Parents in the Kitchen
| In the last couple of years we resourced and funded a project called ‘Nutrition – Parents in the Kitchen’. This was designed to address an increasing need for education around childhood nutrition and obesity issues. Our local government area is the second lowest socio- economic area in the state. We did a pilot project in partnership with Hunter New England Area Health Service (Community Nutritionist).
This activity is needed to increase the awareness of parents about their eating and nutrition habits and consequently the behaviour ‘modelled’ to their children. Parents also need to understand the effect this has on their children’s ability to learn and their overall health issues. At a time when obesity and other eating disorders are at a high level, service providers need to be looking at educational and early intervention strategies to alleviate and reduce this problem. Our pilot program was targeted at parents with children in the 1-5 age bracket as an early intervention measure. We would like to facilitate more of these workshops with varying themes – and eventually get young children into the kitchen themselves – to inspire interest and better nutrition habits. We see the potential for numerous educational opportunities with this project. See also how it links in with our Garden2Kitchen project for young children. Outcomes/benefits:
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