Information is power, but when it comes to nutrition, there’s so much of it, and so much is garbage, that you might find yourself not knowing who to believe and what is right and wrong anymore.
If you’re looking to start the year by learning more about nutrition, you might be happy to hear that there are tons of great quality information out there. I made a list of nutrition, diet, and exercise science courses from prestigious universities that are completely free and available online.
I personally like Coursera because I’ve already done some courses with them and enjoyed them. They had nothing to do with nutrition, I studied poetry and networks. I started some others as well, but didn’t finish them. But there are also some other valuable courses and lectures from top rated universities that you might find useful.
Stanford Introduction to Food and Health (Stanford)
The nutrition course on Coursera has been around for a while and I can tell you that I’ve seen nutritionists who don’t have any problem practicing just by having completed this online course alone. I also started it to see what it’s about and stopped after a few lectures. It was interesting, but I already had that information. In my opinion, it’s a great course to learn the basics of nutrition. But not to work as a nutritionist 🙂
Nutrition and Lifestyle in Pregnancy
Also on Coursera you’ll find this free course on Nutrition during pregnancy. It might be interesting for you if you’re pregnant or planning to have a baby soon. Because, as you’ll see in the course, your health before getting pregnant will influence the pregnancy and the baby.
Understanding Different Diets: Mediterranean, Baltic sea, and Okinawa
If you’ve been reading about nutrition then you probably know there are several standardised diets. This free online nutrition course held by University of Turin and University if Helsinki sheds some light on some of the most famous diets – Mediterranean Diet, Baltic Diet and Okinawa, with their pros and cons.
The Psychology, Biology and Politics of Food (Yale University)
I have this one on my list right now. It’s an extensive nutrition course by Yale University, covering deeper aspects of nutrition in relation with society, economy and psychology. You’ll learn about how we become addicted to certain foods, about eating disorders, modern agriculture, GMO, and a lot more. To me, it’s very appealing to see what the teachers at Yale and guest lecturers have to say on this topics, as well as get an idea on what’s being taught right now to students at top level universities about nutrition.
Eating to win: activity, diet and weight control
This free course if for you if you’re into sports of any kind and want to learn the basics about how food influences your performance, recovery, and other goals. You’ll learn about energy systems, how exercise supports dieting, what to eat before, during, and after competitions and so on.
Science of Exercise
Very related to the courses I mentioned above is this Science of Exercise course also available on Coursera. At a glance, the syllabus includes information about the energy pathways in our bodies, as well as the importance of exercise for wellness and diet purposes.
Nutrition, Heart Disease and Diabetes
This free course explains the relation between nutrition, heart disease, obesity, diabetes and other illnesses associated with the modern diet. You’ll get to know which are the underlying factors and red flags that can warn you about potential health risks, as well as what you can do to prevent them.
YouTube Lectures
Plus, here are several lectures available on YouTube, from different universities. I made a selection of those that seemed more interesting and to the point for people who are just starting to learn about nutrition.
The value of food, vitamins and supplements
Have you taken any online courses on nutrition or watched any interesting lectures? Let me know in a comment and we could add them to the list.