Online healthy eating advice for teens

A new resource, www.Eatright.eu, designed to help Early School Leavers learn skills in healthy eating and food safety, has been launched by safefood. It is the first free online resource specifically designed with early school leavers in mind.

With up to one in five teenagers leaving school early, this can impact negatively on their longer-term health, as limited knowledge around healthy eating and physical activity is a contributory factor to the growing problem of obesity on the island.

Gerry Griffin, national coordinator of Youthreach, said “This website is a great opportunity for our staff to deliver life skills training around food and hygiene, in a way that is engaging, empowering and relevant to the needs of young people in society.”

Dr Cliodhna Foley-Nolan, director, human health and nutrition, at safefood, added, “We know from speaking with early school leavers that their diets and levels of physical activity are of real concern to them.

“Eatright.eu was developed with the input of young people and their trainers and was piloted with them. Their input was vital as it helped shape the information on the website, how it is displayed to them and in an environment they are familiar with.”