NUTRITION MONTH CELEBRATED BY NUMS DEPARTMENT OF NUTRITION & DIETETICS ON 15th MARCH, 2022

Nutrition is a vital component for health and wellbeing of every individual. The eating habits of any population are directly associated with various health ailments including cardiovascular diseases, cancers, hypertension, and diabetes in both developed and developing countries like Pakistan. Also, the country is facing triple burden of malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies in children and women of reproductive age respectively.

Keeping in view the significance of nutrition and health, the NUMS Department of Nutrition & Dietetics, National University of Medical Sciences (NUMS), Rawalpindi celebrated “Nutrition Month, 2022” on 15th March, 2022. National Nutrition Month is an annual campaign started by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, U.S.A and celebrated every year in March. The objective of nutrition month celebration is to raise community awareness regarding balanced diet, healthy  food choices, mindful eating along with adequate physical activity and overall healthy lifestyle. The theme for this year was “Celebrate a World of Flavors”.

The event started with the Healthy Salad Competition in which BS students of the Department of Nutrition & Dietetics took a part and divided into 5 groups. A panel of judges including Prof Dr. Aisha Mohyuddin (Dean, Multidisciplinary Studies), Dr. Sehar Iqbal (HoD, NUMS Department of Nutrition & Dietetics) and Dr. Muhammad Jawad Hassan (HoD, Department of Biological Sciences) evaluated the salads through the particular evaluation criterion.

After that, all the participants gathered in the conference room for celebration of the event. The Honorable Pro-Vice Chancellor Major General Saleem Ahmad Khan HI (M), (Retd) was invited as the chief guest. The official proceedings of the event started with the recitation of the Holy Quran followed by National Anthem. Then, the Dean, Faculty of Multidisciplinary Studies, welcomed the participants and chief guest with a brief overview enlightening the significance of nutrition and nutrition month. After that, presentation on Nutrition Care in Diabetes was delivered by Dr. Hussnain Ali (Nutritionist, The Diabetic Center Islamabad). He highlighted the significance of nutrition and medical nutrition therapy in management of diabetes. Also, Dr. Nasreen Naveed delivered her talk on Diabetes Care and Management.

After that, an extensive question answer session took place. Then, Dr. Sehar Iqbal, who is working as an Associate Professor and Head of the NUMS Department of Nutrition & Dietetics delivered a note of thanks to all the participants with a brief review of the Nutrition Month celebration. Following that the worthy chief guest Major General Saleem Ahmad Khan HI (M), (Retd) presented a souvenir to the guest speakers in recognition of their valuable talks. He also distributed certificates among winners of healthy salad competition and praised departmental efforts for organizing a successful event. At the end of the session all participants visited Cultural and traditional food stalls in the parking area.