Children and the youth are "Agents of change"

Schools and colleges are important stakeholders in disseminating healthy lifestyle information to make children and youth the "Agents of Change" Children have considerable influence on the choices of their own parents, friends, their own social networks and societies.

The current health and nutrition education packages in the school curriculum need to be modified to be made the more context and culture specific using pictorial messages/cartoon/photos and modern day effective communication strategies. The effect of globalisation, widespread media exposure and tenacious marketing need to be countered effectively with social marketing.

Suggested approaches which could be used in schools and colleges.

• The concept of "diet causing specific diseases" or "diet-disease" concept needs to be developed by experts, moulded and modulated by communication and creative experts to be introduced in schools, colleges and other educational institutions.
• Modern day pictorial methodology of effective communication and marketing of the health related messages should be introduced in the text books.
• Audio visual aids including multi-media and real-time films to be used as a tool for health education. Interactive workshops promoting health and nutrition to be conducted both for teachers, councillors and students. It should be fashionable to eat healthy and the live healthily.
• The content and terminology of the training curriculum for both students and teachers need to be made region-specific and resource-sensitive. Modern day attractive and interesting communication methods should be used.

Strategies in School to promote healthy habits.

To be effective, strategies need to be individualized, made context specific and resource sensitive, within a broad framework using modern day marketing and communications techniques and strategies.