HFJ launches phase three of obesity-prevention programme

MINISTER OF Health Dr Christopher Tufton has announced a new phase in the ministry’s media campaign against overconsumption of sugary drinks aimed at curtailing increasing levels of childhood obesity and tooth decay.

Tufton was a guest at Thursday’s press launch of the third phase of the Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ) Obesity Prevention Campaign at the Terra Nova AllSuite Hotel in Kingston, where he noted that the third phase of the campaign is specifically aimed at creating a healthier environment for young Jamaicans.

“Safeguarding the health of our population starts with our children. We can help lower the number of obese adults suffering ill health and premature death by preventing children from becoming overweight and obese,” noted Tufton.

He mentioned that the new phase represented a more holistic approach to public health as in addition to restrictions on sugary drinks, the ministry has plans of fully implementing a version of its Jamaica Moves campaign in schools.

According to the minister, oral health is also in focus as a result of the overconsumption of sugary drinks and this new phase will directly deal with that aspect of the health initiative.

Tufton told The Gleaner that all the information revealed since the launch of the programme is factual, and is based on evidence from the hospital system and through research and clinical trials.

“There are other things we are doing, and this includes on the oral side of things. This includes a sealant programme, which means that we take a cohort form the schools and strengthen their teeth through this oral sealant programme, which was started in 2016, but which we intend to ramp up.”

He stressed that the fundamental principle in targeting young people is that they are more susceptible to influences and that from a public-health perspective, the ministry has a duty to influence their behaviour at an early stage.

WORRYING STATS

Three out of 10 children in Jamaica are either overweight or obese and this number is rising dramatically. Childhood obesity in Jamaica has increased nearly 64 per cent in seven years, according to the Global SchoolBased Student Health Study (2017).

This underscores the importance of this publicawareness campaign.

PHOTO BY RICARDO MAKYN/MULTIMEDIA PHOTO EDITOR Minister of Health Dr Christopher Tufton and Dr Erica Gordon Veitch, paediatric Dentist, with students from Seaward Primary and Junior High School at the press launch of phase three of the obesityprevention campaign,held at the Terra Nova Hotel on Thursday, October 11, 2018.