Promoting a healthy diet in childhood: weaknesses in the context of Primary Health Care

This paper reports the experience of the incorporation of perceptions of social actors in the investigation of the weaknesses of the process of implementation of programs that aim to promote a healthy diet in childhood. It involves qualitative research carried out in a medium-sized Brazilian municipality in which the participants were nurses and community health agents. The data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires as well as focus groups. The findings indicated that the quality and continuity of actions to promote a healthy diet were limited due to the precarious working conditions, hence the strong demand for adequate orientation due to the unfavorable context where child health is concerned. Although the reality of peripheral countries points to an incipience in program evaluation, the incorporation of qualitative investigation broadened by the perspective of the participants may constitute an important tool of participation and social responsibility. This minimizes political effects and verticalized and discontinuous actions, helping the generation of opportune and adequate information for the understanding of the different local contexts and social experiences.