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Home COVID19: Healthy Lifestyle Messages
COVID19: Healthy Lifestyle Messages
Obesity is a growing public health problem in Northern Ireland, affecting around one in every four adults and around one in every five children aged 2 to 15.
The Choose to live better campaign aims to encourage the public to change their behaviour and make healthier choices in life, with an emphasis on healthy eating and getting more exercise. So if you want to avoid gaining unwanted weight while you stay at home during the Covid-19 social distancing period, get the advice you need at the following useful online resource.
One you
There is only ‘One You’
Would you like to move more, eat well, drink less and be smoke free? Would you like to learn how to reduce your stress levels and sleep better?
Then look no further than the current NHS Campaign – One You.
What is One You?
The One You campaign aims to encourage adults – particular those in middle age – to take control of their health and view it holistically, while providing personalised information, tools and the support needed to make small changes that have a big impact.
Your health is important – not just because you can enjoy significant benefits to your life right now, but also later in life. One You can support you in finding a healthy balance that ensures you feel better every day.
So how does One You do this?
It begins with a free, online health quiz called ‘How Are You’. This innovative quiz provides personalised recommendations based on your results and directs people to tools and advice to help them take action where it is most needed.
The quiz covers your eating, drinking, moving and smoking habits and offers practical and realistic advice on how you can make small changes that can have a huge influence on your health now and in the future.
Be healthier and reduce your risk
Making better choices today can prevent diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease, as well as reducing our risk of suffering a stroke or living with dementia, disability and frailty in later life.
One You Apps
One You also has a number of free apps you can download encouraging more movement, easy healthy recipes, couch to 5k and alcohol and smoking advice.
Make a change now
So while we are all spending much more time at home throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and perhaps have more opportunity to focus on ourselves and our health, why not check out the One You campaign and start the fight back to a healthier you?
Steps to deal with stress
The far-reaching impacts of Covid-19, along with the constant barrage of negative news reports, are naturally leading to a heightened sense of stress and anxiety even for the most resilient among us. The uncertainty surrounding the worldwide pandemic makes it all too easy to catastrophize and these fears can be particularly detrimental to people who are already living with an anxiety disorder. But there are many things you can do – even in the face of this unique crisis – to manage and reduce your stress levels. Steps to deal with stress is a comprehensive guide providing useful advice on recognising stress, looking after yourself physically and emotionally, coping better, and recommending practical things you can do to deal with stress.
Download a copy of the Steps to deal with stress booklet. click here
Alcohol awareness – know your limits
Alcohol remains our number one drug of choice in Northern Ireland. Due to social distancing measures, people are likely to consume more alcohol and exceed the recommended limit – 14 units a week for both men and women. New evidence, which has emerged in recent years, attests that drinking too much on a single occasion or over time can take a serious toll on your physical health and make your mental health worse. The effects of alcohol on your health will depend on how much you drink. So the message is clear – drink less and lower your health risks. Top tip – use the alcohol units calculator at drinkaware.co.uk or download a free app from the App Store or Google Play.