feed a child wisdom and he will eat wisely for life - core
TRANSCRIPT
Feed a child wisdomand he will eat wisely for lifeHEALTHY START: Schoolchildren show better eating habits after just a year under the
Nestle Healthy Kids Intervention Study programme
I
KUALA LUMPUR
AFTER just one year, the children involved in the Nestle Healthy Kids(NHK) Intervention Study are already
showing encouraging results in their eatinghabits, empowered by their newfoundknowledge of nutrition.
Launched last August by Nestle (Malaysia)Bhd and implemented in collaboration withthe Nutrition Society of Malaysia (NSM),theN}lK Intervention Study is a three-year programme aimed at improving schoolchildren's knowledge of nutrition and promoting a healthy lifestyle.
NSM president DrTee E. Siong, who is alsothe NHK programme expert committeechairman, presented the results of the intervention study at the NHK Parents-Teachers Workshop, recently.
He revealed that about one-third of thechildren improved in their knowledge scorein the six education modules rel,ated to nu-
trition and health.The parents and teachers were also told
that the children showed improvements inhealthy practices, with more opting forhealthier food choices.
"The implementation of the NHK programme is timely, as the public and government are currently extremely concerned about the increasing incidences oflifestyle diseases such as diabetes, highblood pressure and high cholesteml," saidNestle human resource and croup corporate affairs executive director Zainun NurAbdul Rauf.
"This means that it is imperative for us tonot only ensure that our products alleviatethese problems, but also to actively promotegood eating habits and healthy lifestylesamong the consumers,"
"Nestle uses education as a tool to helpchildren understand the value of nutritionand physical activity, which will empowerthem to make the right choices relating todiet and lifestyle," she added.
Dr Tee's presentation was followed by a
panel discussion with nutrition expertsMalaysian Association for the Study of Obesity vice-president Prof Dr Norimah A.Karim, Malaysian Association for the Studyof Obesity council member Dr ZawiahHashim and Universiti Putra Malaysia's DrChin Yit Siew, from the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics in its Faculty ofMedicine and Health Sciences.
The parents and teachers were shown apreview of the 2012 modules and the opportunity to give their feedback on the programme.
Celebrity Chef Florence Tan, showed howsimple it was to prepare nutritious food forchildren in a cooking demonstration.
The NHK programme is in line with theNestle business philosophy of "CreatingShared Value".
The company believes that it needs toprovide value not only for its shareholdersbut also the community it operates in
The three focus areas to create shared valueare: nutrition, water and rural development.
NSM disseminates information to guide
the public towards discovering the benefitsof good nutrition and an active lifestyle. Itsupports efforts to promote healthy nutrition to combat nutrient deficiencies and diet-related chronic diseases such as obesity,diabetes, hypertension and coronaryheart disease.
The NHK Programme uses a twopronged approach: awareness to reachout to the masses, and research to develop, implement and evaluate the effectiveness of educational modules.
The ultimate goal at the end of thethree years is to have developed aneducational module that the Education Ministry can implementin the country's primary schools.
The programme has reachedout to approximately 2,600students from age 7 to 12through workshops, roadshows and intervention programmes.
For information, visitwww.healthykids.org.my.
Dr Tee E. Siong presents the encouraging results of theNHK Intervention Study to parents and teachers.
Dr ChinYit Siew givesthe audiencemore nutritionfacts to chew on.
Prof Dr Norimah A.Karim has aninteractive session witha workshop participant.