Dental hygienists are licensed professionals who work in dental offices. Dental hygienists focus on several areas of oral care, including cleaning teeth, conducting screening procedures for a variety of dental conditions, taking and developing dental x-rays, making impressions of patients’ teeth, educating patients about good oral health and more. The dental hygiene program at Valdosta State University trains students to be professional dental hygienists and leads to an Associate of Applied Science degree.

Nutritional science is an academic discipline that offers an intellectual approach to the study of nutrition as it contributes to health promotion by primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention. The study of nutritional science provides accurate assessments of the roles of functional foods and nutrients as they affect and are affected by humans’ intellectual, biological, psychological, social, cultural, environmental, economic, and spiritual being. This minor includes the integration of holistic health concepts with alternative and complementary healing practices and contemporary medical regimes. This minor offers students the opportunity to explore research demonstrating the importance of nutritional balance (variety, moderation, and activity) to quality of life and holistic health. The nutritional status of Americans is compared and contrasted to other environments and cultures around the globe. The minor encourages the acquisition of practical experiences, the development of intellectual expertise in various aspects of nutritional science, and initiation of creative interventions to facilitate and motivate behavioral changes related to nutritional problems and diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and osteoporosis.