March is Nutrition Month is an annual campaign lead by Dietitians of Canada. This annual campaign is used as a way to have meaningful conversations about food and issues surrounding nutrition. This year’s theme for Nutrition Month 2022, is Ingredients for a Healthier Tomorrow. You are invited to explore the key “ingredients” needed to change our food systems for a healthier tomorrow throughout the month of March. These ingredients will help identify systemic changes that can be made, not just for today, but for the future.
The five key “ingredients” that will be featured this month that promote a sustainable food system are food security, food literacy, food sovereignty, sustainable food choices, nutrition care and prevention.
Food security refers to the ability of a household to have the means to access sufficient quantities of safe and nutritious foods. In Canada, prior to the pandemic, an estimated one in eight individuals (12.5%) were food insecure. Meaning, that they did not have the income to purchase enough food or able to follow healthy nutrition recommendations. This of course impacts many aspects and traditions that we all have as Canadians, such as making food for celebrations or hosting friends and family. The full impact of the pandemic is unknown, but it is now believed that one in seven Canadians (14%) are struggling with food security.
Food insecurity is a serious public health problem in Canada because it negatively impacts physical, mental, and social health, and costs our healthcare system considerably. Statistics also show that roughly only 20% of households living with Household Food Insecurity (HFI) are accessing food banks. Meaning that 80% of households dealing with household food insecurity (HFI) are not using help from local food banks.
Dietitians of Canada is doing work to address household food insecurity (HFI), but we can all do our part. Examples of things that we can do include such things as being mindful of the language used around nutritious foods, income, and access to food. We can also become more familiar with the needs of our individual communities, and we can support some of the initiatives in our communities to mitigate HFI.
To look into more initiatives from Dietitians of Canada in this area and increase your knowledge, check out all of the available information at Dieticians of Canada, March is Nutrition Month.
Locally for March is Nutrition Month, your local Health Promotion Team is looking at answering your questions regarding nutrition. Should you have a question that you want us to answer, submit it by filling out this Microsoft Form. By submitting your question, you will also be entered into a draw for a great prize. We will be answering all the questions submitted virtually on 25 March.
By: Nathaniel Smith, Health Promotion Specialist at CFB Borden
