(MENAFN- Costa Rica News)
World Food Day (WFD) is celebrated on October 16 of
each year. It was proclaimed in 1979 by the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations (FAO). Its purpose is to raise awareness among the
peoples of the world about the global food problem and strengthen solidarity in
the fight against hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. The day coincides with the
date of the founding of FAO in 1945.
World Food Day is an opportunity to demonstrate our
commitment to the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) and reach the goal of Zero
Hunger in 2030. It is also a day for us to celebrate the progress made towards
achieving #HambreCero (#ZeroHunger).
History.
It
was established by FAO member countries at the 20th General Meeting
number of the Organization, in October 1979. The Hungarian delegation, headed
by the Minister of Agriculture and Food, Paul Romany, played an active role in
that session suggesting the idea of a worldwide celebration of the WFD. Since
then it has been convened every year in more than 150 countries, raising
awareness of the problems behind poverty and hunger. On December 5, 1980, the
General Assembly of the United Nations in Resolution 35/70 welcomed the observance
of World Food Day.
What is FAO?
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations, better known as FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), is a
specialized agency of the UN that directs international activities aimed at
eradicating hunger in all nations of the world.
What are the goals of the WFD?
FAO sets as objectives for this celebration:
–-To stimulate greater attention to agricultural
production in all countries and greater national, bilateral, multilateral and
non-governmental efforts to that end.
–-Stimulate economic and technical cooperation between
developing countries.
–-Promote the participation of rural populations,
especially women and less privileged groups, in decisions and activities that
affect their living conditions.
–-Increase public awareness of the nature of the world
hunger problem.
–-Promote the transfer of technologies to the
developing world.
–-Further promote the sense of national and
international solidarity in the fight against hunger, malnutrition, poverty,
drawing attention to the successes in food and agricultural development.
–-Offer citizens information about the importance of
food, in educational institutions, through social protection programs, food,
and nutrition security fair, to promote the consumption of a healthy diet.
The Importance of Good Nutrition.
Eating is a fundamental aspect of human life, as it is
the process needed to achieve growth, obtain energy and good health. A good diet
makes our children grow better, stronger and healthier. Food is an
indispensable pillar of human life. A great part of our well-being is based on
good nutrition (for this all meals are important, including breakfast, which we
sometimes forget but that, is a necessary and a very beneficial habit to
establish). Eating properly is a basic human right along with education,
housing, clothing, and recreation.
All living things need to feed to: Grow, Get the
energy to develop our activities and have good health. Of these three pillars,
there is one that belongs exclusively to children and it is growing. Growth is
a continuous process that begins from conception and ends in early adulthood.
Growing implies successive physical changes, and these
are linked to the increase in the number of functions performed by the body
that we will call development. It implies a maturation of the skills learned
since childhood, such as smiling, holding objects with your hands, crawling,
walking, speaking, writing, etc.
The second pillar is energy, which is defined as the
ability to perform work. All living beings need it to be able to grow, carry
out their functions and multiply. Man obtains energy through the intake of food
of animal or plant origin (through the process of digestion). Energy can be
measured in calories, which is defined as the amount of heat produced by the
combustion of food. The functions of energy in the body are: To maintain body
temperature by transforming it into heat. Allowing the nervous system to functions
as a network with energy transmitting impulses and sensations from the nerve
centers to the rest of the body. It allows the functioning of the organism and
muscular work.
Muscles require energy, constantly and during the day
more energy is required than when sleeping and this can be even greater if
physical activity is performed. When doing more intense work, the demands are
greater, for example, athletes. For this reason, the body must receive
fractional food throughout the day (breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner) and
thus better distribute energy.
Finally, energy serves as a reserve, if it is not used
it is stored in the form of fat to release it when the body requires it if more
energy is consumed than is spent for prolonged periods, it is stored and as a
result overweight and obesity appear.
Finally, the third pillar remains, health. It can be
defined as the ability to feel good, grow and have the necessary strength to
perform daily activities. Without adequate nutrition, people get sick and as a
consequence, they will not be able to carry out correctly their daily tasks,
and in the case of children interrupt growth.
It is observed that all these integral health factors
come together with our food intake: thus if it is adequate for each individual,
according to their particular needs, good nutrition will be achieved. Food must
be adequate, varied, sufficient, well-distributed and hygienic. It is necessary
to obtain the quantity and quality of food to be able to grow properly.
It is necessary to eat healthily and be able to enjoy
it with pleasure, taking advantage of the socialization function that it has
since food is also a time for a family reunion or among friends and share
particular positive issues.
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