This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Scotland's fight against poor health praised
04/05/2004
Scotland is leading the way in the fight against poor
health by joining the forces of physical activity and
healthy eating.
Later this month the World Health Organisation (WHO) is
due to discuss and advise that all countries take this
approach.
Dr Le Gales-Camus, WHO's Assistant-Director General,
Noncommunicable Diseases & Mental Health said:
"Scotland's combined strategic approach to diet and
physical activity is an excellent example of how
policymakers can adopt an integrated and multi-sectoral
approach to improve public health and reduce chronic
disease.
"WHO strongly commends Scotland's commitment in this
area and in adopting a preventive approach to the growing
global chronic disease burden. The emphasis on the key
elements of diet and physical activity in public health
closely mirrors what the World Health Organisation is
advocating for all Member States in the Global Strategy on
Diet, Physical Activity and Health, which will be
considered in May at the World Health Assembly."
Outlining the next steps in the drive to improve
Scotland's health, Deputy Health Minister Tom McCabe
said:
"Increased activity and better diet go hand in hand in
tackling the growing problems of ill health and the
associated risk factors of obesity. I welcome the WHO's
endorsement of our approach in this very important
area.
"We have already done a lot of work and are beginning to
turn the tide of physical inactivity and poor diet. We
have introduced free fruit for primary one and two pupils
across Scotland; we have new nutritional standards for
school meals; we are recruiting 600 active schools
co-ordinators to get our school pupils more active; we are
developing safer routes to school and improving the
opportunities for children to walk and cycle more. And
this is just the tip of the iceberg of the huge amount of
local and national activity happening in Scotland."
Visiting Rosehall High School in Coatbridge, Mr McCabe
set out priority areas of work on physical activity and
healthy eating for the next year.
He said:
"Over the next twelve months we will build on this
momentum of good work on a number of fronts. We will
create a new Scottish Catering Award to make it easier to
choose healthy options when eating out. We will provide
training for staff in schools in quality, active, outdoor
play to help increase the activity levels of our young
people."
Commenting on the healthy lifestyles project, Mr McCabe
said:
"This project is an excellent example of how a local
community can work together to make a real difference to
the lives of the local young people.
The pupils at the schools involved are learning about
very important lifestyle choice and the impacts they have
on our health. The skills they learn will hopefully stay
with them into adulthood.
"I would like to congratulate all the people and
organisations involved in the project. This is the sort of
shining example that we would like to see happening across
the country. And most of all I would like to congratulate
the pupils for their enthusiasm towards the project."
Today also marks that start of a new TV advertising
element of the healthyliving initiative that aims to
challenge and empower people to choose healthier lifestyle
options. Commenting on the new adverts, Mr McCabe
said:
"We have always made it clear that we accept
government's role to lead the fight against ill health.
But individuals need to start taking responsibility for
their own health by making healthier lifestyle choices.
To support them in this we are creating an
environment for health improvement in Scotland.
"These new adverts build on the awareness we have
created and aim to challenge people to choose change - to
choose that healthier option. We know it is not easy but
it is something we all must do if we are to continue to
improve Scotland's health. We are working together with
retailers, manufacturers, schools, local authorities, the
NHS, the voluntary sector and many more to keep making the
healthy choice the easy choice."
Mr McCabe concluded:
"We have always said that this was going to be a
long-term battle to change the nation's habits, to be
developed over the next decade. It will take years to
deliver lasting change. We are building on the start we
have made and we will see it through. We will do what it
takes to continue to make Scotland a healthier and more
prosperous nation."
