THE IMPORTANCE OF NUTRITION EDUCATION

Proper nutrition is crucial for everyone, but it is especially important for kids because it is directly connected to their overall growth and development. For a healthier life during the development of kids, they need the right nutrition in the right amount.

Chronic illnesses can be avoided by including the healthy fats and high fiber food in a regular diet of children and even it can help to prevent the genetic illness within their families. 

Proper Nutritional Education means a Better Quality of Life

Why teach nutrition education in your classroom? Because the benefits are too valuable and lead to making healthier choices to improved academic performance, nutrition education can benefit the whole school.

Nutrition education should become an integral part of a normal school day for elementary aged kids and should entail discussion, education, and activities that promote an increased knowledge of nutrition and expanded healthy options at home and at school.

Benefits of nutrition education:

• Improved physical health and academic achievement
• Kids more interested in healthy foods at home
• Improved standardized test scores
• Increased funding to local schools from state and federal governments
• Increased likelihood of children creating healthy habits at a young age
• Decreased risk of obesity among elementary students who have participated in nutrition education
• Improved cognitive development and the potential to decrease behavioral outbursts in an educational setting
• Increased nutrition knowledge and self-efficacy as well as decreased BMI and waist circumference amongst elementary students
• Parents of students who participated in a nutrition cooking intervention noted an expansion in family conversations about healthy food and an increase in how often their children helped prepare dinner.
• As a consequence of nutrition education, there was an increase in the importance parents placed on sharing a family meal together at home
• Schedule a weekly nutrition moment where each student researches a nutrition issue that can lead to a 15-minute discussion about that nutrition issue.
• Use healthy and simple recipes for kids to learn how to convert fractions
• Incorporate food growth into science classes
• Storytime in the classroom about fruits and vegetables
• Have students draw a picture of the fruits or vegetables they have at home and present it to their class.

Nutrition education in the classroom may successfully improve students’ health outcomes and academic performance, resulting in better-standardized test scores and subsequently increased funding from the state and federal governments to local schools. While some nutrition education interventions have had limited success, this policy provides a variety of options for teaching and incorporating nutrition education into the school curriculum as it best suits students’ educational needs and teachers’ weekly lesson plans. In conclusion, setting aside time each week for nutrition education can benefit both students and schools on multiple levels.