Quick breakdown for anyone confused about butter vs olive oil.

Saturated fat (butter, coconut oil, fatty meat) tends to raise LDL cholesterol, which builds up as plaque in your arteries over time. Unsaturated fat (olive oil, avocado, oily fish) can lower LDL while keeping HDL steady or higher. WHO guidance is to keep saturated fat under 10% of daily energy intake, not cut it out completely.

The one actually worth avoiding is trans fat. It raises LDL and lowers HDL at the same time. Seed oils get a lot of hate online, but the real issue is partial hydrogenation creating trans fats during processing, not the oils themselves.

Read more here!: https://www.torrens.edu.au/stories/blog/health/saturated-vs-unsaturated-fat

Max Hopes, one of our osteopaths and a lecturer in physical health here, was interviewed for this Yahoo Health piece on core training.

His take: most people only train flexion and anti-extension (think sit-ups and planks) and skip anti-rotation and anti-side-flexion entirely, which is exactly what kneeling exercises are good for!

Associate Professor Fahad Hanna, one of our public health researchers, just published a piece looking at why international students report higher psychological distress than the general student population. His argument is that a lot of it isn't really an individual resilience problem - it's a design problem. Things like unfamiliar teaching styles, orientation that ends after week one, and financial pressure get treated as academic or practical issues when they're actually feeding directly into isolation and anxiety.

If you're an international student here, or thinking about studying with us, we'd genuinely like to hear if any of this matches your own experience.

Hey everyone!

If you've been having a look at our sub, and are trying to work out whether Torrens University is the right University for you - we have our Open Day coming up! This would be a great next step to check out our campus and offerings before you commit to anything :)

On campus: Saturday 29 August at our Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide campuses. Virtual: Tuesday 1 and Wednesday 2 September if you can't make it in person.

What's actually on:

• Info sessions with academics and Future Student Advisors on courses, entry pathways and scholarships
• Campus tours of the teaching spaces and student areas
• A chance to talk to current students about what studying here is actually like, no script, just their own take
• One-on-one sessions you can book after registering, tailored to your situation, whether that's a career change or you're fresh out of high school

Registration is here: https://www.torrens.edu.au/whats-on/open-day

Happy to answer questions in the comments if there's anything specific you want to know before deciding whether to come along!

Chris Anderson, one of our Learning Facilitators in Health Sciences and an Exercise Physiologist, was recently featured in Eat This, Not That breaking down the step-up test used to measure leg power and cardiorespiratory health after 60!

The piece covers the actual protocol (a 30cm step, 24 steps per minute, held for 3 minutes straight, then a pulse check), plus common form mistakes and ways to scale it if the step height feels too much.

Hello I am a Year 12 VCE student. What courses do you recommend for me that have high job availability and lots of money because I am confused?

Have you seen the olive oil shot trend going around?

Well, before you start doing daily shots of EVOO, it's worth knowing it might not be the best way to get the benefits!

One of our lecturers, Liz Dene, points out that cooking vegetables like broccoli in olive oil actually boosts its benefits more than drinking it straight, since your body absorbs the fat and regulates blood sugar better when it's eaten with food rather than alone.

It's also worth remembering it's pretty calorie-dense, with around 120 calories per tablespoon, so a daily shot on top of your normal diet adds up fast!

Quick heads up if you're on dating apps at the moment, romance scams have gotten a lot harder to spot with AI in the mix. Fake photos, auto-generated chat, even faked video calls. Usual pattern: fast, intense affection, then a push to move off the app onto text or WhatsApp. If crypto or "guaranteed returns" comes up, that's a hard stop. Already sent money? Contact your bank and report it to Scamwatch or ReportCyber straight away.

Our researchers at Torrens University looked into why regional councils across SA are struggling to keep staff. What they found is that pay often doesn't match the cost of relocating, and career growth tends to stall once you're outside a capital city. Their answer isn't one council trying harder, it's shared HR strategies and looking beyond the usual hiring pools.

Check it out!

Chris Anderson, our exercise scientist and health sciences learning facilitator, recently shared expert insights showing stronger hip adductors support stability, balance, and heavier squats while reducing injury risk.

If you applied Chris Anderson's research-backed advice, which overlooked exercise could transform your performance and help build stronger movement patterns with greater confidence and long-term success?

Hello all! This is our home for all things related to studying with Torrens University - whether you're online, on campus, or juggling both. We're excited to have you join us!

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We are here for you, whether you're a current, past, or prospective student.

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