PERSONAL HYGIENE FOR WOMEN (Part 5 of 8) Nutrition: Importance of Maintaining a Balanced Diet

Introduction (5 minutes)

• Welcome the participants.
• Remind the participants of the purpose of the course (the general objective, the number of sessions, the expected outcome).
• Introduce today session (objective and how long it will be)

Ice-breaking game (10 minutes)

• Form a circle holding hands and facing the center.
• Invite participants to do four actions as directed by the facilitator. These actions are: jump in, jump out, jump left, and jump right. For example, if the facilitator says “jump in”, everyone holding hands has to jump inside the circle. On the other hand, if the facilitator says jump put, everyone has to jump back. Remember while doing the activity to hold each other’s hands and to not let go at any moment.
• Start with copying the facilitator’s directions. For example, when the facilitator says “jump in”, participants should say “jump in” and jump inside. When the facilitator says “jump out”, participants should say “jump out” and follow the direction.
• Now add a twist to make it more challenging. The facilitator will say a direction which participants will follow but they will say the reverse. For example, the facilitator will say “jump in” and participants will jump inside but they will say “jump out”.

Main activity (70 minutes)

Part 1: Review of last workshop (10 minutes)

Show the participants the picture that they drew in the last workshop and ask them if they remember what we discussed in our last workshop. Encourage everyone to participate.

Part 2: What are Good Nutrition and its significance (10 minutes)

Explain what is nutrition, a balanced diet, and the importance of a balanced diet

Nutrition is the process by which human beings receive the food containing essential nutrients necessary to grow and stay healthy. Nutrients are compounds in foods essential for us to survive, grow, and reproduce.

Balance Diet means our body gets all the nutrients, vitamins, and water needs to work its best. Vitamins are a group of substances that are needed for normal cell’s function, growth, and development. Combined with physical activity, a good diet can help us to reach and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

Significance:

• Reduce the risk of some diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, some cancers, and osteoporosis
• Lowers cholesterol which reduces high blood pressure
• Improve our ability to fight off illness and recover from illness or injury
• Increase our energy level

Part 3: Learning about different nutrition food (20 minutes)

Play the audio file from the Ideas Cube about different nutrition food named How to have a good nutrition for everybody in the family from the folder Health promotion for mother and baby. Explain the video by taking pauses. (The Audio is in Rohingya Language)

• Now divide the participants into 2 groups
• Provide each group with paper, pencil, and colors
• Ask them to draw what they remember from the video that they watched
• Request each group to come forward and explain what they have drawn to others

(after each presentation, ask everyone to clap for the presentation)

 

Part 4: Summary of the Learning using the Food Pyramid image (20 minutes)

• Show Picture 4.1 and introduce the Food pyramid to the participants
• Point out to each layer of the pyramid. Start from the base to the top.

Carbohydrate

We are involved in a lot of physical activities and so, we need carbohydrates as a source of energy. Grains, including rice and potatoes, are a good source of carbohydrates.

Fruit and Vegetables

Fruits are a good source of vitamins and fiber content. Whole fruits are recommended when compared to fruit juices. Such as bananas, apples, etc.

Vegetables are a good source of vitamins and minerals. Green-leafy vegetables are rich in nutrients and it is recommended to include 5 or more green and colored vegetables in the daily meals of children. Such as cabbage, carrot, tomato, spinach, etc.

Meat/Fish/ Dairy

Meat and fish are rich in proteins that are an essential component of physical growth. They help in building and replacing the tissues in the child’s body. Such as chicken, fishes, etc.
Milk and dairy products provide the required amount of calcium, vitamins and proteins for us. These nutrients help in bone growth and building strong teeth. Such as milk etc.

Fats and Oils

Fats and oils might sound unhealthy. However, all fats do not come under the unhealthy category. Fats and oils are essential to give our body energy and to keep our body warm. In order to keep the functioning of our skin cells, nerve, and brain, we need a small number of fats and oils, such as oil, butter, peanuts, etc. Fats occupy a small portion of the food pyramid.

Water
One of the most vital requirements that complement a healthy and balanced food is water. We need to ensure that we drink plenty of water.

According to the European Food Safety Authority, the following is recommended in terms of water intake by age:

4 to 8 years – 5/6 glasses (1.1 to 1.3 liters)

9 to13 years (girls) – 7 glasses (1.3 to 1.5 liters)

9 to 13 years (boys) – 8/9 glasses (1.5 to 1.7 liters)

Part 5: Importance of covering food and drink (10 minutes)

• Show picture 4.2 and ask the participants what they understand seeing this picture
• Explain that we have many insects around us that carry germs and bacteria. These insects get attracted to seeing our food and thus, we need to always cover our food. Otherwise, these insects will infect our food, and by eating it, we will eventually get sick.
• Ask if anyone has any queries.

Conclusion (5 minutes)

• Thank the participants for their involvement and concentration during the session.
• Summarize what was learned during the session (importance of a balanced diet and maintaining the food pyramid in our daily intake)
• Collect feedback from the participants by asking questions like: “Do you feel like you learn something during the session?” “Do you think this new knowledge can be useful to you?” “Were you comfortable during the session?”

Give the participants the date and the location of the next session, make sure everybody will be available. If not, find a more convenient time and place so everybody can be here.