Celebrate healthy living with a nutrition health fair.
Nutrition health fairs are educational and helpful events that get your community or your corporation's employees thinking about healthier living. Attendees gain valuable information for their well being. Focus on the idea of eating healthier foods to live a longer and better life. Offer a variety of ideas and information. Attendees should have hands-on experiences to remember later, instead of just a collection of brochures.
Demonstrations
Set up booths to show visitors prepare healthy meals. Have booths for nourishing, quick-fix meals that can be easily prepared after a long day. Also offer demonstrations on healthy after-school snacks for children. Many kids come home from school and want junk food, so show parents prepare healthy and good-tasting foods that kids will eat. Teach attendees add more fruits and vegetables into their diets. Texas A & M System's Agrilife Extension website suggests demonstrating prepare fruit and vegetable cups. Healthy modifications to normally high-calorie recipes will also be popular. Offer visitors samples or coupons.
Special Diets
High blood pressure, diabetes, and celiac disease are common disorders. Show attendees that they can enjoy good food even if they have these conditions. Set up displays showing meal ideas that help manage each disorder. Show salt-alternative seasonings and meals for those with hypertension. Distribute brochures on counting carbohydrates for diabetics. Give out a list of common gluten-free foods for those with celiac disease. Offer recipes to fit each diet and give information on modifying favorite foods. You may also want to include heart-healthy and lactose-intolerant diets.
Portion Control Displays
Portion-control games encourage health fair visitors to actively participate. "Set up a display with food models and household items to represent food portion sizes. Let participants try to match up foods with the appropriate serving size item," recommends the American Dietetic Association. Set out portions of common foods like apples, steak, chicken, and grains. Show participants where to find portion amounts on labels of foods such as pasta and baked goods. Texas A & M System's Agrilife Extension suggests a sugar display, saying, "for example, if a cup of cereal contains 4 teaspoons of sugar, display the cup of cereal in a container, and separately display a container with 4 teaspoons of sugar." Try portions of soft drinks, juices, condiments, and prepackaged foods. Educate attendees on the recommended daily allowance of sodium. Then show how much salt common items have in them.
Tags: Agrilife Extension, celiac disease, health fair, prepare healthy, sugar display
