On March 10, the “Prevention in Pediatrics and Nephrology” conference was held at the Silesian Medical University in Katowice with the participation of Polish senators. The conference consisted of a Pediatrics Session, a Nephrology Session and moderated discussions that addressed key topics in preventive health care.
The Rector of the Medical University of Silesia, Professor Tomasz Szczepański, expressed hope that the Polish Senate’s designation of 2025 as the Year of Health Education and Prevention will raise public awareness and highlight the importance of health prevention.
The event covered the most important topics related to prevention and health education in the country. “We have a huge problem with society in terms of health education, which is reflected by all health indicators,” said the chairwoman of the Senate Health Committee, Beata Małecka-Libera.
Part of the conference was devoted to the extremely important topic of chronic kidney disease and its early detection.
Katarzyna Brukało, PhD, took part in the pediatric session, presenting the important topic “Prevention on the plate, or how to (not) feed children.” She is the Principal Project Manager of JA PreventNCD at the Medical University of Silesia.
"Obesity and overweight are the main health challenges we face among children of preschool and school age. The most common errors in children's nutrition that lead to overweight include poorly formulated diets and improper eating habits," said Dr. Katarzyna Brukało.
She also stressed the importance of spending time with the family for children's health, spoke about the differences between the products available in the Polish food sector, as well as about the JA PreventNCD project and the Project Consortium which will take place on June 16–18. In addition, she compared projects implemented by the Medical University of Silesia in terms of their impact on society.
Many other participants of the event raised important topics as well.
"Being thin at age 2 increases the risk of being obese in adulthood by 60%, while a teenager who is thin has a 30% risk of developing obesity in adulthood. It is worthwhile to take care of a child's normal body weight throughout childhood." - conveyed Professor Agnieszka Zachurzok, MD, PhD at Medical University of Silesia.
"Diabetes is a severe, chronic and progressive systemic vascular disease that accelerates aging of the body. We diabetologists must work on the diabetic patient holistically, i.e. have a diabetes therapeutic team, a specialist doctor, a diabetes educator, a nutritionist, a psychologist," - said Professor Przemysława Jarosz-Chobot, MD, PhD.
Thanks to the involvement of specialists and initiatives such as JA PreventNCD, awareness of the importance of prevention in shaping the health of children and adolescents is growing. The conclusions drawn from the conference may contribute to more effective actions aimed at improving health indicators in Poland, which is particularly important in the context of the Polish Senate’s declaration of 2025 as the Year of Health Education and Prevention.
