. “As incentives for participation we’re giving them sleep masks and self-massagers.”
Although the booths were filled with fun events, the volunteers participating really wanted to drive home the value of eating right, taking care of the body, and relaxing the mind.
“We did a quiz asking if participants could identify the five overlooked vegetables we had on display that ‘deserves a second chance’,” said Dr. Lorrie Gray, a registered dietitian. “
Out of 200 students who took the quiz, only two could name all five vegetables.
Gray has surveyed how many servings of fruits and vegetable students eat each day. The result is less than satisfactory.
“The majority of our students are failing here,” said Gray. “Many do not consume a single fruit or vegetable in a day.”
To combat this, the Health Fair had a nutrition outreach that explained to students what each vegetable was and how to prepare them. Some of the vegetables on display at the booth were brussels sprouts, parsnips, turnips, rutabagas, and eggplants. The students that participated were also given a link to the Student Health Services web site where they could obtain more information and recipes about various vegetables.
Physical health was not the only issue being discussed. The Psychological Services also had activities for students, such as massages and a meditation booth.
“Mindful exercise is kind of similar to meditation,” said HoYing Chu, a psychology intern.
The mindfulness exercise had students relaxing inside a booth while wearing headphones.
Chu knows that students experience a lot of anxiety, especially during finals week. That’s why she has been helping out with the mindfulness exercise—teaching students how to relax and let go of the stress they have.
“I try to encourage them to practice on a daily basis, or regular basis, because the more you practice they more you can fill the difference,” Chu said.
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