Derek Nolan
Question:100. Deputy Derek Nolan asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to tackle childhood obesity; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53716/13]
View answerTuesday, 17 December 2013
Questions (100)
Written answers
The Government shares with many other agencies and professional groups, concerns about the growth and nutrition of children and teenagers. The factors associated with overweight and obesity in Irish children are complex, and research suggests that a multidimensional approach which crosses Government departments and agencies and involves children and families and community organisations working with statutory and voluntary sector, is needed.
“Obesity - the policy challenges: The report of the National Taskforce on Obesity”, was published by the department of Health in 2005 and remains the guiding document for work in this area. My colleague the Minister of Health, has established a Special Advisory Group on Obesity to advise on implementation of the report and this group has representation from my own Department. In November of this year, the Minister of health and myself launched the first phase of a three year media campaign on preventing childhood obesity developed by both our Departments working with Safe Food and the HSE. The media campaign is complemented by a website, social media interventions and printed resources for parents and professionals. The thrust of the campaign is based on providing parents with practical tips in addressing the problem. Other work of the group includes technical support for providing calorie content information for small restaurant / coffee shop owners, to facilitate young people in making healthy choices.
I recently launched the Area Based Childhood (ABC) programme 2013-2016, a €29.7m programme which is being co-funded by my Department and the Atlantic Philanthropies, to improve outcomes for children in some of our most disadvantaged areas. Some of the initiatives are encompassing empowering healthy choices for children and families, in relation to diet and exercise, as part of a holistic approach to improving children’s lives. Research has shown that parents often underestimate the weight of their children, and a new pilot project has been initiated by the HSE to enhance the measurement of school children to provide parents with accurate information on their children’s weight, which will compliment the work done at an earlier stage by Public Health Nurses in baby clinics and developmental checks.
It is widely accepted by researchers that there is a strong link between physical activity and overweight, and habits formed in youth tend to carry over into adulthood. The Growing Up in Ireland Study also clearly confirms this finding. Young people who took more exercise were less likely to be overweight or obese, especially in comparison to those who never exercised. As Minister for Children and Youth Affairs I have responsibility for Play and Recreation Policy which have been set out in ‘READY, STEADY, PLAY! A National Play Policy’ and the ‘National Recreation Policy for Young People’, both of which seek to actively promote the participation of children and young people in play and exercise .
In 2012, I established the Local Authority Play and Recreation Network (LAPRN) to introduce a more coordinated and interagency approach to achieving the goals of the play and recreation policies at both national and local level. An early achievement of the network has been the development and expansion of the National Recreation Week which my Department supports through grant funding. I am pleased to say that this year saw the largest ever participation with all counties staging popular events.