Nutrition Education in the Classroom

Nutrition education is a group of learning experiences organized to help people in developing healthy and nutritional lifestyle and choices. Through this program, you will learn about the importance of nutritional values in our everyday life and how to live healthy and balanced lives by choosing the right food and eating habits. The importance of nutrition education cannot be denied today. With increasing number of people suffering from obesity, chronic diseases and disorders including diabetes and heart problems, it is more important than ever to choose foods and eat habits that are nutritionally balanced. Nutrition education helps people in improving their self-esteem, builds confidence and gives a sense of power and control over their body weight. By helping people improve nutrition education, schools imparting such training to become eligible for federal grants, which in turn helps them promote their programs.

There are many reasons why it becomes necessary for people to be well informed on the topic of nutrition education. First, to build a healthy lifestyle, a person should have a good nutrition education. It is not only through good nutrition education that one can develop good health but also to prevent and reduce diseases. Proper guidance in proper dietary guidelines and physical activity can significantly reduce the risks of getting obesity, high blood pressure and many other serious medical conditions. In the United States, the Dietary Guidelines is an important source of information on how to live a healthy lifestyle.

Second, for people who are physically active, such as athletes, nutrition education plays an important role. A good physical activity is important for building and maintaining good nutrition and good health. When there is lack of physical activity, one gets into the risk of getting heart diseases, hypertension, stroke and other diseases. The best way of promoting good nutrition and physical activity in children is through good nutrition education. Moreover, physical education ensures that kids attain a healthy lifestyle through the five major areas: physical activities, food/diet, health, balance and safety.

Another aspect of nutrition education activities is food preparation and serving. Schools educate students about food preparation and serving, how to measure the nutritional content and about the five groups of nutrients that must be included in food. These include iron, calcium, vitamin D, riboflavin, potassium and sodium. According to the latest statistical data, the nutrient inadequacy rates are quite high in the United States. Schools therefore need to implement measures to ensure compliance with the nutrition standards.

Another aspect of nutrition education activities includes the implementation of dietary guidelines. Schools should provide knowledge and information about food/diet and about the recommended daily intakes according to the food pyramid. The dietary guidelines to promote physical activity and help children to become physically active. Schools also provide information about portion sizes and about the foods that should be avoided. Proper portion sizes to help reduce the risk of nutritional deficiencies.

Schools often fail to implement measures that help them in implementing nutrition education in a positive way. In many instances, schools do not take physical activity seriously. Children are often not given adequate time to play outside and they do not receive extra physical activity during the lunch period. This results in an unbalanced diet and improper nutritional needs. A balanced and nutritious diet promotes proper nutrition, increases energy levels and improves health and fitness.

Schools also fail to implement measures that help them in managing chronic diseases and conditions. Children often do not gain the nutritional value from the foods they eat. Processed or packaged foods lack nutritional value and do not provide the nutrients that a child needs for optimum health and growth. School-wide nutrition education campaigns aim at improving the eating habits of children and teaching them how to prepare healthy meals. They encourage the inclusion of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy products, lean meats and fish in the school menu.

In order to implement successful nutrition education and nutrition services, schools need to adopt a coordinated approach that takes into account factors such as demographics, behavior, demographics, community, ethnicity and the different lifestyles of students. Equity is also key to an effective program. Programs should take into consideration the varying abilities and needs of the various groups of students. This way, schools are able to incorporate nutrition education into the classroom and create an environment that encourages physical activity and good health.