Over the next 12 months the Executive intends to build
on the momentum of the health improvement agenda. Working
with and through the actions of key partners and
stakeholders to build a supportive national infrastructure
and sustain motivation to encourage and enable individuals
to make healthier lifestyle choices:
For physical activity the Executive proposes:
- Continue to roll out the Active Schools Programme
to meet the targets of
the National Physical Activity Strategy and Sport
21 with continued investment in dance to encourage more
participation in physical activity - particularly among
girls. - Consider the outcome of the review of Physical
Education in schools and
its recommendations to improve the quality of PE
in schools. - Provide training for schools - playground
supervisors, teachers,
assistants etc in quality, active, outdoor play;
produce resource packs for schools and out of school
care providers and develop a training course for
playworkers in out of school clubs on the importance of
outdoor, active play throughout the year. - Through the action of volunteer leaders, develop
local walking initiatives
to increase participation nationally and promote
walking through strategic partnerships and events such
as sponsorship of the Golden Mile element of the Great
Scottish Walk 2004. - Publish Best Practice on promoting physical
activity among older people
living in Care Homes. - Establish a new cross-cutting physical activity
council to co-ordinate
policy and planning. The council will also
establish a new national alliance for physical activity
to engage, communicate and consult with all key
stakeholders including sportscotland, NHS, Local
Authorities and the voluntary sector. - Continue to build capacity among community planning
partners for
developing active travel as an integral part of
their physical activity and transport plans. - Continue to develop health and activity programmes
in the workplace which
aim to encourage sedentary people to increase
their level of physical activity through a progressive
programme of walking, jogging and running.
For food and health the Executive proposes:
- The Deputy Health Minister will work with the food
industry to discuss and
agree ways of improving food quality and
labelling. - Fully implement Hungry For Success in primary
schools and set new
nutritional standards for food provision for
under-5s. We will introduce new menu planning software
to help school caterers to develop healthy meals in
line with national standards set in 'Hungry for
Success'. - Launch new Scottish Catering Awards, making it
easier for people eating
out to know where to go for healthier food and to
drive up standards throughout the catering
industry. - As part of the further implementation of Hungry For
Success, we will
review educational and support material for
teachers to strengthen teaching pupils how to eat a
healthier diet. - Work with the Food Standards Agency and other
Government Departments on
the issue of promoting food to children to ensure
that all food and drink marketing and advertising aimed
directly at children works with us to promote healthier
lifestyles rather than against us. - Establish a new cross-cutting food and health
council to co-ordinate
policy and planning. The council will also
establish a new national alliance for food and health
to engage, communicate and consult with all key
stakeholders including food manufacturers, retailers,
NHS, Local Authorities and the voluntary sector. - Focus on tackling health inequalities and improving
access to a healthier
diet through all national and local food and
nutrition strategies. - Monitor, evaluate and report upon the impact of
food and health policies.
Health improvement developments so far include:
- Nutritional standards for school meals, including
set levels for fat, salt
and sugar in processed food, backed by a detailed
monitoring and inspection programme - Commitment to recruit 600 active schools
co-ordinators to develop new ways
of getting children to take part in regular
physical activity, including sport, play and walking to
school - Free fruit for all primary 1 and 2 children
- Agreement with Coca-Cola to remove branded vending
machines from all
Scottish schools and provide water and healthy
choices - Developing Safer Routes to School, and improving
the opportunities for
children to walk and to cycle - Expanding and developing new breakfast services for
children
- 500 community food initiatives now operating
- Scottish Healthy Choices Awards Scheme has now
presented over 300 awards,
driving up standards in catering
In 2004-05 £1.4 million has been allocated to promote
healthyliving through the mass media. The new advertising
aims to motivate individuals to take on the challenge of
making daily health improving decisions/choices about
eating and physical activity. It looks to build a
predisposition to change by influencing attitudes and
encouraging positive changes in behaviour.
Drawing from extensive research in to people's attitudes
and beliefs to healthy eating and physical activity the
advertising presents relevant, everyday life scenarios, in
an upbeat and positive tone.
Four 30 second TV commercials have been produced. Two
emphasise healthy eating messages, two physical activity
messages. Each ad targets a different audience with three
scenarios with messages, however the messages are broad and
not wholly exclusive to these groups.
The advertising is not intended to act in isolation
but continues to be one of many co-ordinated elements of
the SE strategy, as detailed above, for delivering health
improvement in terms of diet and physical activity.