Role of students in promoting healthy lifestyle in their community
Answers
Healthy eating
Schools can encourage good nutritional habits by:
Developing a whole school food policy
Involving pupils and parents in guiding food policy and practice within the school, and enabling them to contribute to healthy eating, and acting on their feedback
Offering healthy foods in school canteens
Providing clean, cool-water fountains
Assessing the food provided at the school canteen and vending machines
Providing parents with information on healthy food choices and active living
Developing a school vegetable garden
Offering regular snack breaks for students to eat fruit and vegetables
Allowing students to bring their water bottles into the classroom with them
Providing a welcoming eating environment that encourages positive social interaction.
Physical activity
Ways in which schools can help students to become more active, include:
Developing a whole school physical activity policy, which encourages all staff and students to be physically active, then implement, monitor and evaluate it for impact
Providing a school environment that encourages being active, for example adequate playground facilities, access to equipment, walking paths etc.
Providing secure bike racks or storage to encourage students and staff to ride to work
Scheduling more physical education and physical activity
Involving students in decisions about the school environment
Including students when deciding the type of physical activity to be undertaken, making them more committed to participation
Providing parents/carers with the opportunity to be involved in the planning and delivery of physical activity opportunities
Ensuring that adequate time is spent on developing fundamental motor skills.
Be a role model
Positive modelling by school staff is important to support healthy eating and physical activity policies and actions. It helps to show leadership and commitment that others, such as students and parents, can be inspired by.
Teachers are in a good position to act as positive role models for students, parents and the community. As a teacher, you know that students watch what you say and do very carefully. Any difference between your words and your actions is picked up quickly. This can be frustrating, but keep in mind that students learn by watching and copying the behaviour of others.
A teacher who makes healthy choices – including healthy eating and regular physical activity – can have a good influence on the health of students, others and most importantly, yourself.
Schools and teachers can model healthy eating and being active at school by:
Packing a healthy lunch and taking the time to eat it
Providing healthy snacks at school and staff functions (staff meetings, parent-teacher interviews, etc.)
Using non-food rewards (pencils, skipping ropes) instead of lollies and sweats
Walking rapidly during yard duty
Joining in the activities during physical education classes, recess or lunchtime
Using public transport for school excursions – it is often cheaper and you can get in your physical activity for the day
Taking activity breaks during classes
Supporting physical activity opportunities during and after school
Sharing your physical activity interests with students.
It’s your health, too!
Here is the best part. When you model healthy habits, your own health improves.
By choosing to eat healthy foods and be physically active, you will find that you are more alert, have more energy, smile more, remember more and generally feel better about yourself.
The term ‘healthy lifestyle’ is heard almost everywhere these days – on the television, on social media platforms as well as in magazines. The need to follow a healthy lifestyle is stressed upon via these mediums but people still ignore it and continue with their not-so-healthy lifestyle and eventually bear its consequences.
A healthy lifestyle mainly includes following healthy eating habits, taking adequate sleep and squeezing in some time for physical exercise each day. However, most people get so caught up with their daily grinds that they neglect their health. Ignoring your health is the worst thing you can do to yourself. Many people realize this only after they develop some health issues.
It is time people should understand that our health is of utmost importance and it is only when we are healthy would we be able to work efficiently on other aspects of our lives. Developing healthy habits requires just a few changes in the daily routine. These changes eventually become a habit and before you know you are on your way to a healthy lifestyle.
It is better to take out some time to follow the healthy habits shared above when you are still young and fit to avoid health issues later in life.