There is one more extremely important awareness event to close out the month of March: Pollution Awareness Month. Directly preceding Earth Day in April, Pollution Awareness Month keeps the health of the planet as its number one priority. While “going green” is a broad term and lowering a carbon footprint can be done in a variety of ways, this awareness event focuses specifically on the human action of injecting waste and harmful byproducts of production into the environment.

As is always preached at the AwarenessMonths blog, whenever you are gearing up for a cause the most important thing you can do is educate. When it comes to the topic of pollution, the process of educating people in your community should be relatively easy. This is so because of the fact that the effects of pollution are visible in the environment, and they affect all walks of life. Humans should understand, for instance, that the dumping of waste into the oceans and other bodies of water has a direct effect on the quality of the water we drink, cook, and bathe with. You can demonstrate the effects of water pollution by showing people a simple graph like the one below.As you can see, as people dump waste into the water it gets absorbed by the clouds. The clouds then carry the polluted water over land where it gets deposited in soil and in our reservoirs. This water eventually finds its way into the mainstream pipelines of our water supply where it comes through faucets and shower heads. This is the type of process that people do not usually consider the long-term effects of. Hence the reason why it is crucial to educate them during Pollution Awareness Month.

Now water pollution is not the only form of contamination that can be seen in the environment. Another major health hazard is air pollution. Air pollutants come in a variety of forms and are emitted by many different sources. Some of the major gaseous air pollutants are sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxide (NO + NO2), and ozone (O3). These substances are usually put into the atmosphere from power plants and other factories, though the effects can be measured in lower levels on an individual basis.

Once these chemicals are circulated into the environment, they severely compromise the quality of air that humans and other animals breathe. This ultimately leads to a long list of health problems including: reduction in lung function, irritation of the eyes, nose, and mouth, onset of asthma, respiratory disease, weakened immune system, cancer, and death. These facts seem pretty grim, but making the public aware of them is the only way to put a halt to the amount of pollution currently being put forth on our planet. And the best way to get people to pay attention to these facts is by explaining to them how the effects impact their lives specifically. So, in schools, at work, at town meetings, and in the community, letting people know about the hazards of pollution will help make a difference during Pollution Awareness Month.

Everyone knows that one of the most important factors contributing to your health is diet. Somewhere along the line however, Americans lost their way. Once fast food establishments started popping up, nutrition became about doing what is cheapest and easiest as opposed to what is healthiest. This is why the creation of National Nutrition Month is absolutely vital to the health of Americans.

Sponsored by the American Dietetic Association, every March is dedicated to the education and practice of good dieting habits. The purpose of the campaign is to teach people about making the right choices when it comes to selecting their foods, and continuing to exercise those choices on a long-term basis. The American Dietetic Association also considers physical activity a component of proper nutrition, though the focus is mainly on dieting properly.When you are preparing for your National Nutrition Month awareness event, there are plenty of ideas you can consider. Remember that when it comes to most awareness events having to do with healthy practices, reaching out to children at a young age is one of the best places to start. If you can get students to start eating properly in their adolescence, they will continue the practice into adulthood.Then, the message of proper nutrition will be passed on to children and grandchildren, creating a virtuous cycle that helps to downsize the amount of obesity and unhealthy eating that currently takes place in the United States.

Make sure to get the permission of teachers and parents if you are going to be hosting a National Nutrition Month event in schools. You can also request that the parents in your community attend the event, so that they learn how to carry the lesson over into the household once the event is done.

You can start by bringing some visual aids and information regarding the food pyramid, and how to select the proper portions from each food group. When the presentation is over, make sure to ask if the attendees have any questions or concerns. The lesson will be most effective while it is still fresh in people’s minds, giving them the greatest chance of success in practicing their new nutrition habits once they leave the room.Please note that National Nutrition Month is definitely about people of all ages, not only kids. Adults that currently do not practice proper eating habits can learn a lot from the lessons that you are providing during National Nutrition Month, so it’s not too late for them to change. If you want to go a step further, you can encourage people in your community to make a donation to help people who cannot afford the foods that will help them maintain a proper diet.

Some people are forced into purchases foods that are high in starches and oils with little or no protein, simply because of a low socioeconomic status. With enough donations, you can help to make a difference in the lives of impoverished people so that everyone can learn and practice better nutrition habits in the future.

