University sophomore talks health with Rachael Ray

It's not uncommon for college students to struggle with eating a healthy diet — limited budgets, drunk pizza and busy schedules make it hard to keep off those extra pounds. What is uncommon is for students to go on national television to get advice about how to improve their eating habits. But that's exactly what university sophomore Paige Barton did.

Today, Barton will appear on a previously filmed episode of the "Rachael Ray Show," a daytime talk show hosted by celebrity chef Rachael Ray.

Barton says in the episode, Ray and "Eat This, Not That" author David Zinczenko go through a buffet line that mimics what is available in a college dining hall, commenting on the nutritional value of the different choices available. They ask Barton, who sits in the front row of the audience, for her opinions on the options.

The show will also include a segment that follows Barton and her friends as they hang out in her residence hall and eat at Pencader Dining Hall.

Barton says the producers of "The Rachael Ray Show" contacted Barton after Maria Pizano, one of her sisters in Alpha Delta Pi, wrote into the show asking for advice on how to eat a healthy diet in the dining halls and dorms. Although the producers were willing to help, they wanted to film a sophomore who lived in the dorms. Since Pizano was a junior and lived off-campus, she referred them to Barton.

Barton played soccer and softball in high school and was also a member of her school's ski team. Although she continued to go to the gym when she got to college, she says she found it hard to stay in good shape.

"In high school, you go home for a home-cooked meal," Barton says. "It's always balanced. You don't have to think about it."

On Aug. 31, the Monday before school started, the show's crew filmed Barton and her friends as they talked and enjoyed typical less-than-healthy college fare in her Independence Hall East residence hall room.

The girls and the crew then made their way to the crowded dining hall, where Barton gave them a tour of the facilities.

MK Hennelly, Barton's friend who accompanied her during filming, says, "It was crazy. People thought it was like ‘The Real World.' "

As Barton and her friends made their food choices, the crew zoomed in on their plates and encouraged them to take more food.

"People probably thought we were such pigs," Hennelly says.

The crew also gave the girls directions about how many toppings or scoops of food to take, says Colleen Clare, another friend of Barton's.

Barton found out she would be featured on "The Rachael Ray Show" over the summer, and her friends found out they would be on the show about a week before school started, Clare says.

Preparation for the show was pretty hectic. Barton, who is from Massachusetts, says she had to fly down to Delaware the day the show was being filmed. Her friends also found out about the segment filmed at the university bit by bit.

"She had to keep calling them back and forth, so we got it in spurts," Hennelly says.

Barton, a mass communications major, says she was especially excited to go on the talk show because of its relevance to her major and because her mom is a big fan of Ray's.

"My mom loves her cookbooks so it was really cool to meet her," Barton says. "Her style is a lot different than I thought. It was very audience-based."

Barton says her experience on the set was pretty plush — in addition to having her trip to New York City paid for, she had her own dressing room (complete with her name on the door), received a complementary fruit basket and had her hair and makeup done.

Barton says she was amazed at how busy Ray is.

"I didn't get to spend as much time with her [Rachael] as I wanted to. She was really nice though," she says.

Barton says she is learning how to eat healthier and how to take better care of herself in college.

"I learned a lot about portions and how one bad choice can effect a whole day of healthy eating," Barton says in an e-mail message. "Also that snacking, late at night especially, can add an extra thousand calories to your daily intake, even if it seems like a small snack."

She also got into running over the summer and is excited about the new P.O.D. Market, set to open in October or November, because students are only allowed to take one piece of fruit per person each time they visit the dining hall.

"Usually I grabbed an apple and a banana, so that was against the rules," she says in an e-mail message. "Although I wasn't presented with many options last year, I didn't try very hard to make the right choices with the options I was given."