Seafood Nutrition Partnership and WIChealth.org Introduce Seafood Nutrition Education Lesson for Pregnant Women and New Mothers
ARLINGTON, VA (PRWEB) April 03, 2017 -- The nonprofit Seafood Nutrition Partnership (SNP) and the online nutrition-education platform wichealth.org announce the launch of a new educational lesson built around the health and nutritional benefits of eating seafood, particularly for pregnant and breastfeeding women and their children.
The lesson is the result of a partnership between SNP and Western Michigan University. The University operates wichealth.org, a free nutrition-education and behavior change resource available to WIC recipients in 28 U.S. states and in two Indian Tribal Organizations. WIC (the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children) is a federal grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
This marks the first time a seafood nutrition lesson has been available on wichealth.org. The structured, research-based lesson is tailored to each WIC participant’s needs, and takes the form of an interactive online learning module offering cooking videos, recipes and other resources. It is designed to help participants fulfill the USDA Dietary Guidelines and U.S. Food & Drug Administration recommendations to eat seafood for the health benefits of its omega-3 fatty acids. There are English- and Spanish-language versions of the lesson available to participating WIC programs.
A recent analysis by the FDA found that 50 percent of pregnant women eat fewer than 2 ounces of seafood per week. Because of seafood’s nutritional benefits for growth and development during pregnancy and early childhood, the FDA advises 2-3 servings (8 to 12 ounces) of lower-mercury fish per week for pregnant women.
“The seafood nutrition lesson on wichealth.org, developed jointly with Seafood Nutrition Partnership, will serve as a valuable resource for participating WIC clients,” said Robert Bensley, Director, eHealth Innovations Group at Western Michigan University.
“Seafood has valuable nutritional benefits for infant brain and eye development,” said Tom Brenna, PhD, Board Director at SNP; Professor of Pediatrics & Chemistry, Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin; and Professor of Human Nutrition, Chemistry, Food Science at Cornell University. “The new seafood nutrition curriculum on wichealth.org will provide an important resource for moms and moms-to-be.”
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About wichealth.org
wichealth.org, a website operated by the eHealth Innovations Group at Western Michigan University, provides evidence-based online nutrition education and behavioral-change services for WIC clients. The site exists through a symbiotic relationship among its developers, partner WIC states, and the clients it serves. Originally conceived as a joint project between Western Michigan University and the Michigan Department of Community Health, it has since expanded to encompass WIC partners in 28 U.S. states as well as two Indian Tribal Organizations, and has been used by clients as a substitute for nearly 4 million secondary education contacts. For more information, visit joinwichealth.org.
About Seafood Nutrition Partnership
Seafood Nutrition Partnership (SNP) is the leading 501(c)3 non-profit organization in the U.S. building awareness of the health and nutritional benefits of seafood. SNP is addressing the country’s public health crisis through education programs that inspire Americans to incorporate more seafood and omega-3s into their diets for improved health as per USDA Dietary Guidelines. In October 2015, SNP launched a national public health education campaign. For more information, visit SeafoodNutrition.org.
Andrea Albersheim, Seafood Nutrition Partnership, http://www.seafoodnutrition.org/, +1 703-740-9278, [email protected]
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