Malmstrom bites into a healthy lifestyle

MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, MT, UNITED STATES

04.02.2015

Courtesy Story

341st Missile Wing

MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. - Throughout the month of March, people around the globe were encouraged to make some healthy changes to their lifestyles and eating habits during National Nutrition Month. What started as a weeklong event in 1973 has since turned into a monthlong campaign to boost public interest in nutrition; even more so, a life-long commitment to good health.

According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, “A healthy lifestyle – one based on regular physical activity and an eating pattern chosen to meet individual nutrient needs within calorie limits – is vital to maintaining good health and quality of life,” said registered dietitian, nutritionist and academy president Sonja Connor.

“This year’s ‘bite into a healthy lifestyle’ theme gives consumers an easy reminder that achieving optimal health is not about a specific food or time or year, but rather a life-long commitment that leaves plenty of time for the foods and activities we love,” she continued.

For Malmstrom Air Force Base, the observance of NNM has become a cornerstone of helping Airmen maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Whether it serves as a simple reminder to watch what you eat, or a jump start for the motivation to change for the better, NNM plays a key role in helping Airmen learn the benefits of pursuing healthy, long-lasting goals

This year, in support of NNM, members of the medical group and health promotion team at Malmstrom handed out healthy snacks to base personnel with the message "bite into a healthier lifestyle," said Katie Wichman, 341st Medical Operations Squadron health promotion dietitian.

“Nutrition is the focal point of this month, but we also try to promote exercise because there is more to building an overall healthy lifestyle than nutrition alone,” she said.

Those in need of advice and information on how to get started on a new path to healthy living can contact the base’s health promotion team staff. From nutrition classes to metabolic analysis, gate analysis and tobacco cessation services, HPT staff will provide the tools needed to make a positive change.

“The mission of the HPT here is a preventative one,” said Kirk Clark, 341st Medical Group exercise physiologist. “Preventing Airmen from injury and disease is our goal.”

According to Clark, health promotion is a team effort that involves every corner of Malmstrom’s clinic, every noncommissioned officer and every commander on the installation.

“To realize that (you’re) not making a change for today or tomorrow, or even four or six years from now, but a change for 10, 20, 25 and 40 years from now ... is the key,” said Clark. “The big picture means all of us have to be incorporated into it. We have to care.”

• Date Taken: 04.02.2015
• Date Posted: 04.02.2015 12:51
• Story ID: 158949
• Location: MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, MT, US
• Hometown: GREAT FALLS, MT, US
• Hometown: WATERTOWN, WI, US