An obesity toolkit crammed with practical tips and information is being launched to help people fight the flab and improve their health.
With almost a quarter of the adult population now classified as obese and with the proportion of obese children rising by more than 40 per cent between 1995 and 2004, an obesity toolkit is being published to help local councils and health bodies support people in their area to beat the bulge.
Public Health Minister Caroline Flint said;
“Most people know they should eat more fruit and vegetables, and do more exercise but sometimes they need a nudge in the right direction to get them on the road to improving their health.
“That’s where the obesity toolkit can help – providing a raft of information and tools such as useful statistics, practical initiatives and examples of good practice. It has been set up to provide local planners with a starting point for developing a local strategy to tackle overweight and obesity tailor made for their areas.”
The launch of the online toolkit comes as thousands of young people are using the new Teen Life Check – a quick online quiz style questionnaire primarily for young people aged 11 – 14, but primarily aimed at 12 and 13 year olds.
As of March 27, 6881 people have accessed the Teen Life Check site and 3015 have now taken the ‘quiz’ since it went live on February 6.
The online questionnaires give young people the opportunity to take greater responsibility for their health and well being as the questionnaires help them understand how their lifestyles may affect their health and direct them to information and resources to help them improve their health.