To think that the change for life campaign is a complete waste of money

[SEsofty]

Just received home via school the latest change for life campaign material. This is very colourful but actually incredibly unclear about what it is supposed to achieve.

Given as the NHS is in the midst of a complete funding crisis it seems an absolute complete waste of money to be paying for this stuff ,which mainly seems to say don’t drink coke, out of the NHS budget.

So aibu to think that this is a complete waste of money

My son loved the activities but was very confused about the advice. He didn't know what a chocolate pudding pot (or whatever it was they suggested he stop eating) was. He doesn't know anyone who drinks coke every day. So he concluded that his diet is fine and he has nothing to worry about... I wish it had mentioned biscuits and squash more.

YANBU, I remember when I was at primary school (quite a while ago now!) we had a healthy eating week and every lesson related back in some way to learning about it. We made our own posters and leaflets and I still remember some of the useful advice today!

It's not aimed at you OP that's why.

What follows now will sound horrible, judgemental and playing to stereotype.

The change for life campaign is aimed at young parents from less than affluent back grounds.
Take a look in the cupboards or shopping trolleys of the people from the 'Council Estates', you'll find frozen pizzas, burgers, chips, Doritos, lucozade, rockstar, pot noodles etc etc. Round my way, half a pot noodle and mug of coke is a main meal for some kids. Friday nights and the 5/6/7 year olds are eating half a pizza from City Pizza or some such cheap place.
I know that sounds horrible and judgey and all the rest of it, but it's also the truth.

The NHS have had to start trying to teach parents what healthy food looks like because those parents themselves don't know. Remember the Jamie Oliver TV show? The parents going mad cause he was trying to get them to eat healthy and they wouldn't have it?
That's the attitude they're trying to change.

The couch to 5k part seems to of worked for a lot of people. I wasn’t impressed with them suggesting switching to diet drinks and butter to spread but the above poster is right that the campaign is aimed at certain people. A friend of a friend only fed their 7 month old formula (fine), Coke and whatsits, every day

I don’t understand the current radio advert. It has a child drinking a sugary drink or eating a sugary yoghurt and saying “yum”. Then it has the same child drinking a low-sugar drink or yoghurt alternative and saying “yum”. I guess the idea is that kids don’t know the difference... but it doesn’t really teach anything about making healthier choices - just swap sugar for sweetener and all will be ok!

Agreed. It's a complete waste of money.

Instead that money should rather be poured into getting children - and everyone - more active. My mind boggles at how much sports and physical activity takes the back foot in the UK to having healthy lifestyle. You only need to read the weight loss support threads on here.

For one, there are no proper indoor and outdoor facilities in my area. No pool, indoor cricket pitch or astro turf. Just a gym and badminton court.

Sport should be compulsory at school. Children should be given the choice of one sport for the season or school year. Every school should having proper athletic equipment and it should be mandatory for every school to have a specialist sports teacher. The government/NHS and local councils could launch a program for the training of special sports teachers and redirect funds to buy proper equipment and develop adequate facilities.

Not only does this promote a healthy body, but also a healthy mind. The beneficial effect of sports and physical activity for optimal child development are endless.

I wish that only a certain percentage of bottles drink options in shops had sugar/sweeteners in them.

When I last looked it was all juice, smoothies, fizzy drinks, diet fizzy drinks, highly sweetened flavoured water or water.

Why can't there be non water unsweetened drinks available?

When the only options are unhealthy or something you get out of your normal tap, then it's hard to choose a good option.

Wasn't the five a day downgraded from 8a day to make it palatable?

Totally disagree ducks. What we eat has as much if not more effect on our health than how much we exercise. Going down the gym twice a week doesnt magically negate a shit diet.

Agreed. The gym is not a magical replacement to a healthy lifestyle. That is not what I said. I said an active lifestyle - as in being active everyday - is much more important than fad diets and feigning a healthy lifestyle by cutting back of sugar.

Calorie counting and fad diets will never do anything on their own. Regular exercise staves off heart disease and type 2 diabetes, amongst other diseases, is fundamental in the development and maintenance of healthy bones and muscles, improves mood and balances hormones, and so on and so forth.

Cutting back sugar and counting calories is futile if a person doesn't regularly exercise.

Hypocritical too. If you need food or drink when you’re visiting our local hospital, the shop and Costa are heaving with sugary snacks and drinks.
I read somewhere that history has shown that significant changes in public health only come about where government have changed the environment, that information campaigns have little significant effect.
Think sewers, clean water supply, clean air act etc. The huge change in attitudes to smoking more recently were most affected by banning it in public places, banning advertising etc, not by telling us it was killing us so don’t do it.

The obesity crisis is our current public health problem and it looks like we’re still at the pointless public information stage, telling us it’s bad eating and drinking so much of all the crap around us and we’re all weak and naughty.

Getting rid of all the crap, unnecessary snack food flooding the food supply, 8 out of 10 shops on most high streets being takeaway joints, processed, low quality food available without moving off the sofa, schools, hospitals, becoming opportunities for selling the very food the public info initiatives are warning us about......now that might help.

I’ve hear so many people say obesity is self inflicted, that it’s simple to sort- just don’t overeat. That really worked with smoking didn’t it!

I second the suggest that this not aimed at you OP. I see it every day at school. We don’t sell sweets anymore but students come in with rucksacks stuffed full of chocolate and sweets that parents buy them.

This is particularly prevalent amongst students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The lunches some kids bring at secondary are eye opening.

I really really struggle to envisage someone who feeds their children sugar- and salt- laden junk food every day reading the latest leaflet and thinking “oh I had NO IDEA, I will change everything straight away”

Surely it’s more about engrained habits/what people think is easiest / reflecting their own upbringing and diet / other social factors. All these leaflets they send home aren’t going go cut it.

what Klutzy said x100
also, the cost of these campaigns is not great in terms of the overall NHS budget- the school has received some colourful leaflets and given them, out - if they then do some activities that's no extra cost to the NHS
of course the leaflets by themselves may not be enough to change people's habits but hopefully it will combine with other information and eventually hit home
of course exercise is important too, it's not either/or

I haven't seen the take home stuff but the radio ads do my nut! They were talking about "simple swaps" and one was "instead of sweets, have fruit" ....like it really would be that easy to swap! If you thought they were easily interchangeable, you wouldn't have a problem with healthy eating!! I really fancied a bar of chocolate but someone gave me a pear and I barely noticed. said no-one ever.

And another "instead of sugary cereal have non sugary cereal." If you are used to eating coco pops, shredded wheat or similar is not going to have the same appeal. I feel like they are too simplistic

Klutzy is spot on. I work in a deprived area and lots of the kids there have a terrible diet

The point about campaigns like this is they aim to improve wellbeing in a generation's time. Public health doesn't think in terms of quick fixes. It thinks in terms of preventable illnesses in today's children but when they are 60. So maybe you shouldn't leap to criticise people who know more about health than you do, OP.

I totally agree with what Klutzy is saying but not really fair to say it’s aimed at young parents. Can first time mums in their 30s not live on council estates with no real idea of healthy eating for a child or is it only the under 25s who are tarred with that brush.

I’m not meaning to be confrontational here. The post would have still made sense without the word ‘young’.