Health on a plate - the 'Health Steps' project
Researchers from the Silesian Medical University in Katowice will check how pupils in the 6th and 7th grades of primary schools eat. Free cooking workshops and dietary advice have also been prepared for teenagers and their parents. All this will take place as part of the project 'Health steps - education and science as determinants of a healthy and open society', implemented by the Department of Human Nutrition in the Faculty of Dietetics of the Faculty of Public Health of SUM.
- Research shows that a child who is overweight between the ages of 6 and 9 is 10 times more likely to become obese in adulthood, while an overweight teenager between the ages of 10 and 14 has a 28-fold increased risk,' says Agnieszka Białek-Dratwa, MD, PhD, one of the project coordinators, and adds: - 'It is also worth mentioning that excessive food intake in childhood may promote the development in adulthood of chronic diseases resulting from poor nutrition, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, metabolic disorders or cancer. This shows how important our project is. I am convinced that, through it, we will be able to instil good eating habits in children, which will pay dividends later on in their adult lives. We also strongly rely on the involvement of teachers and parents.
Aims and objectives of the project
The project 'Health Steps - education and learning for a healthy and open society' consists of two phases. The first, which runs from September 2023 to March 2024, involves screening for anthropometric measurements (including height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference) and body composition analysis. SUM staff will also check on eating behaviour and attitudes towards food among parents and pupils in grades 6-7 in primary schools. Pupils identified in the overweight/obesity screening, together with their parents/legal guardians, will be included in a nutrition programme consisting of:
- dietary counselling (Individual consultations with a dietitian including: analysing eating habits, proposing changes in current eating habits, learning the correct attitude towards nutrition)
- participation in culinary-education workshops (nutritional education of children and parents, shaping skills in the preparation of dishes in accordance with the principles of rational nutrition, making modifications to daily nutrition).
Thus, they will participate in the second stage (January-September 2024). In total, the project involved around 1 000 school pupils from Bytom and Zabrze.
Among the most important objectives of the project "Health steps - education and learning as a determinant of a healthy and open society" are:
- increasing the responsibility of teachers, parents/legal guardians of children for the health and protection of children,
- to instil in children and young people and their families the awareness that taking care of one's mental health and good nutrition have a significant impact on quality of life,
- educating young people in social behaviour based on equality and social justice towards others,
- educating the public about the diseases of civilisation (including obesity).
Why is nutrition important?
The SUM scientists responsible for the project also emphasise that during the period of intensive physical and mental development, the components of the daily diet are extremely important, thanks to which the various organs, such as the brain, muscles, lungs, heart and kidneys, develop in an appropriate manner. Proper nutrition is particularly important during adolescence due to the very intensive growth and maturation processes taking place during this period of life. Both nutrient deficiencies and nutrient overconsumption have negative health consequences.
Nutritional deficiencies in terms of quantity and quality contribute to deterioration of health, impairment of the functioning of various systems, e.g. the immune system, reduced efficiency of the cardiorespiratory system, disruption of the normal development of bone tissue and
excessive irritability and reduced concentration, and, as a consequence, lead to poorer performance in school by children and adolescents.
On the other hand, excessive food intake during adolescence leads to the development of overweight or obesity, which may be caused by an inappropriate dietary pattern perpetuated in the family, especially excessive calorie intake in the total daily diet, excess fat and sugar-containing products and low physical activity.
Adolescent dietary errors are most often related to the diversity of social and living conditions, the low level of nutritional knowledge among both adolescents and their parents/guardians, and succumbing to dietary fads. Inadequate nutrition is associated with deficiencies in the daily diet of adolescents of nutrients such as calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, vitamin D, B vitamins, especially folic acid, polyunsaturated fatty acids, mainly from the omega-3 family, dietary fibre and other biologically active substances necessary for the proper functioning of the organism, with a simultaneous excess of fats, especially saturated fatty acids, cholesterol and sodium in the diet.
The health consequences of dietary errors can be:
- developmental - involving, among other things, delayed growth and formation of physical fitness, mental, intellectual and emotional development, disorders of sexual maturation, postural defects and generally rapid fatigue,
- morbid - associated with changes in the structure and functioning of many organs and systems of the body, the morbid effects of which can be long-term.
The project is carried out under the Social Responsibility of Science of the Ministry of Education and Science.
Project coordinators:
- Dr. n. med. Agnieszka Białek-Dratwa
- Dr. n. med. Elżbieta Szczepańska
