Overview

This unit will provide students with specialised nutrition knowledge, specifically in sports nutrition and paediatric nutrition. It will focus on the major areas of sport and exercise nutrition for elite and recreational athletes. Topics will include nutrition before, during and after exercise, the consideration of various sporting activities and body composition. The paediatric component will explore special considerations when working with infants and children.

Teaching periods
Location
Start and end dates
Last self-enrolment date
Census date
Last withdraw without fail date
Results released date
Semester 1
Location
Hawthorn
Start and end dates
03-March-2025
01-June-2025
Last self-enrolment date
16-March-2025
Census date
31-March-2025
Last withdraw without fail date
24-April-2025
Results released date
08-July-2025

Learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:

  • Evaluate the nutritional needs of elite and recreational athletes and produce relevant nutrition recommendations for optimal training, recovery and performance
  • Appraise the current literature surrounding the efficacy and safety of nutritional supplements used in sport
  • Examine the special considerations and challenges which need to be overcome when working with infants and children
  • Distinguish between the nutritional requirements of infants and children at different ages/developmental stages
  • Examine the nutrition assessments tools and techniques used in paediatric nutrition and implication of parental/family roles on dietary behaviours

Teaching methods

Hawthorn

Type Hours per week Number of weeks Total (number of hours)
On-campus
Class		2.00 12 weeks 24
On-campus
Lab		2.00 12 weeks 24
Study Tour
Site Visit		6.00 1 week 6
Specified Activities
Various		2.50 12 weeks 30
Unspecified Activities
Various		5.50 12 weeks 66
TOTAL150

Assessment

Type Task Weighting ULO's
AssignmentIndividual 40% 1,2,3 
Online TestsIndividual 20% 1,2,3,4,5 
Project ReportIndividual 40% 3,4,5 
AssignmentIndividual 40% 1,2,3 
Online TestsIndividual 20% 1,2,3,4,5 
Project ReportIndividual 40% 3,4,5 

Content

  • Nutritional needs of elite and recreational athletes for optimal training, recovery and performance.
  • The efficacy and safety of nutritional supplements used in sport.
  • Challenges faced by athletes in different sports and of different ages.
  • Working with children and their families.
  • Nutrition Assessment of children.
  • Nutritional requirements of children at different ages/developmental stages.
  • Feeding patterns and influences on: infants, toddlers, children and adolescents and differences in nutritional needs.
  • Under-nutrition and over-nutrition in infancy and childhood.
  • Nutrition Assessment.
  • Nutrigenomics. 

Study resources

Reading materials

A list of reading materials and/or required textbooks will be available in the Unit Outline on Canvas.