As part of the collaboration with the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health of the University of Padua, the Salus Pueri Foundation and the Città della Speranza Foundation, the Padua football hosted more than 200 students from Padua’s primary and middle schools at the Euganeo Stadium.
The “Youth, Health and Lifestyles” project, promoted by the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health together with the Province of Padua, with the presence of the provincial councilor with responsibility for Culture Vincenzo Gottardo, and with the Hospital, benefited of the collaboration of the Padova Football Academy, which made its coaches available, and of the MAAP, which donated fresh fruit to the kids and promoted healthy eating among the youngest.
The route included moments of education and leisure, including a visit to the Padua Football Museum, a lesson and workshop led by pediatricians, moments of play on the pitch and interviews conducted by the boys with the stars of the Primavera team: Pablo Mangiaracina, Marco Susanu and Andrea Beccaro, in the press room.
“Health is built from a young age, and our aim is to try to explain to the little ones how to do it,” explains Prof. Eugenio Baraldi, Director of the Department of Women’s and Children’s Health and scientific director of the project. “The objective of these meetings is to share with girls and boys the importance of healthy lifestyles, acquired early at a young age, to prevent cardiovascular diseases, tumors, respiratory diseases, diabetes and obesity. Remember that one of the contributing factors for the onset of these diseases are incorrect lifestyle habits, such as physical inactivity, excessive time spent in front of screens, an inadequate diet, smoking, alcohol and a sedentary lifestyle. For this reason, the meeting program was structured by alternating theoretical interventions and practical activities that actively involved the children, to build a synergy of concepts and actions that were not only theoretical, but concrete”.
“Today we are here to talk about young people and to young people, who represent our future. As a sports club, we have a duty to introduce new generations to a healthy lifestyle”, explained President Francesco Peghin. “Through sport, we can teach children healthy behaviors to adopt in daily life, which can have a positive impact on health, improving the quality of life and personal well-being”.
“This is a very important project that the Province has coordinated, in the city and in the provincial territory. – declared Vincenzo Gottardo, provincial councilor with responsibility for Culture – We met once a month with young people and identified the best lifestyles with ad hoc meetings. Having this mapping of these secondary schools today gives us new stimuli for new programming for the next season. High school students return home around 2.30pm, those who return in the afternoon around 6.30pm. The resulting lifestyle imposes eating habits that are not always healthy and high-quality. A very computerized education and way of experiencing school, implying lifestyles that can be corrected. We need moments of sport to integrate with study. Students are very responsive and receptive, adopting healthy lifestyles helps improve the quality of life.”
“The initiative was intended to bring the world of school and health ever closer to Calcio Padova and to the sporting values and healthy lifestyle that distinguish our sport”, explained Gianni Potti, councilor with responsibility for communication and relations external”.
