Nutrition - Child Development and Public Health

 



Nutrition

For as far back as I can remember I have been overweight. Therefore, teaching children about proper nutrition is important to me. I do not want children to have to experience the struggles I went through due to my own obesity. It is essential that as a caregiver I teach children how to make proper healthy eating choices and be a good example. I appreciate that at the facility I work at children that want to bring their own food must only bring food that meets the same nutritional standards of our facility. I can recall one time a parent sent their child to our facility with a giant bag of Doritos potato chips, soda and a Lunchable. We immediately contacted that parent and reminded them of our nutritional standards.

According to the journal article, Nutrition knowledge and other determinants of food intake and lifestyle habits in children and young adolescents living in a rural area of Sicily, South Italy, “Improving nutrition knowledge in children and young adolescents may translate into educating them in good dietary habits. Moreover, nutrition intervention programmes should also involve parents to improve dietary quality and nutritional habits of the entire family” (Grosso, G., Mistretta, A., Turconi, G., Cena, H., Roggi, C., & Galvano, F., 2013, pg. 1827-1836) I believe it is important to teach children about nutrition at an early age. In my own experience, the adults in my life as I was growing up were not able to teach me about nutrition. The adults in my life never had to deal with obesity. The journal article conducted research on the knowledge youth had on nutrition in correlation with sociodemographic factors. The study determined that youth of parents that had top educations and professions ate healthier than those that did not.

In my future work I will look for more ways to educate youth about healthy nutritional options. In addition, I will encourage youth and their family members to continue making healthy nutritional food choices within their homes. I am currently conducting a fitness challenge with the teens at my facility. Next month, I would like to provide them with a healthy eating challenge.

Reference

Grosso, G., Mistretta, A., Turconi, G., Cena, H., Roggi, C., & Galvano, F. (2013). Nutrition knowledge and other determinants of food intake and lifestyle habits in children and young adolescents living in a rural area of Sicily, South Italy. Public health nutrition, 16(10), 1827–1836. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980012003965

Comments

  1. Learning Through Play, Day After DayJanuary 24, 2021 at 8:57 AM

    Great post! I too have always struggled with my weight... for that matter so has my whole family! Now that I have children (a preschooler and young toddler) I am trying so hard to 1. Teach them how to eat a healthy diet and live an active life, and 2. I'm trying to show it in my day to day actions so that they grow up with this being the "norm".

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Channette's Early Childhood Studies BlogJanuary 24, 2021 at 8:24 PM

      I wish you the best of luck with teaching your children healthy eating habits. I believe it is essential that we lead by example.

      Delete
  2. JesJanuary 24, 2021 at 10:13 AM

    Nutrition is so important and plays a big role in all areas of development. Growing up my mom was pretty strict about the type of foods that were in our house, and overall we at healthier than our friends. However, I never truly learned about nutrition and I have struggled with my weight my entire adult life. I have a student that is overweight and causes him difficulties with moving, however since being at school he is becoming more active and I have seen improvements in his mobility. Does your school serve the students meals/snacks or do parents have to provide them? If your school serves meals what kind do they serve? My school claims to serve "healthy" meals, but in reality I don't feel they are. Thanks for your post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Channette's Early Childhood Studies BlogJanuary 24, 2021 at 8:22 PM

      At my facility we provide breakfast, snack, lunch, snack and late snack. Parents can provide their children with food, but we are very strict on what they can provide. All the food we serve must be to USDA standards. This includes the food that parents bring into the facility. We serve all kinds of meals, but we only offer wheat based breads, nothing with a lot sugar. I believe the sugar has to be under 9 grams.

      Delete
  3. Ashley TerrellJanuary 24, 2021 at 9:05 PM

    I definitely agree with children should be provided healthy meals especially in the childcare center. The center I work at has a food program that we provide nutritionist foods. However we can’t make the children eat what we serve. We currently have families that provide their child lunch from home because of preference but we do encourage healthy eating habits. I honestly think at home some parents don’t force or serve their children to certain foods because if they did, during meal times they would enjoy some of the lunches. I believe in most countries children eat healthy meals throughout the day but in America they perceive that eating junks foods in moderation is okay for children. For example, they have restaurants that serve children chicken nuggets and friends with apple slices, yogurt or extra fries at no extra cost with a toy. However, I remember going to Canada and ordering a happy meal for my son, I wanted the 4pc nuggets with apple slices and an apple juice, the lady told me it I had to pick either apple slices or fries. I found that odd because I thought all McDonald’s were the same until I realized I was in Canada. If you wanted fries they make you pay for it. Keep advocating for healthy eating and fitness for children.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Blog Assignment-Week 6 - EDUC 6165

Image
  Adjourning In 2015 I moved to Norfolk, Virginia and started my career with the United States Navy as a civilian employee that works with children in the Child and Youth Program. Since 2016 I have been apart of 5 different teams at 5 different facilities. The last team that I was associated with was in Virginia Beach. I miss working with that team for many reasons. There were many aspects of the group that made it the hardest for me to say good-bye. I liked that each of our roles were clearly defined. Everyone on the team new exactly what their responsibilities were and how to execute them. I believe this has to do with the fact that we all had over 10 years of experience working with children. In addition, we all knew the policy and procedures of the program. I do believe that high-performing groups are the hardest to leave. They are the hardest to leave because they were successful. While working at the facility in Virginia Beach, Virginia knowing that my director, parents, an...
Read more

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally

Image
 Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: Internationally Unicef – Consultant Unicef is an international organization that appeals to me because they help children living in the most dangerous situations around the world. According to United Nations Children’s Fund website, “Across more than 190 countries and territories, we do whatever it takes to help children survive, thrive and fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.” (n.d.) I like that Unicef is non-political and impartial. I would like to work for an organization that helps children in need. I like that the organization provides humanitarian needs to children that are in emergency situations, such as war. Defending the rights of children, I believe would be a fulfilling career. A current job opportunity that interests me is as a Consultant that works in Angola. Angola is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. The skills and experience that are needed to competently fulfill the role is a master’...
Read more

Assignment 2: Blog Assignment - EDUC 6165

Image
    Thus far in this course I have learned that communication is more than words. Communication can occur with body language as well. The television episode that I chose to watch was from a very old television show called The Jeffersons. The episode of The Jeffersons that I watched was from season 3 and it was episode 16 titled, George’s Guilt. At the beginning of the episode a relationship that was determined early on was between George and Weezy. The scene began with George opening the door for Weezy and then helping her remove her coat. George was attentive and helpful to Weezy which leads me to understand that they have a close relationship.   The next relationship that I observed with no sound was between Florence and George. Florence was George’s maid for his apartment. George and Florence’s body language towards each other demonstrated annoyance with each other. During the episode when they speak to each other they often put their hands on their hips and seem...
Read more