Local Authority Work / Education
Healthy eating contributes significantly towards a happier & healthier child and young person.
It’s not about lecturing people, it’s about empowering them with information that they can use to make informed choices to optimise their own and their family’s health & well-being.
There is so much conflicting information in newspapers & on television that it becomes increasingly difficult to understand and to know what to do; what is good for us one day, we are told is bad for us the next!
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• | One third of children (and two thirds of adults) in England are now obese or overweight. |
| • | Obesity trends are continuing to rise. The Foresight report suggests that without clear action, these figures will rise to almost nine in ten adults and two thirds of children by 2050. | |
| • | Only 3% of children who are obese do not have parents who are obese or overweight. | |
| • | Only 11.5% of parents recognise that their child is overweight or obese. | |
| (UK Department of Health, 2009) |
The above statistics have a severe impact upon both adults & children’s health, increasing the risk of diabetes, cancer, heart & liver disease.
The Government Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) launched their Sustainable Schools Framework in 2006 and it is hoped that every school will become a sustainable school by 2020.
Eco-Schools is an international award programme that guides schools on their sustainable journey; it consists of nine topics, one of which is healthy living. It recognises that the health and well-being of children is of paramount importance to ensure education success & achievement.(Eco-Schools, 2009)
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Through interactive sessions I aim to :- | |
| • | Develop a better understanding of healthy eating |
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| • | Explain the guidelines around healthy eating | |
| • | Explain the “Eatwell Plate” concept and the different food groups | |
| • | Help parents to understand that healthy eating doesn't have to be expensive | |
| • | Get children involved in food preparation | |
| • | Help out with fussy eaters | |
Healthy eating sessions in schools, libraries, adult education settings or even village halls (see case study) are always a great success; the children are so enthusiastic and with the help of quizzes, games & activities and lots of other leaflets & information to take away, the sessions are educational and also great fun.
Cooking & healthy eating sessions with a group of young mums at a local Children’s Centre have proved very successful in helping promote the healthy eating message. Based around themes such as the Eatwell Plate, 5 a day, healthy heart, bone health, the importance of vitamins & minerals & cooking on a budget, the sessions have helped reinforce the message that a healthy, balanced diet is important for their health and the health of their families.
During 2010 I've been working with Connexions in Derbyshire to help deliver healthy eating sessions & nutritional information to young people; some of the centres and groups are using the information I provide to fulfil the Healthy & Safe Food module of the Asdan Award.
The sessions have been very successful, attendees have increased over the weeks and some of the mums are now confident enough to cook the same dishes at home; helping dispel the myth that healthy eating is expensive and something worth doing, but joyless - a form of penance to be observed from time to time before resuming a pleasurable diet!