Remember those horrible images of cafeterias that you had when you were younger?

You’d picture yourself standing in a mile-long line waiting for a bitter, stone-faced woman to slap a spoonful of unidentifiable gumbo onto a tray and shove it in your face.

Maybe you had chains around your ankles as a fat, shirtless cyclops with lots of back hair banged a drum in the distance to keep the tempo of the line a constant drone. Ahh, those were the days: Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” in the flesh. Cattle-like cafeteria goers huddled together, trying to figure out what it was they were eating.

“Before I came to NIU, I imagined the dorm food would be a big greasy mess of crap,” said Brian Dixon, a freshman visual communications major who estimates that he eats at a residence hall cafeteria twice a day. “It’s not all like that.”

Maybe it wasn’t all imagination. Stereotypes have to be rooted slightly in truth, right?

Not anymore.

Thanks in part to people like Morgan Spurlock of “Super Size Me” fame, America is suddenly taking an interest in its health. So it made sense when the documentarian took his act on the road to campuses across the country. After all, college students are the future of the country. At least, that’s what every presidential candidate tells the demographic.

What he would have found at NIU – had he ventured into any residence hall – is cafeterias already taking steps to cater to health-conscious students.

“I think a lot of people are just used to fast food. It’s just a habit that students grow up with,” said Food Administrator Mark Gregory. “I know I am more attentive and more careful of what I eat.”

Gregory is not alone in his pursuit of a healthier diet, as many Americans recently have grown health-savvy. A report in Forbes Magazine last month stated that China has more than 60 million obese people – giving it the largest obese population in the world.

“When dealing with a large group, it’s always difficult to tell exactly how many people are watching what they eat,” Gregory said. “But there is always something for everyone.”

In fact, the residence hall cafeterias offer on posters and handouts nutrition facts about the foods. Besides the basic carbohydrate, calorie and sugar counts, the information also includes height-to-weight ratio graphs and a “how to” on properly balancing meals.

One area cafeterias have traditionally come up short in is trendy diets and catering to a wide variety of eating habits.

“We always have meals for vegetarians and we make sure everybody is accounted for,” Gregory said.

But what about those low-carb dieters? A recent article on www.msnbc.com estimated that more than 17 percent of the country is taking Dr. Robert Atkins’ advice and dropping carbs.

“You can get wraps at the Dog Pound Deli if you want,” said Matt Evert, a freshman business management student. “That place is always packed. Getting a sandwich is a lot healthier than just a plate of fries.”

Student Housing and Dining Services has a Web site – www.niu.edu/dining – complete with extensive nutrition facts, cafeteria hours, an event calendar and job opportunities.

“That is something I wish more people used,” Gregory said. “It offers a lot of information about what we offer and what we have coming up.”

What the halls do have coming up includes a Thanksgiving dinner Nov. 17 and a holiday dinner Dec. 2.

“Sometimes the cafeteria is as bad as I expected,” Dixon said. “I had heard stories about people sneezing in their hands and pushing the food together. But really, it’s a lot healthier than I thought it would be. Sometimes it’s greasy slop, but not always.”

Vegan offerings

Soy milk is always offered. If it is not on the line, ask the dining manager.

Boca Burgers are offered at several locations, including The Grill at Neptune, Lincoln Hall and the Northern Lights Grill.

Tofu is on the salad bar every lunch and dinner.

Hummus is on the salad bar every lunch and dinner.

Vegan salad dressing is available in Neptune.

Channa is a chickpea curry made with garbanzo beans, onions, garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin seed, chili powder, garam masala, cilantro and tomato sauce.

Eggplant lasagna

Vegetarian sloppy joes

Vegetable stew

Red beans and rice

Vegan tacos

Maras tofu curry

California vegetable chili