12 March 2008

Over to You

Children and young people with weight issues have been enjoying the healthy eating and exercise programme ‘Over to You’.

Organised by the Southern Health and Social Care Trust, the programme aims to educate children and parents on weight management in a fun way.

The programme consists of weekly group sessions for seven weeks at Cascades Leisure Centre in Portadown. Topics include portion control, lunch boxes, snacks, physical activity and dental health.

Participating children also had the chance to take part in extra activities at the leisure centre throughout the seven weeks.

Children attending a paediatric dietitian for weight reduction advice were invited to take part in Over to You. Each child was assessed by a physiotherapist before beginning the programme and will be reassessed when it is completed to monitor the results.

Community Dietitian Irene Thompson says: “Overweight and obesity in children and young people is a growing problem. Although Over to You is primarily designed for children and young people, weight issues are often best addressed as a family issue, so parents were encouraged to attend. Some of the weekly sessions were specifically targeted at parents including a supermarket tour on healthy shopping.

“By taking part in the programme we hope that the children and their parents will be equipped with the ability to manage their weight at home, on an ongoing basis.”

Feedback from parents has been very positive. A mother of a six year old boy who is participating said: “Over to You is very informative. It’s good fun for my child and encourages him to eat healthily and take more exercise.”

A mother of another six year old boy said: “As a family it made us look at what we eat and how we exercise. My son has a lot more energy from taking part.”

A mother of a 10 year old girl who is participating added: “I have found the programme helpful as well as good fun for both children and parents. Some of the topics are certainly eye openers and have helped us to change household routines regarding food, health and nutrition.”

Snacks of fresh fruit at each weekly session were provided by Chapmans Farm Fresh.

At the end of the programme, prizes will be awarded for those children with the best attendance and those who have made the best changes to their diet and lifestyles.