National Nutrition Month® is a nutrition education and information campaign sponsored annually by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND). Every March, the academy creates a campaign that is designed to focus attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. The original promotion was initiated in March 1973 as a week-long event and became a month-long observance in 1980 in response to growing public interest in nutrition.
The theme in the 2013-2014 school year was “Enjoy the Taste of Eating Right.” Each School Food Service manager received a packet of information to share with their schools. Included in the packets were table tents and a mini poster to display on the serving lines, a variety of brochures promoting nutrition information, student activity worksheets, healthy recipes, and bookmarks.
Some of the nutrition education messages that were shared with the students through the school announcements included “How to Build a Healthy Plate,” “Smart Snacking for Adults & Teens,” “Eating Right for a Healthy Weight,” and “Eating Right with Less Salt.” The “How to Build a Healthy Plate” message focused students on getting their plate in shape and encouraged them to think about what goes on their plate or in their bowl before they eat. Simple ideas like increasing foods that provide nutrients without too many calories such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low-fat dairy, and learn proteins were highlighted in addition to being physically active.
In addition to the District-wide nutrition education promotion, each year in March the SFS Department selects either a middle or high school to host a National Nutrition Month® health fair. In the 2013-2014 school year the health fair was held at Lake Shore Middle School in Belle Glade on Wednesday, March 12, 2014 (see photo above). The students and staff thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to view exciting health and wellness displays, receive educational materials and sample colorful and tasty fruits and vegetables.
