NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION REFERS TO GIVING KNOWLEDGE AND EDUCATION OF NUTRITION TO THE POPULATION. IT IS CONSIDERED AS THE BEST WAY TO EDUCATE PEOPLE AND GIVING THEM THE BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION

WITHOUT PROPER NUTRITION A PERSON ARE UNABLE TO MAKE HEALTHY FOOD CHOICES FOR ITSELF AND FOR THE FAMILY.

NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION

NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION IN EACH PLACE MUST NEED TO BE PROMOTED IN ORDER TO GAIN A HEALTHY LIFE STYLE AND HEALTHY EATING HABITS THAT MAKES A DISEASE FREE SOCIETY.

A NUTRITIONAL EDUCATIONIST CAN BE CONSIDERED AS THE PERSON WHO PROMOTES THE KNOWLEDGE OF NUTRITION TO THE POPULATION. IT PLAYS A VERY VITAL ROLE IN EDUCATING THE SOCIETY. IT CAN PERFORM ITS DUTIES IN HOSPITALS, COMMUNITIES, SCHOOL AND COLLEGES. IN THESE PLACES A NUTRITIONAL EDUCATIONIST PERFORMS AWARENESS SESSIONS IN ORDER TO EDUCATE THEM AND ALSO PERFORMS DIFFERENT SURVEYS TO EVALUATE THE PREVALNCE OF NUTRITIONAL RELATED DISEASES.

WHY THERE IS A NEED OF NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION?

EDUCATION ABOUT FOOD IS SOMETIMES REFFERED TO AS FOOD EDUCATION. THE TERM NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION INCLUDES EDUCATION ABOUT FOOD AS WELL AS EDUCATION ABOUT NUTRITION. MANY NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS ADDRESS PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AS WELL. SO THE BASIC NEED OF NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION CAN BE CONSIDER AS:

OUR HEALTH NEEDS IMPROVEMENTS:

CURRENT EATING PATTERENS ARE ASSOCIATE WITH 4 OF THE 10 LEADING CAUSE OF DEATHS IN DEVELOPED COUNTRIES. CORONARY HEART DISEASES, SOME TYPES OF CANCER, STROKE, TYPE 2 DIABETES AND OSTEOPORESIS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH DIETARY FACTORS. O BESITY IS ON ITS PEAK CARRYING WITH IT AN INCREASED RISK OF VARIOUS CHRONIC DISEASES. ALONG WITH DIET OTHER SOCIAL AND BEHAVIOURAL FACTORS SUCH AS SMOKING, ALCOHOL USE AND SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE ACCOUNTS FOR ABOUT HALF OF ALL THE CAUSE OF DEATHS.

PEOPLE ARE BECOMING INCRESINGLY INTRESTED NOT JUST IN PREVENTING DISEASE BUT ALSO IN ENHANCING THEIR HEALTH.

BETTER HEALTH PROVIDES PEOPLE A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE AND ENHANCED FUNCTIONALLY SO THAT THEY WILL BE ABLE TO MANY THINGS IN LIFE THEY VALUE.

DIETARY AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PATTERNS ARE NOT OPTIMAL:

DESPITE THE ABUNDANCE OF FOOD AND FOOD PRODUCTS DIETARY INTAKES FOR MANY ARE NOT OPTIMAL. SURVEY TENDS TO SHOW THAT THE AVERAGE PER PERSON INTAKES OF VARIOUS FOODS AND FOOD PRDUCTS OVER THE YEARS HAVE IMPROVED IN SOME CATEGORIES BUT ARE NOT AS HEALTHY AS THEY COULD BE IN OTHERS.

FOR EXAMPLE AMERICANS TODAY SOSUME A LITTLE LESS FRUITS THAN 100 YEARS AGO AND THE CONSUMPTION OF PROCESSED FRUITS AND VEGETABLES INCREASED ALOT IN THE PAST YEARS. PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PATTERENS ARE LIKEWISE FAR FROM OPTIMAL. REGULAR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY REDUCE THE RISK OF MANY HEALTH CONDITIONS AND PROMOTES HEALTH.

COMPLEX INFORMATION ENVIROMENT:

THE COMPLEXITY OF THE FOOD AVAILABLE IN THE MARKETPLACE MAKES WISE SELECTION EVEN HARDER. MOST OF THE 50,000 ITEMS IN TODAYS SUPERMARKET BEARS LITTLE RESEMBELANCE TO THE PREVIOUS FOOD STUFF PREVIOUSLY EATEN BY HUMANS. KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THESE ITEMS CAN NOT BE DRIVEN BY SIMPLY LOOKING AT THEM. THE INCREASING COMPLEXITY OF THIS FOOD ENVIROMENT DEMANDS CONSUMERS WHO ARE NUTRITIONALLY LITERATE.

FOR PAKAGED FOOD NUTRITIONAL LABELS ARE VERY IMPORTANT. NUTRITIONAL EDUCATORS ASK PEOPLE TO EAT NO MORE THAN 30-35% FROM FATS. YET IT IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE FOR CONSUMERS TO KNOW WHAT IT MEANS INTERMS OF FOOD.

COMPLEX FOOD CHOICE ENVIROMENT:

THE FOOD ENVIRIOMENT HAS BECOME INCREASINGLY COMPLEX. PEOPLE IN PREVIOUS CENTURIES LIVED IN SEVERAL HUNDREAD DIFFERENT FOODS, MOSTLY LOCALLY GROWN. BUT NOW THE SUPERMARKETS CONTAIN ATOO MUCH VARIETY THAT A PERSON WHO IS UNEDUCATE ABOUT NUTRITION FEELIMGS COMPLEXITIES WHILE SELECTING A HEALTHY MEAL.

HOW NUTRITIONAL EDUCATION CAN BE GIVEN?

THERE ARE ALOT OF WAYS TO EDUCATE PEOPLE ABOUT NUTRITION. AWARENESS SESSIONS CAN BE DONE IN SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES, WORKSHOPS CAN BE ARRANGED TO MOTHERS ON HEALTHY FOOD PREPARATIONS, BY SERVING HEALTHY FOOD IN CANTEENS, INCLUDING NUTRITIONAL TOPICS IN THE CURRICULUM OF STUDENTS, SCHOOL BASED INTERVENTIOS CAN BE DONE IN ORDER TO EDUCATE CHILDRENS ABOUT THEIR DELF SELECTION OF HEALTHY FOODS TALK ABOUT PORTIONATE SIZES, BY WORKING ON DIFFERENT CAMPAIGNS RELATED TO HEALTHY EATING HABITS AND THE PREVALANCE OF DISEASES DUE TO BAD EATING HABITS AND DEVELOPING THE CONCEPT OF LUNCH BOXES FOR SCHOOL GOING CHILDRENS.