Nutrition Education, Food Literacy and Healthy Diets in Childhood and Adolescence

Dear Colleagues,

Childhood and adolescence are critical developmental stages in the life course. Inadequate nutrition during these stages can potentially slow growth, as well as predict a high risk of developing diet-related noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), with long-term consequences persisting during adulthood. School food literacy education provides a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the formal education system to improve the food knowledge and skills of school-age children and adolescents, allowing them to reach their full development potential. Thus, it is pertinent to spur additional research on the evaluation of food literacy status, particularly in areas where malnutrition and food insecurity coexist. Furthermore, food-based literacy interventions in and out of school settings should be evaluated for efficacy and applicability across multiple demographics. Highlighting inadequate levels of food literacy among children and adolescents and its association with their health and nutrition status is one pathway to advocate for future interventions targeting these vulnerable groups of population in nutrition policies and programming.

Prof. Dr. Maha Hoteit
Dr. Reema Tayyem
Dr. Hassan Younes
Topic Editors