<p> Today, obesity has become the number one concern of kids and teens. About one in three Americans are overweight or obese. This in part is due to the consumption of highly commercialized and processed foods that lack the essential nutrients in maintaining a healthy weight in addition to normal cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Studies have shown that eating habits are learned early in life and are carried on throughout the rest of their lives. As children grow older into their adolescent years, they are more aware of their eating habits and have gained more autonomy in regards to food choices. </p><p> Plant-based foods have shown to drastically improve the overall health of individuals with high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and excess weight. </p><p> Power Plant is a facility that intends offer plant-based nutritional services in the form of informative lectures, interactive workshops, one-on-one nutritional guidance by appointment, with access to peer-mentors for additional support and guidance. Power Plant will dedicate their services to the Whittier Union high school district, surrounding community colleges, and universities in the Los Angeles County area. </p><p> Power Plant&rsquo;s unique program design, physician referrals and the critical need of our generations to come, are all factors that will contribute to its success in the Los Angeles County community and for years to come.</p><p>

<p> Over 85% of all adults are active on social media. Social media is challenging as an information-sharing community because there is no formal review process before the information is published. College students are among the most active users of social media and have been shown to be ineffective in determining credible information online. Eighty-three students from two universities participated in a voluntary, online survey that assessed the relationship between gender, enrollment year, and academic major of college students and how the students navigated social media to obtain nutrition information. Variables were tested using a chi-square analysis; if determinants were <i>n</i> &lt; 5 a Fisher&rsquo;s exact test was run. </p><p> Results indicated that female students were significantly more likely to use Instagram, <i>x</i>² = 5.224, <i>p</i> = 0.022 or Pinterest, <i>p</i> = 0.002, to access nutrition information and placed higher importance on the quality of photos than males, <i> x</i>² = 4.953, <i>p</i> = 0.026. Additionally, female students were more likely to search for healthy recipes, <i>x </i>² = 11.044, <i>p</i> = 0.001, weight loss information, <i>x</i>² = 7.675, <i>p</i> = 0.006, and to trust chefs, <i>x</i>² = 6.863, <i>p</i> = 0.009 and food bloggers, <i>p</i> = &lt; 0.001. Descriptively, it was found that students are more likely to search for broad nutrition topics such as general nutrition tips, weight loss, and healthy recipes. Students were found to trust both credible (registered dietitians, physicians) and non-credible professionals (personal trainers, nutritionist). Future research should expand on how students use social media for nutrition/health information using a larger, more culturally diverse subject pool with a more detailed focus on implications of social media as a nutrition source.</p><p>