Healthy Peterborough

In February 2016, Peterborough City Council launched the first of a series of themed campaigns to help the city and surrounding rural areas to better health, part of a year-long programme targeting a different topic each month. This issue, we look at children’s health and the importance of staying active...

Stay active – stay healthy

“Being active can improve your health. Even increasing your activity by small amounts is good – and having fun while being active is the key! You do not have to just do exercises or sport. The important thing is to do something that you find fun and interesting, that also makes you a little out of breath and makes you feel warmer. That way, you’ll be able to keep it up and want to come back for more. The Healthy Peterborough campaign can offer loads of great ideas and tips to make small or big changes, and find some fantastic local clubs, activities and people to help you on your way. Why not start now?”
Shaun Birdsall, Health Improvement Specialist – Public Health, Cambridgeshire County Council

How much have you moved today?
Whatever our age, the risk of many of the leading causes of ill health, such as coronary heart disease, cancer and type two diabetes could be reduced if we were to play more sport and increase our overall levels of physical activity. Fitting some physical activity into your day is easier than you think. Being active is good for your body, mind and health – and there are lots of easy ways you can get moving!

Get moving now!
It doesn’t have to be difficult. Doing something is better than nothing, so start small and build up gradually – getting your heart beating faster and your lungs working harder for just 10 minutes at a time can be really good for you. Try going for a brisk walk in the park or a bike ride, or even dancing to the radio. Building activity into your day keeps your heart healthy, reduces your risk of serious illness and strengthens muscles and bones. It can also be a great way of reducing your stress levels and lifting your mood if you’re feeling down.

Sit less
Start with reducing the amount of time you spend sitting down – get up, stretch your legs more often and do more steps each day. Take the stairs whenever you can and go on

Build strength
Building your strength helps keep your muscles, bones and joints strong. This will help you feel stronger, more flexible and full of energy. Examples of muscle-strengthening activities for most people include carrying or moving heavy loads such as groceries, activities that involve stepping and jumping such as dancing, heavy gardening such as digging or shovelling and exercises such as push-ups, sit-ups or lifting weights.

Protect your mind
Being active is good for your mind as well as your body. Getting some physical activity each day can help prevent you getting depression, anxiety and other mental health problems and is good for relieving stress.

Active travel
Choose more active ways to get around. If you can walk or cycle instead of driving or taking public transport, it can also be good for your pocket and the environment.

Age well
Being active is critical to maintain a healthy body and mind for later years. Not being active increases your risk of many conditions that will impact on your future quality of life, including dementia, osteoarthritis and general physical limitations in older age. Older adults can be more at risk of falling, and should do exercises to improve balance and co-ordination on at least two days a week, such as yoga, tai chi and dancing. a brisk walk to the shops instead of driving.

Tips for older adults (65-plus years)

● Older adults who participate in any amount of physical activity gain some health benefits, including maintenance of good physical and cognitive function. Some physical activity is better than none, and more physical activity provides greater health benefits. ● Older adults should aim to be active daily. Over a week, activity should add up to at least 150 minutes (2 hours) of moderate intensity activity in bouts of ten minutes or more – one way to approach this is to do 30 minutes on at least five days a week. ● For those who are already regularly active at moderate intensity, comparable benefits can be achieved through 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity spread across the week or a combination of moderate and vigorous activity. ● Older adults should also undertake physical activity to improve muscle strength on at least two days a week. ● Older adults at risk of falls should incorporate physical activity to improve balance and coordination on at least two days a week. ● All older adults should minimise the amount of time spent being sedentary (sitting) for extended periods.

Good health for kids

We all want what’s best for our children, now and in the future – but did you know that their state of health now can have a major impact in later life? Helen Reed, Health Improvement Specialist in Nutrition at Cambridgeshire County Council, explains: ‘We know that giving children the best start in life improves their health as adults too. If children are overweight they are more likely to be obese as an adult, which increases their risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke and some cancers. So it is important to encourage children to make healthy food choices and be active to reach a healthy weight’. ‘We are promoting three main messages this month about improving children’s health in the city. One is that children over 5 years do at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day to strengthen bones and boost both their energy and their confidence. If a child does the recommended amount of exercise then they are also more likely to be able to concentrate at school and be healthier and fitter ‘The second is to encourage children to eat well, with a balanced diet based around the Eatwell Guide – which includes eating at least five fruit and vegetables a day, having fewer foods or drinks that are high in fat and sugar, and making simple swaps to give healthier snacks. ‘The third message is about dental health. Around one in four children have

A few facts…
● Only 2 in 10 5-15 year olds do the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity a day. This has fallen since 2008. ● In Peterborough, more than 1 in 5 Reception children are overweight or obese ● Nearly 1 in 3 Year 6 children in Peterborough are overweight or obese. Local obesity levels almost double between Reception and Year 6. tooth decay by the time they start school, so we want to help protect teeth. Cutting down on sugar is one tip, try swapping fizzy drinks for water or milk.’ ● In Peterborough, 1 in 4 children starting school have tooth decay.

Children aged 5-18 should be physically active for at least 60 minutes each day, and for up to several hours. These 60 minutes are on top of any activities they do at school. Any 10 minute burst of activity counts towards the 60 minutes, it doesn’t all have to be at once. It is also important for children to reduce the amount of time they spend sitting (being sedentary) for long periods e.g. at the TV or computer. Want to make some changes? Check out www. nhs.uk/change4life for hundreds of games, ideas and activities to have fun and get active – indoor and out, rain or shine – there’s something for all the family!

Tips for teeth
● Reduce how often teeth come into contact with sugary food and drink. ● If you give children high sugar products, give these as part of a meal rather than as an individual snack. ● Water and milk are the only tooth friendly drinks for children. ● Give 100% fruit juice as a drink with a meal, rather than on its own. ● Have dried fruit as part of a meal, not as a snack on its own. ● Swap to have healthier snacks which are low in sugar, fat and salt. ● It is important for children to brush their teeth twice a day and visit the dentist regularly.

Healthy eating
Eating lots of different foods in the right amounts is important to help children grow and reach a healthy weight, while lowering their risk of poor health. A good starting point is the The Eatwell Guide, which shows what a healthy, balanced diet should look like for meals and snacks. For more information on the Eatwell Guide, visit: www. nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/ Pages/the-eatwell-guide.aspx Change4Life has lots of recipe ideas for healthier snacks, meals and drinks too, visit www.nhs.uk/change4life

www.healthypeterborough.org.uk