Community nutrition project: Lisbon
Donation protected
Hi! In April 2017 I will be going to Lisbon, Portugal, for 3 months to volunteer on a community nutrition project!
I've always wanted to volunteer abroad and reach those who are struggling and I am fortunate enough to have been given an opportunity to do so. Malnourishment and poor nutrition are major issues that are prevalent in all countries, yet some suffer more than others. So many people suffer from untreated malnutrition and this can lead to a range of other physical and mental health issues; I want to go out there and help with stopping this!
Malnutrition has been identified as the underlying cause for early deaths, with 70% of childhood
deaths worldwide being a result of this. The effects of malnutrition include increased
susceptibility to infection, muscular wasting, skeletal deformities and neurological development
issues. As part of this project I will be volunteering in hospitals and helping with the recovery of
malnourished individuals and assisting with aid for ReFood and Madrugada’s locations in other
countries who also have the same goal, to end hunger and eradicate malnutrition!
A lot more focus in western countries has been paid to the problem of overnutrition causing
serious health issues such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases - which are very visible in
our communities. Recently the issue of malnutrition has been recognised at a European level
and not just in third world countries. Although a variety of nutritional screening tools are
available for the identification of malnutrition they are poorly employed across European
healthcare systems. This means that malnutrition continues to go undetected and the
opportunity for early identification and treatment is therefore often missed. This is why as part of
this project I will be assisting doctors, nutritionists and dietitians in teaching about nutrition,
malnutrition and their importance in hospitals, schools and in the community.
So what am I fundraising for? Well, 100% of the money raised will go to the two charities I
mentioned previously. Both these charities have locations all over the world where fighting
malnutrition is the pure focus and the money raised will be used to provide essentials such as
medical equipment, treatments and medication, clean/sanitary water and food to ensure that
malnourished individuals get the best possible treatment to aid their recovery back to full health.
So please, even if you can only donate a couple of pounds I would be so grateful as you aren't just helping me, you are helping those suffering. I know this is going to be an amazing learning experience as well so thank you so much in advance!
Rachael x
P.S. if you have been so kind to donate over £10 then I will send you a postcard from Portugal with a little thank you message!
ReFood charity:
http://www.re-food.org/pt
I've always wanted to volunteer abroad and reach those who are struggling and I am fortunate enough to have been given an opportunity to do so. Malnourishment and poor nutrition are major issues that are prevalent in all countries, yet some suffer more than others. So many people suffer from untreated malnutrition and this can lead to a range of other physical and mental health issues; I want to go out there and help with stopping this!
Malnutrition has been identified as the underlying cause for early deaths, with 70% of childhood
deaths worldwide being a result of this. The effects of malnutrition include increased
susceptibility to infection, muscular wasting, skeletal deformities and neurological development
issues. As part of this project I will be volunteering in hospitals and helping with the recovery of
malnourished individuals and assisting with aid for ReFood and Madrugada’s locations in other
countries who also have the same goal, to end hunger and eradicate malnutrition!
A lot more focus in western countries has been paid to the problem of overnutrition causing
serious health issues such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases - which are very visible in
our communities. Recently the issue of malnutrition has been recognised at a European level
and not just in third world countries. Although a variety of nutritional screening tools are
available for the identification of malnutrition they are poorly employed across European
healthcare systems. This means that malnutrition continues to go undetected and the
opportunity for early identification and treatment is therefore often missed. This is why as part of
this project I will be assisting doctors, nutritionists and dietitians in teaching about nutrition,
malnutrition and their importance in hospitals, schools and in the community.
So what am I fundraising for? Well, 100% of the money raised will go to the two charities I
mentioned previously. Both these charities have locations all over the world where fighting
malnutrition is the pure focus and the money raised will be used to provide essentials such as
medical equipment, treatments and medication, clean/sanitary water and food to ensure that
malnourished individuals get the best possible treatment to aid their recovery back to full health.
So please, even if you can only donate a couple of pounds I would be so grateful as you aren't just helping me, you are helping those suffering. I know this is going to be an amazing learning experience as well so thank you so much in advance!
Rachael x
P.S. if you have been so kind to donate over £10 then I will send you a postcard from Portugal with a little thank you message!
ReFood charity:
http://www.re-food.org/pt
Organizer
Rachael Menezes
Organizer