Normally at the AwarenessMonths blog, we like to focus on preparing you for important events that will be taking place in the future. Today is a little bit different because the March awareness event to be discussed has already taken place. It is still important to do some coverage on this event though, as it is extremely important for children across the country.

Read Across America Day was an important awareness event that took place on March 2nd. Officially started in 1998, the event was started by the National Education Association (NEA) to have a day dedicated to celebrating reading. Since the event was specifically designed to get children excited about reading, the NEA needed to have some sort of significance with regards to the date. They chose Dr. Suess’s birthday, as he is one of the most notable children’s authors of all time.With a brief background of Read Across America Day in mind, you can imagine all the great events that are developed for the cause. This year, teachers and parents across the country teamed up to encourage children to read. The basic idea behind any Read Across America event is to get kids on the virtuous path of loving reading for the rest of their lives.

It is a fact that the more you read, the better chance you have of becoming well educated and studied. The more educated you are, the better chance you have for success in the the world. With such a huge focus being put on developing education in this country, it should be noted that it all starts with reading.

If you want to get an early start on Read Across America Day for next year, here is what you do. First, you need to make sure you get prior approval from the principal of the school, and the teachers in classes (if you are not a teacher already). Then, check the schedule of the schools in your community and make sure there are no conflicts. Celebrating on March 2 is ideal, but you can still honor the event on a different day if it’s more practical.If you want to make the event even more exciting, you can try recruiting a guest reader to your school. In the past, famous authors have come to schools on Read Across America Day to read to the children, and get them excited as possible about continuing to read after the festivities are over. The celebrity of this public figure causes children to perk up in a way that their usual teacher might not be able to get them to do.

13 years of Read Across America Day and still going strong!

March is a brand new month that is chock full of great awareness events. With the weather getting warm and spring around the corner, people will be much more likely to get out of their houses and willing to lend a helping hand. It is your job to round up all this extra energy from the people in your community and channel it into one of these important causes. The cumulative effort that is put forth in these events will help to make a lasting difference for those who are afflicted by the problem.

Let’s take a sneak peek at some of the March awareness month events that are coming up so that you can choose which ones you want to be a part of:

1. National Poison Prevention Week

One of the most understated and extremely dangerous hazards in the home is exposure to poison. With a ton of household cleaners and other chemicals lying around the house, it is no wonder that over 90 percent of poisonings take place in the home. With more than 2 million poisonings reported each year to Poison Control Centers, the implementation of National Poison Prevention Week has never been more relevant.

Since the unhealthy exposure to chemicals is a danger that mostly children are susceptible to, you can focus your efforts for the awareness event in the schools. The younger that kids are when they learn about the dangers associated with poisons, the less likely they will be to expose themselves to these chemicals. Educating children can be done through the use of promotional products and other tangible reminders which help kids to remember how dangerous poison really is.

2. Hemophilia Awareness Month

Hemophilia is a widespread disorder throughout the planet, but many people have never even heard of it before. Hemophilia is characterized as a blood disorder in which the body is unable to clot blood in a reasonable amount of time. Therefore, hemophiliacs are always at the risk of severe blood loss if they endure any type of open cut or wound.Since hemophilia is such a dangerous disease, Hemophilia Awareness Month has been developed to find better treatments and an ultimate cure. With enough hard work and fundraising, we can develop a way to save the 400 babies a year in the United States from such a daunting fate. You can gear your Hemophilia Awareness Month efforts towards parents, as they understand best what it might feel like to care for a child with this disorder. However, anyone in the community who wishes to participate could be used in this instance.

3. National School Breakfast Week

Another awareness event that is extremely important in schools, National School Breakfast Week focuses on making sure kids consume the most important meal of the day. The main purpose of National School Breakfast Week was to call attention to the School Breakfast Program which is available nationwide. The program provides a healthy breakfast for anyone who wants it, though not many people are aware of it.Regardless of whether students choose to participate in the School Breakfast Program, they should learn the importance of eating breakfast before they start the day. During National School Breakfast Week, you can help teach kids about the importance of eating breakfast on a daily basis. This will help them to concentrate better in school, which will ultimately lead to them getting better grades. The future is much brighter when you eat breakfast at the beginning of the day.