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What dietary supplements should I be taking? What is the best brand? What weight loss medications are available? What non-medication approaches work well for weight loss?

These and other questions were addressed by two trios of pharmacy students from South Dakota State University through 40-minute Zoom presentations Jan. 12 and Jan. 19. The presentations were made to participants in a Sioux Falls-based Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) program. 

The students are in their third year of pharmacy school and members of Rho Chi, the pharmacy honor society. In the fall they completed a course on self-care therapeutics, which included dietary supplements.

Shanna O’Connor, who is the Rho Chi adviser and head of the Department of Pharmacy Practice, is colleagues with the local OLLI coordinator and has had students give presentations in the past. Feedback from the coordinator was that OLLI members love the pharmacy student-delivered sessions. 

O’Connor noted, “Third year pharmacy students are in a prime space in their career to provide these presentations—they have the professional demeanor and content expertise to cover basic concepts, have experience working with patients and patient groups, and are primed to start their rotations in the summer. 

“The students benefit by engaging with the community group, tailoring their communication style to their audience, and practicing breaking down complex information.” 

Dietary supplements defined

The Jan. 12 presentation on dietary supplements was given by Jessica Begeman, of Martin; David Delahoyde, of Waverly, Nebraska; and Austin Manuell, of Rochester, Minnesota. Begeman said she enjoyed her role and “everyone was really engaged.”

Delahoyde said, “I feel like they learned a lot. We had some questions throughout the presentation to see if they were retaining what we shared, and they did very well.”

The students defined what a dietary supplement is, gave brief points about some of the most common dietary supplements and discussed how to choose them, such as looking for a seal of quality on the label, which indicates the product contains the ingredients says it claims to. Then came 20 minutes of questioning on how to read a label, specifics on supplements the participants were taking and how well supplements are absorbed.

“Many times, you don’t need dietary supplements. A lot of times by eating a healthy diet, you don’t really need dietary supplements,” Delahoyde said.

Weight-loss medications explained

The Jan. 19 presentation on weight loss drugs and evidence-based weight loss strategies was given by Abby Riesgraf, Mankato, Minnesota; Taylor Winterton, Sparta, Wisconsin; and Jillian Songstad, Lyons. The students discussed the most commonly prescribed weight-loss medications, issues encountered with insurance coverage for some weight-loss medications, and drug shortages related to weight loss. They also discussed dietary, exercise, and other lifestyle approaches to achieving and maintaining healthy weight, such as the plate method and balanced meals. 

This is the second year in a row that O’Connor has facilitated pharmacy student-led sessions for OLLI, and she expects another group of pharmacy students will make OLLI presentations next semester. 

“Maintaining one’s health is a universal topic of interest, and upper-level pharmacy students are knowledgeable and well-versed at presenting information about a plethora of pharmacy-related topics that are of interest to the OLLI community. It’s great to have this partnership because the students really enjoy engaging with the OLLI learners and grow through the experience of crafting materials, and the OLLI participants get exposed to the latest information about topics they care about and are able to engage with experts on complex topics.”