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World Digestive Health Day 2023
WGO seeks to raise awareness of digestive health through its annual public advocacy and awareness campaign, World Digestive Health Day. WGO is pleased to announce that this year’s WDHD theme is “Your Digestive Health: A Healthy Gut From the Start.” WDHD is celebrated each year on May 29th with associated events, activities, and initiatives continuing throughout and beyond the campaign year.
WGO’s task is supported by Co-Chairs and a Task Force with a global perspective. The Task Force provides expertise on digestive health, guides the course of the campaign, and develops educational and training materials. In collaboration with WGO Member Societies, WGO Training Centers and Regional Affiliate Associations, the Task Force defines this global initiative and provides the resources to sustain the effort throughout the year.
Through a multifaceted campaign, WGO will provide messaging to the general. In addition, WGO will develop information for healthcare professionals with an emphasis on health care professionals in low-resource, developing regions. Multiple informational pieces are planned and will be distributed worldwide, for patients and health care professionals. Through the WDHD 2023 campaign WGO looks forward to providing a better understanding and recognition of a healthy gut. Your participation, through educating the public about the diseases, encouraging participation in screening programs, and promoting a healthy lifestyle, is crucial for the success of this campaign.
Please join us in ensuring its success.
MESSAGE FROM THE CO-CHAIRS
Dear Colleagues,
From birth, the GI tract serves to provide nutrients to our bodies, enhance the immune response, house the intestinal microbiota, and serve as a “second brain” with the brain-gut axis. The dietary needs of the GI tract change from newborn, thru infancy, childhood, and adulthood. The function of the GI tract will be explained and how a healthy diet can promote optimal organ function and a healthy microbiome. Understanding the normal functions of the GI tract and diet will also help identify when to seek GI care for symptoms. There are natural tie ins to prior World Digestive Health Days (WDHD), particularly the 2020 campaign on the gut microbiome and the 2021 campaign on obesity.
World Digestive Health Day is celebrated each year on May 29th with associated events, activities, and initiatives continuing throughout and beyond the campaign year. Through a multi-faceted campaign, WGO will provide simple messages for the general public in order to assist them in understanding the important role of diet in GI health. Multiple informational pieces on the GI tract and a healthy diet are planned and will be distributed worldwide for patients including children, gastroenterologists, primary care providers, and other healthcare professionals.
Through the WDHD 2023 campaign, WGO looks forward to providing a better understanding and recognition of a healthy GI tract, and we invite your participation through educating the public to promote a healthy lifestyle.
Sincerely, Christina Surawicz, MD Professor Emeritus, Medicine University of Washington WDHD 2023 Co-Chair Carol Semrad, MD Professor, Medicine The University of Chicago Medicine WDHD 2023 Co-Chair
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
WGO invites you to start planning your WDHD 2023 event today! Although the official date of WDHD 2023 is May 29th, many events will take place throughout the year. We challenge you to get involved in the campaign by creating exciting ways to advocate and raise awareness of obesity all year long. Take Action and celebrate in your respective communities. WGO is appreciative of all campaign participants and for your continued efforts to support the WDHD campaign. To learn more about WDHD 2023 today visit http://wdhd.worldgastroenterology.org/
TAKE ACTION
- Host an academic conference or symposium featuring scientific programs, plenaries, poster presentations, or forums.
- Create a toolkit for health care professionals and the general public.
- Organize a public awareness campaign and disseminate campaign materials through blogs, podcasts, videos, and brochures.
- Create your own way to take action to support WDHD and share with us.
CELEBRATE
- Generate awareness by developing a social media campaign and use the hashtag #WDHD2023.
- Engage your local media with podcasts, public service announcements, press releases, radio advertisements, or TV interviews.
- Create your own way to celebrate WDHD and share with us.
JOIN THE WDHD CONVERSATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA
To join the conversation in support of WDHD 2023, snap, post, tweet, and share original photographs and videos of WDHD 2023 celebrations. Tag WGO on Facebook @WorldGastroOrg and Twitter @WorldGastroOrg, or mention us on Instagram @WorldGastroOrg, and be sure to include the hashtag #WDHD2023 in the post. We encourage you to connect and interact with us on LinkedIn too (search for World Gastroenterology Organisation). To learn more about how to interact with WGO on social media, visit www.worldgastroenterology.org/about-wgo/media-center/social-media.
For more information about WDHD 2023 or to obtain the WDHD 2023 logo vist http://wdhd.worldgastroenterology.org/
