ACT Government Spends $571,000 to Tackle Childhood Obesity

The ACT Government has recently launched the $571,000 Connect Up 4 Kids program that will aim at improving information resources surrounding healthy lifestyles to children and their parents.

The program will provide users with an online resource folder  with fact sheets, information brochures and physical activity guidelines. The folder’s materials will be focused around seven key messages:

1. Move Your Body

2. Switch of Screens

3. Good Night Sleep Tight

4. Be Healthy Together

5. Munch on Veg

6. Enjoy Some Fruit and

7. Choose to Drink Water

Canberra is facing a childhood obesity crisis, with data from 2011 showing that one quarter of Canberrans aged 5 to 17 are obese.

Kirsten Heaton, an ACT childcare worker with 15 years experience says that she has seen a change in children over the course of her career. She believes that the reason for this spike in childhood obesity is the lifestyle of families and the security risks that they face.

“Parents these days are worried about their kids safety, and therefore do not let them play outside as much. Back in the day, kids could ride their bikes or go for walks and be safe, now parents have to keep an eye on them everywhere that they go”.

Kirsten believes that the plan is a start, but has reservations about whether it will be very effective. “How is this plan going to reach all schools? All families? All childcare centers? This won’t even touch the tip of the iceberg in solving this problem”.

She believes that the best way to go about changing the lives of kids is to educate their educators. “Some parents do not think that their child is overweight, they need to educate the people working with children”.

“A healthy lifestyle needs to be taught in a variety of ways, there are already plenty of fact sheets and statistics out there, people read them but do not listen to the facts”.