Health is the most important thing in the life of every person. If someone is badly sick, they cannot live everyday life. It is impossible to succeed in learning, job, personal relationships, etc. Therefore, we should take care of our state of health, and all children are taught health education in schools for this purpose.
Health education in schools also has some other benefits for children and the country in general. This informative article will shed more light on this crucial matter. Some benefits may be entirely unexpected for you. Therefore, read on to define all the clues.
The Importance in General
First of all, let’s review the general benefits of health education in schools. These are as follows:
- Encouraging a healthy lifestyle and learning how to strengthen it;
- Engagement of teachers, various unions, students, etc. in the issues related to health;
- Enabling a healthy lifestyle;
- Implementation of special policies to boost health;
- Improvement of the health of children, as well as school personnel.
Now, we should delve deeper into the essential details of health education at school.
Health Value
The first and most obvious benefit of health education in schools is health for kids. Children realize why it is so important to protect their health. It is the beginning point that allows us to have a normal; life. They are taught all the necessities, from washing their hands after going outside to protecting themselves from the most severe diseases and deviations. They learn how to value health. It is possible to want children about:
- Chronic disease awareness and prevention;
- Infant health;
- Substance abuse;
- Alcoholism;
- Violence prevention
- Healthy nutrition;
- Obesity prevention, etc.
Each point matters. For example, obesity among children is widely spread throughout the globe. Educators help prevent it by telling about the negative consequences of having access weight. They also explain that regular exercise helps get rid of obesity and makes the body strong.
Proper Behavior
You should understand that health education influences children’s mental state. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), adequate health education in school helps to prevent inadequate behavior in children and young adults. It strengthens the mentality of children and explains to them what is normal and what behavior cannot be accepted by the community. For example, children are explained why hurting others (mentally or physically) is a moral deviation. If such cases are not explained, kids cannot realize they have done something wrong.
Connection to Health Literacy
Thanks to appropriate health education in schools, children have a strong relationship with health literacy. It is very important because youngsters learn to search and interpret various sources related to medicine and health. They think critically and understand how to use certain preparations to prevent or overcome illnesses. It is also vital for healthy behaviors.
Economic Benefit
Another benefit for the nation and country is the economic industry. When the nation is unhealthy, the government has to spend more money to cure children. For example, the USA will lose about $580 billion by the year 2030 because of problems with obesity in children. Each potential illness leads to huge losses. That is why health awareness in schools positively reflects on the country’s economic life.
The Main Goals
The US educational system sets clear goals for health education. They are:
- Make students aware of possible health risks and how to avoid them;
- Promotion of healthy lifestyle;
- Enhancement of school and family environments;
- Provision of active support for students;
- Involving students in various health projects.
If these goals are achieved, we’ll get a healthier nation.
Reasons to Improve Health Education
As we have already highlighted, health education in schools helps children value their lives. It helps them become aware of what they do and how to prevent inappropriate behavior. Besides, we would like to strengthen our arguments with crucial facts.
- Various kinds of injuries are the main reasons for death and disabilities among children of school age;
- Every second schooler starts to smoke at school, and it leads to various tobacco-related illnesses that also with death;
- About 5% of all deaths of youngsters aged between 15 and 29 are related to alcohol abuse that started at school (worldwide percentage);
- In some countries, about 60% of all HIV infections are registered in people aged 15-24.
The Bottom Line
The health of younger generations is the health of the entire nation for age ahead. It is not a matter of luck or some random event. One should give heed to their health every day. It must be well-planned and well-designed. A happy person is healthy because strong health allows for achieving any goal.