School population and food, where are we headed?

Abstract

The current globalization processes that characterize the most developed societies
imply high levels of connectivity and the proliferation of interrelationships unimaginable
until now. This process of globalization has generated great social and economic
advances at the international level, and Spain is no exception. Our country has
reached high levels of development in recent decades, making Spanish society one
of the most advanced in the world. This circumstance is reflected in the country itself,
offering a wide range of possibilities for improving quality of life and well-being.
However, the degree of social and economic development also gives rise to situations
that hinder full personal development and healthy lifestyles. In this sense, there is
no doubt that the rhythms of life, where the work seems to take precedence over the
social, and the consequent and growing difficulty in reconciling work and family life,
mean that the same society that benefits from high levels of economic development
is harmed when it comes to finding time for the development of people’s individuality.
In this process of individual development and fulfilment, health plays a fundamental
role and, within this, knowledge of one’s own body, regular physical exercise, adequate
emotional management and the acquisition of certain eating habits will play a fundamental
role in maintaining healthy levels in our society. Obviously, from a society
that finds it difficult to reconcile work and family life, it can be deduced that the greatest
sufferers will be children and adolescents with regard to their quality of life. It is
true that in developing societies, once children and adolescents have finished their
schooling, they engage in a large number of extracurricular activities, whether they be
sporting or academic. However, what place does nutritional education occupy in the
acquisition of healthy eating habits? What happens with the responsible consumption
of food as opposed to impulsive and uncontrolled consumption? In this respect, the
latest studies on child nutrition indicate that even today in Spain there is a prevalence
of 23.2% of overweight and 18.1% of child obesity, which implies a high risk for the development
of various diseases in the future of school-age children (ALADINO, 2015).
In view of these negative data, what measures are being taken by areas as diverse as
public administrations, educational centres and families? This paper aims to address
the challenges facing society today in terms of nutrition, as well as the real situation
of the school-age population from the perspective of their eating habits, also providing
coherence to the various proposals arising from educational policy and trying to involve
the main educational agents, ie, administrations, families and schools. Likewise,
the aim is to analyse the importance of the collaboration of the main educational
agents in the acquisition of healthy eating styles, as well as to propose educational
programmes and actions applicable in the school environment that could provide clarity
and even guide various projects within the framework of the existing educational
institutions in Spain.