#BeReady: My New E-Book for College Students with Food Allergies

Are you ready?  Well, #BeReady.  That's the name of my new e-book/handbook for college students with food allergies.  I am happy to announce that this is the culminating project of my Master’s Degree Thesis (I am so excited that I wanted to write that with capital letters!).  In my study, I looked at the information needs and information preferences of college students with food allergies.  Here is a short overview of the findings.  Students wanted:

 

·       more information on how to prepare food for themselves

·       nutrition

·       recipes

·       knowing where to shop

·       how to inform the college and their friends about their food allergies

·       navigating social scenarios

·       understanding their available dining options on-campus and off-campus

 
The majority of students prefer to receive food allergy information from websites and brochures.  They would love to use apps if there were more developed for their needs. Hint Hint for you app developers out there!  Participatory design is the thing right now, have the students help you design the app!

If you would like more information about my study, please email me (shandaaguirre@yahoo.com) and I can provide detailed stats, academic style!

I decided to give the students what they wanted.  I wrote a handbook with basic nutrition advice, recipes that can be made in the dorm, shopping tips, traveling tips, and resources on where to find more information.  I am also going to be working with FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) to help them develop more education material for college students with food allergies.  Check out their website, they are doing great things!

Without further delay, here it is:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/232363472/BeReady-Handbook-for-College-Students-with-Food-Allergies


I hope this handbook helps!  Feedback is welcome!  Enjoy the holidays everyone!

Good Wishes,
Shanda

Image: courtesy of google images.