Nutrition classes are held in hospitals, community centers and adult learning facilities. They are often free or inexpensive, as they’re designed to help people look after their health and nutrition. Holistic or herbal nutrition courses may cost more if they’re held in individual health food or herbal supplement shops. In order to choose the best nutrition class for you, pick times that work with your schedule and make sure the course material will address your health concerns and situation.
For example, taking weight loss classes to learn to eat more nutritiously isn’t a good idea if you don’t really need to reduce your size. If you’re at a healthy weight and want to maintain it, look for nutrition classes aimed at maintenance. Also look at the philosophy behind a nutrition class. Holistic nutrition, which is concerned with the health of the body, mind and spirit together, can be healthy, but it may also be harmful if you end up taking herbal supplements that interfere with your prescribed medications.
The best way to be sure that a nutrition class is right for you is to ask questions before you sign up. This means giving yourself enough time ahead to be able to contact the course instructor through the institution offering the nutrition classes. Before you do that, make sure to read the information in the course description carefully so you don’t waste everybody’s time, including your own, asking questions that are already covered.
Think about the purpose of the class as well as what exactly the expected learning outcomes are. For example, if a nutrition class is described as being a basic course covering all of the recommended daily vitamins and minerals for the purpose of choosing the right variety of healthy foods each day, but you’re hoping to learn about prenatal health needs, this may not be covered and therefore a waste of your time. You’d be better off phoning different hospitals in your area to ask about classes in prenatal nutrition.
Unless a general type of nutrition course will work for you, look for a more specific one. If you have rare food allergies and need healthy recipe ideas, an online nutrition class may be more convenient if you aren’t able to find a walk-in course in your area. You could also take private lessons from a nutritionist familiar with your specific allergy. Check your area hospitals and community centers for nutrition classes if you have diabetes or another specific health problem as there are courses for most of them available in many towns.