#InternationalYouthDay: A Healthy World for All Ages

Poverty7
Since International Youth Day’s 2022 theme is to get people talking about intergenerational solidarity, it also addresses poverty in both young and old globally. Many people find themselves hungry; lacking enough access to basic things to go about their everyday lives. The more people we can get to talk about it, the more solutions we can get.

Future-Forward Thinking⁸
This annual celebration pushes for a tangible improvement in the lives of the youth, and in this case, all generations. So reducing cases of hunger, HIV/AIDS, and more are necessary steps to reaching sustainable solutions.⁹

Encouraged Creativity¹⁰
Since serious social and political discussions are meant to be targets of IYD, actionable plans and doable acts are set for those who participate in IYD commemoration to inspire us and encourage us to be more efficient about the mark we leave upon the world. For example, sustainable goals also mean reducing pollution and having enough resources for generations to come.

Good Health for All
International Youth Day not only tackles the aforementioned issues, it also presses on subjects that undermines young people’s health and with this year’s theme — all ages. IYD of the previous year, for example, called to promote active participation¹⁰ in staying fit and healthy for society.

This initiative stated that happy and healthy youth are better geared to face on issues of today. That said, dropping unhealthy habits and pledging to replace such with taking steps in the right direction. For example:

• Forming daily exercise habits should is especially beneficial when started early. For the youth, this is a good pattern to curb illnesses in adulthood.
• Cultivating healthy eating habits, especially diets with less sugars and saturated fats avoids diabetes and other health issues.
• Smoking and drinking are also some of the most harmful things to do to our bodies when we’re young, so the youth should avoid or stop early.
• Practicing safe sexual activities is a must, too, as emphasized in a previous IYD celebration, as it can affect one’s health and wellbeing.
• Sleep hygiene does a lot for a healthy body. Make sure to get enough sleep time for any day’s activities and stick to a routine.

Get moving!
Start discussions
The first major thing to do is share talks between both young people and adults. Starting to help means getting the right resources and knowing what both generations have to say.¹¹

In 2020, IYD pressed on meaningful youth engagement and talks. These were to enrich the establishment of processes that concern adolescent health in government¹² — whether that’s local, national, or global.

This year’s IYD hinges on the engaging, powerful discourses that do not shy away from chasing rights and conversations that improve health and wellness for all generations, so for anyone who would want to take a more active role to promote a healthier world of intergenerational solidarity, this is a good starting point.

Get to the checklist
There are tons of things to elevate in commemoration of IYD, so it would not hurt to start a list of things to keep track. Now, these issues aren’t simple boxes to tick off, so begin with small things that eventually lead to bigger-scale items.

For instance, you can add helping out through Solve Education!¹³, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping people globally to address the lack of quality education. This initiative, of course, includes the Philippines. Its very mission is to develop apps that combine learning with gameplay. These platforms have English and numeracy plus other essential lessons on life skills for kids.¹⁴

Stay healthy, keep helping
One of IYD’s biggest topics to cover is health — and we know this is rooted in the many social and political concerns the youth and elderly of the world are facing today. So, if you want to help out on elevating all ages for a better world built on sustainable systems, it might be a good idea to keep yourself healthy, too.

Make sure you’re physically and mentally fit for tasks that may come your way, since raising the discourse of the mentioned causes does not take just time, they take constant effort, continuous learning, and a constant show of presence.

Let EASTWEST HEALTHCARE take good care of your health for you. For more than two (2) decades now, we’ve been a reliable provider of accessible healthcare dedicated to improving lives and securing a healthy horizon for Filipinos.