التغذية

Professional training in nutrition education

Why do we need training for nutrition educators?

Millions of people in the world need to improve their diets and live healthier lives. Nutrition educators can help them to achieve better food habits and practices. 

However, knowing how to promote healthy diets and good dietary practices is not a simple job and thus requires practice and training. It does not involve simply handing out information, but:

  • knowing all the risks of poor diets and the benefits of healthy eating
  • finding out what people eat and why
  • discussing how to improve diet
  • understanding what helps people change, and
  • seeing the process through until people become their own educators.

Many countries need this know-how for their nutritionists and health service professionals, yet professional training with a practical focus is rarely available in many institutions and countries, as is shown by a seven-country study conducted by FAO in 2011.

FAO has therefore developed the ENACT (Education for Effective Nutrition in Action) and ENAF (Education Nutritionnelle en Afrique Francophone) training courses in nutrition education to start building this essential capacity.