Blogs

Alexandria, Va. - March 20, 2018--The American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS) joins the International Federation for Home Economics (IFHE) in celebrating World Home Economics Day (WHED) today. In 1994, AAFCS, other organizations, and programs changed their name of the field from home economics to family and consumer sciences to more accurately reflect how the field has evolved in the U.S. The theme for World Home Economics Day 2018 is "Home Economics Literacy: Skills for Healthy and Sustainable Cooking," which supports two main aims of the World Health Organisation (WHO):

1. Reduce Non-Communicable Diseases.
2. Food Safety to avoid Foodborne Illness.

This year's theme emphasizes the importance of home economics/family and consumer sciences education. Food safety and healthy diets are key aspects of “Food and Nutrition.”

Healthy Cooking to Reduce Non-Communicable Diseases
The WHO Healthy Diet Fact Sheet N°394 points out the consequences of healthy diet and unhealthy diet in correlation with lack of physical activity.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs394/en/
The WHO Action Plan aims to reduce the Non-Communicable Diseases by 25% until 2025.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs355/en/

Home economics/family and consumer sciences education enables children, adults, and professionals to plan and prepare healthy diets, which are relevant throughout a person's lifespan.

Healthy Cooking to Reduce Foodborne Illness
Eating contaminated food is an important cause of illness, disability, and deaths around the world, as revealed by the first ever WHO Estimates of the Global Burden of Foodborne Diseases published in December 2015.

Consumers Play Major Role in Food Safety
The WHO highlights, even though food producers have the primary responsibility to keep the food we buy safe, consumers have an important part to play. Knowing our food, and the associated benefits of being an empowered consumer, should be taught from the youngest possible age. https://www.unspecial.org/2015/04/empoweredchildren-are-the-best-health-ambassadors/2/

IFHE calls for action to implement the WHO “Five Keys to Safer Food,” which explain the basic principles that individuals all over the world should know to prevent foodborne diseases. On WHED 2018, IFHE members and home economics/family and consumer sciences educators worldwide will show that Home Economics Literacy includes skills for healthy and sustainable cooking.

The IFHE Best Practice Tips for Cooking, Refrigeration, Canning of Vegetables and Drying of Fruits and Vegetables developed and published as posters by the IFHE Programme Committee Household Technology & Sustainability demonstrate include guidelines for sustainable food preparation.
http://he.ifhe.org/857/ and see WHED in the section “In Focus” under http://he.ifhe.org/1110/.

About American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS)

Based in the Washington, D.C., area, AAFCS is the only association for family and consumer sciences students and professionals across multiple practice settings and content areas. For more than 100 years, AAFCS has focused its mission on providing leadership and support for professionals whose work assists individuals, families, and communities in making more informed decisions about their well-being, relationships, and resources to achieve optimal quality of life. AAFCS members provide research-based knowledge about the topics of everyday life to help create healthy and sustainable families. These topics include human development, personal and family finance, housing and interior design, food science, nutrition and wellness, textiles and apparel, and consumer issues. AAFCS members are located nationwide, and include educators, administrators and managers, human service and business professionals, researchers, community volunteers, and consultants who develop research-based information and deliver programs on essential skills to help individuals and families be better prepared to live, work, and succeed in today’s complex and diverse world.
 

Field of Family & Consumer Sciences

Family and consumer sciences (FCS), founded as home economics, draws from broad and diverse disciplines to develop and provide content and programs that help individuals become more effective critical thinkers and problem solvers.  Through discovery and delivery of research-based knowledge, FCS professionals help individuals and families develop essential skills to successfully live and work in a complex world. Professionals in the field are uniquely qualified to speak on many critical issues affecting individuals and families, such as maintaining a healthy lifestyle, wisely managing personal and family finances, and creating supportive relationships with family members, friends, and co-workers.  They are located nationwide in a variety of practice settings, including secondary schools, universities, government agencies, and businesses.

 

For more information, please contact:

Gwynn Mason

Senior Director, Communications & Marketing, AAFCS

703-706-4613

gmason@aafcs.org

# # #