INITIATIVES

Currently there are different initiatives in place to help with the prevention and control of obesity some of these include:

The Healthy Heart Award programme which is aimed at early childhood education and primary schools.  It is a programme that is designed to educate teachers, children and parents about making healthy eating choices and incorporating physical activity into their daily lives (“The Healthy Heart Award for Early Childhood Education,” 2013).

Project Energizer is funded by the Waikato District Health Board, it is a programme aimed at primary and intermediate children living in the Waikato district area. It has a focus on implementing a variety of daily physical activity in schools and encouraging healthy eating.  See here for a detailed description of the programme (“Project Energize,” n.d.). 

Elaine Rush, Professor of Nutrition, led some research that indicated an improvement in overall health and fitness levels in children who were active participants of the Project Energizer programme, see here for results. (“Success of Project Energize Confirmed,” 2011).  Graeme (as cited in “Success of Project Energize Confirmed,” 2011) agrees “we need to continue our research to confirm Project Energize is actually making a difference long-term but certainly these results are heartening,” he said. “The improved fitness of the children on Project Energize provides real evidence that the programme is having a significant impact” (p. 1).  These kinds of programmes are necessary as a prevention of obesity of children and onto adulthood.

References

Project energize. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.waikatodhb.govt.nz/events/pageid/2145872029/Project_Energize

Success of Project Energize confirmed. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.aut.ac.nz/news/aut-news/2011/july/success-of-project-energize-confirmed

The healthy heart award for early childhood education. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.heartfoundation.org.nz/programmes-resources/schools-and-eces/healthy-heart-award