Nutrition and health of children and families - Essay Example

Nutrition and Wellness in Families and Children Abstract The concept of wellness is a multifaceted approach to healthy growth and development throughout the life cycle of the human being. It focuses on making choices and decisions based on reliable and thorough information gained through knowledge and experience. When teaching wellness concepts to young children, it is vital to model whatever behaviors you wish to encourage. This message is much more powerful than criticizing the child's current behavior. Children learn what they live; if their behaviors don't model wellness, neither do their mentors. It's never too late to make small changes that lead to wellness. Today, more than ever, families need to be concerned about the behaviors they are modeling for their young children. Children of today are at high risk for obesity, heart disease, and depression as the result of poor nutrition and wellness concepts modeled at home and in their surroundings. The concept that children learn what they live is extremely accurate in predicting the outcome of wellness in young children. Most importantly, it's never too late to make choices and changes that lead to wellness. Young children observe their surroundings constantly. They aren't able to relate cognitively to their environment yet, so they must rely on experiential information. They quickly master what they see and experience firsthand. If they see their mentors modeling wellness concepts; they, too, will model wellness concepts. On the other hand, if they see and experience illness producing behaviors, as well, they will model them. What we do, as the primary educators in our families, determines the overall concepts our children take with them into their journey through life. Wellness concepts are more than just nutrition and physical fitness. Actually, there are six dimensions of wellness that comprise the whole human. The wellness model defines healthy behaviors for appropriate growth and development in each of these areas: social, occupational, spiritual, physical, intellectual, and emotional. It is through observing wellness modeling in each area that children are able to become healthy adults, maximizing their potentials for a long life filled with high quality experiences. (Hetler, 2004) People who practice social wellness are well in tune with nature and their surroundings. They understand the importance of the balance of nature and taking care of the environment. These people make choices to enhance personal as well as global relationships seeking win-win situations for everyone at every level. They model behaviors aimed at living in peaceful co-existence with the surrounding world. (Hetler, 2004) Practicing occupational wellness involves finding meaningful and fulfilling employment that coincides with one's values and attitudes toward work; the contribution of productivity, a person's abilities to contribute their talents, skills, and gifts for the greater good of mankind. The development of functional and transferable skills allows one to share across many levels, providing a deep sense of satisfaction and personal acceptance in the world around them. Families that model occupational healthy behaviors teach their children that productivity is a necessary component of the journey which allows one to contribute their talents in order to make the world a better place to live. They also emphasize that it's the satisfaction of the productivity which counts the most; not the remuneration. (Hetler, 2004) Families who practice spiritual wellness encourage their members to find meaning in the human journey. They foster growth and development in the deeper meaning of life through a sense of harmony between the internal struggle to become fully human and the external struggle of the life lessons along the path. They encourage each other to become authentic and open minded; tolerant of others also on their path. Spiritual wellness in families takes the approach of the one human family and global awareness. (Hetler, 2004) Physical wellness involves developing an understanding of how the body works in the physical realm; what its needs are, and what harms the body. It involves developing behaviors aimed at restoring balance through adequate sleep, nutrition, and physical exercise that involves strength, endurance, and flexibility. Families that model physical wellness strive to eat a balanced adequate diet, without overconsumption. They practice regular physical exercise, get the required amount of sleep regularly, and avoid risky behaviors that can lead to safety issues at every level. (Hetler, 2004) Intellectual wellness involves the growth and development of the mental abilities of an individual. Activities aimed at expanding knowledge, cultural concepts, creativity, and mental skills are a vital part of promoting wellness along this line. Individuals who challenge themselves intellectually are able to lose their fear of the unknown and have a healthy concept of the world around them. They tend to participate in activities that are mentally stimulating related to critical thinking, reading, problem solving, and how to understand and expand their knowledge base regarding the world around them. Families who practice intellectual wellness encourage their children to think for themselves, do research, learn new information, and operate from a position of personal power gained through knowledge. They pursue multicultural activites, arts, music, and creative expression for entertainment, as opposed to movies and television. (Helter, 2004) Practicing emotional wellness involves becoming aware of our feelings and those of others. It involves being able to effectively express and manage one's feelings in relationships with others. Emotional wellness allows one to operate from a position of personal beliefs based on the inherent goodness of mankind, maintain a positive outlook, realize the interdependent nature of humans, and formulate satisfying relationships based on mutual trust, respect and commitment. Families who practice emotional wellness encourage their members to own their feelings and express them with respect to others; they choose actions based on core values and take responsibility for those actions as well. (Hetler, 2004) When teaching wellness concepts to children, the most important thing families can do is become excellent role models. When family leaders realize that what they do speaks much louder than what they say, they begin to understand the necessity of consistency in dealing with training their children. Young children, especially, depend on what they see and experience; their cog native development doesn't really become a useful tool until around age 7. They very much depend on a kinetic approach to learning new concepts. When their mentors model healthy choices for growth and development, the children will naturally fall in line with what's comfortable for them. Children learn what they live. (Ardel, 2000) One way to help influence children is through role playing and games. There are many games available to help young children grasp wellness concepts. Even better would be to decide which concepts you want to actively teach a young child, and then create a game to deliver those concepts in a fun, exciting, and achievable way. Through your spending time with the child, you are communicating to this child that what you are showing them is very important. The added dimension of performance and the fun derived from mastery of the concept as well as the nurturing bonding time, set a precedence for pleasure in the young child's mind. They will want to experience that often, making repetitive attempts which lead to mastery of the concept and incorporation of that concept into their value system. (Ardel, 2000) I am committed to wellness. As a cycle instructor, I teach safety courses to other cyclists as a way to model the enjoyment of cycling without the risk of danger. I also teach aerobics; practicing physical wellness comes natural to me as I am aware of my position in the circle of life to provide mentorship for those around me. I enjoy eating healthy foods; even foods from other cultures tempt me. One of my favorite pastimes is studying ethnic practices, including cuisine. I am ever aware that each of us is one small part of the whole human family; that whatever one does to himself or another, he or she does to all of mankind. We are all on our journey toward the ultimate goal of wholeness. Each one, teach one; as we find our way along the path, it is our obligation to model that behavior as a candle in the darkness of ignorance. Through this method, we all become whole. Works Cited Ardel, D., PhD. Teaching Children About Wellness. SeekWellness.com. 9/2000. Web. March 18, 2011. http://www.seekwellness.com/wellness/articles/teaching_children.htm Hetler, B., MD. Six Dimensional Model of Wellness. National Wellness Institute. 2004. Web. March 18, 2011. http://www.nationalwellness.org/index.php?id_tier=2&id_c=25 Read More