At Bepensa, together with the Bepensa Foundation and the Coca-Cola Foundation, we reiterate our commitment to promoting and developing well-being in the communities where we operate. This is demonstrated by the way we support actions that contribute to mitigating the high rates of obesity and overweight in Mexico, joining forces with authorities and civil society in the Comprehensive Program for Childhood Obesity in Yucatán (PIAOIY) with the goal of continuing to encourage the adoption of healthy lifestyles among Yucatecan families.
The meeting to launch this program was held at the Manuel Sales Cepeda school, which has achieved the best indicators for school health care in the state, setting an example for all of Yucatán.
The strategy aims to reduce the incidence and prevalence of overweight, obesity, and inactivity among the student population through physical education and teaching healthy eating habits, with the participation of professionals in the field and the entire community.
As we know, obesity is a problem caused by several factors, such as lack of physical activity, a person's genetic makeup, habits, and diet, among others. Aware of this, in collaboration with PIAOIY, the "Parents' Guides on Healthy Eating" were created. These guides contain valuable information on nutrition and will be shared with parents of elementary schools in the state of Yucatán.
These guides will be part of the "My New Lifestyle" project, in which talks and workshops are being given by trained nutritionists who will be equipped with tools such as NutriKit®, a material that provides nutritional guidance to promote nutrition education as part of a healthy lifestyle. Using educational materials, Nutrikit® presents the food groups, the healthy eating plate, and the combination of different food groups, as well as the concept of energy balance, which refers to the balance between calories consumed and calories expended. With this, we seek to help parents acquire basic knowledge of nutrition and healthy habits so that they can implement them in a simple and practical way at home when planning their children's daily meals.
This program also provides personalized care through specific exercise routines, appropriate nutrition, and clinical monitoring in specific cases.
This school year, 2,696 schools with 373,920 preschool, primary, and secondary school students will benefit from a collaboration between government institutions and the Bepensa, Coca-Cola, and "Movimiento es Salud" Foundations, whose resources make it possible to provide materials to nutritionists and teachers.
In addition to these actions, the Mexican Coca-Cola Industry, of which Bepensa is a part, has 45% of its portfolio with low- or no-calorie product options and portions, with a commitment to continue working on their development and expansion.
This is a very important project for us and our commitment to the well-being of communities. We are confident that actively working with comprehensive initiatives that invest in the education of Mexicans to help promote healthy lifestyles ultimately contributes to the well-being of our society.
