Another meeting of the Parliamentary Team on Pro-Health Food and Nutrition was held in the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, dedicated to the role of nutritional education in shaping conscious health attitudes. The meeting was attended by representatives of ministries, regulatory institutions, the scientific community, as well as experts in public health, supplementation, and education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The session was opened by the Chair of the Team, MP Katarzyna Stachowicz, together with Secretary Adam Gomo\u0142a. In her speech, she recalled the words of Hippocrates: \u201cLet food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food\u201d<\/em>, which became the symbolic motto of the meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Right at the beginning of the proceedings, a voice was heard that gave the event a clear substantive structure. Dr. Joanna Ucha\u0144ska, legal counsel from our Law Firm, opened the expert part by providing a concise summary of the previous meeting and introducing participants to the subject of pro-health food in the context of education. In her address, she highlighted five pillars on which a responsible approach to functional food should be based: law, quality, public health, economic condition, and\u2014as a fundamental element\u2014legislation. It was this last pillar, relating to systemic legal frameworks, that became the starting point for further reflection on the need for coherent and transparent regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr. Ucha\u0144ska also reminded that following the previous session, at the initiative of Chairwoman Katarzyna Stachowicz, two important parliamentary documents were submitted:<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the next part of the session, experts from the Expert Council of the National Council of Supplements and Nutritional Products took the floor. Dr. Andrzej Balicki, legal counsel, discussed regulatory and informational challenges, pointing to the need for greater transparency and the implementation of a nutrivigilance system. Dr. Eng. Katarzyna Wolnicka presented an overview of effective nutritional education programs for children and adolescents, while Prof. Krzysztof Durkalec-Michalski, PhD, Eng., from the University of Physical Education, emphasized the importance of physical activity and responsible supplementation in the health prevention of the younger generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ChatGPT powiedzia\u0142:<\/p>\n\n\n\n An important contribution to the discussion came from Professor Jan G\u0105siorek, PhD, who drew attention to the risks associated with the use of unverified dietary supplements of unknown origin and the negative effects of excessive screen time among children. He pointed to the need to focus educational efforts in smaller towns and emphasized the importance of the visual aspect of food products for the youngest consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr. Tomasz Bia\u0142as from IJHARS presented the role of labels as a source of consumer knowledge, while the Team Secretary, Adam Gomo\u0142a, provided information about the submitted interpellations to the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Sport concerning the sustainability of pro-health programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the open discussion, contributions were made, among others, by Dr. Ewa Butkiewicz, Alicja Buczek, Aleksandra P\u0142o\u0144ska from the Ministry of Health, Dorota Wojcieszek from the Ministry of National Education, Dr. Katarzyna Suchoszek \u2013 expert of the Expert Council of the National Council of Supplements and Nutritional Products, Prof. Katarzyna Sto\u015b, Head of the Department of Nutrition and Food Nutritional Value at the National Institute of Public Health \u2013 National Hygiene Institute, and Prof. Iwona Wawer, who emphasized the role of pharmacists as health educators and \u201cfirst-contact doctors.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n