| Unit name | Nutrition, Disease and Public Health |
|---|---|
| Unit code | PHEDM4012 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Papadaki |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School for Policy Studies |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why is this unit important?
This unit will critically review the role of nutrition in the aetiology, prevention and management of disease, highlighting the role of nutrition at different life stages and non-communicable diseases. The unit will review key public health nutrition issues, and identify the optimal dietary recommendations for public health, enabling you to understand and interpret the links between nutrition and health for people of all ages and according to health status.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
Nutrition, Disease and Public Health is the first unit of the programme of study to focus on examining the evidence base for the role of lifestyle factors (in this case, nutrition) in the prevention and management of chronic disease. It will develop your understanding of why we should be concerned about nutrition and dietary behaviours in relation to health.
An overview of content
This unit will critically review the role of nutrition in the aetiology, prevention and management of disease, highlighting the role of nutrition at different life stages and non-communicable diseases. The unit will review key public health nutrition issues, and identify the optimal dietary recommendations for public health, enabling students to understand and interpret the links between nutrition and health for people of all ages and according to health status.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
You will have gained new subject-specific knowledge in relation to the relationships between diet, disease, and public health. You will have also gained new transferable skills in critically evaluating the evidence for the role of nutrition across different life stages and non-communicable diseases.
Learning Outcomes
Teaching will be via face-to-face interactive lectures, workshops, and small group work activities where you will work together to discuss various topics and feedback to the wider group, occasionally through brief presentations. Asynchronous materials (Included recorded presentations) will also be provided to prepare for some face-to-face sessions
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Flipped classroom tasks, where you will work in small groups, with each group assigned a different task, case study, or problem, on a broad topic relevant to the unit e.g. different dietary patterns in the management of type 2 diabetes. You will critically appraise the evidence against these tasks, and present your outcomes to the wider class, with verbal feedback provided by the unit coordinator.
A class debate will also take place, where you will work in groups to justify the ‘case for’ or the ‘case against’ in a current scientific topic, putting into practice your knowledge from the unit. You will present their case to the wider class and answer questions from the opposing groups, with feedback provided by both the unit coordinator and peers.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Literature Review (3000 words maximum, 100%)
This assessment covers all of the unit learning outcomes.
When assessment does not go to plan
Subject to the university regulations for taught programmes, you may be offered an opportunity for reassessment. This will comprise a task of the same format as the original assessment.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. PHEDM4012).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
