I Choose Healthy!
CASA has unrolled a proactive two-year campaign to increase awareness and practice of good nutrition and healthy lifestyles. I Choose Healthy will be incorporated into CASA’s long-standing and successful network of community-based education and health programs, outreaching marginal neighborhoods and rural villages. Two interactive tools - a play and radio drama series - will be produced by trained adolescent teams and student midwives, together with community members, and health professionals.
A 30-minute play using puppet characters will be performed for elementary and junior high school-age children, parents and teachers, presenting information about the nutritional needs of infants and young children in terms of vitamins and minerals, major food groups and appropriate quantities. Research shows that working directly with children and adolescents, and utilizing a whole health model rather than “dieting,” results in the greatest success. The 12- part radio novella series will focus more on gender roles, importance of early good nutrition, including breast-feeding; nutrition & exercise during pregnancy, and diseases such as gestational diabetes. The captive audience will also be able to hear about CASA’s prenatal counseling and breast-feeding support services.
20010 Goal
To achieve 60 people for each community leader, who will see
them through the program from beginning to end, and will change
their attitudes about their eating habits and physical activity. To
have CASA`s radio program perform a radio series about nutrition
that will be transmitted to other rural communities through the
National Commission for Development of Indigenous Peoples of
Mexico. To raise financial contributions so that the program can
continue with its work.
Team Leader
Lic. Lourdes Martínez Espinoza
escojosaludable@casa.org.mx
How you can help:
$50,000 for the 2 year projected program costs.
$5,000 to conduct the monitoring surveys and evaluations.
$50 to make one puppet for the children’s performances.
|
Achievements to Date
-
250 surveys were given to parents, children and young people of rural communities
where data about their eating culture, physical activity level and basic knowledge of
nutrition was collected, to select the communities that are going to be helped.
-
67 peer counselors and midwifery students were trained and classified by weight and size.
-
20 out of a 28 chapter nutritional radio series were aired.
-
3 workshops in 3 rural communities and 3 neighborhoods were held.
-
360 students and 180 parents were attended.
-
12 parents and students were identified as leaders of their communities and will have the
task of forming and organizing their own committees to be constantly involved in activities
for their own benefit.
-
The first organic garden and compost area in CASA was created with the participation of
children from CASA´s childhood development program.
-
This program is supported by different Mexican and foreign organizations like “Pan
American Health and Nutrition and Life Foundation”.
|
