Are you packing a healthy lunch? (English and Irish)

This booklet is designed toimprove pupils' nutrition and implement healthier eating and drinking practices. It containspractical tips for parents, carers and children on how to pack an appetising, healthy lunchbox.

Packing a healthy punch for lunch

In Northern Ireland over 127,000 children bring their own food to school so it is important to ensure that food is both appetising and is good for health. Recent surveys looking at Childrens lunchboxes revealed that they are often too high in fat, salt and sugar, with just under half of the lunchboxes containing no fruit. To help parents and carers make lunchboxes healthier, the PHA has produced a leaflet, Are you packing a healthy lunch? in collaboration with safefood, the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety and the Department of Education.It will be distributed to every child in primary school and contains practical tips for parents, carers and children on how to pack an appetising, healthy lunchbox.

Getting a good start: healthy eating from one to five

This booklet outlines advice on many key nutritional issues for children aged one to five. It includes information on how to provide a healthy, balanced diet for this age group, guidance on suitable snacks and drinks, feeding a vegetarian child, vitamin supplements and iron, making the most of mealtimes and how to deal with fussy eaters.

Healthy child, healthy future: speech and language therapy for children

This resource is designed to reinforce a collaborative approach between speech and language therapists, referrers and parents in the identification and management of children with developmental speech and language and communication needs (including children with feeding and/or swallowing difficulties). It includes a comprehensive key skills section, which provides details on the communication-related skills a child should have acquired at each stage in his/her early years development. It also includes specific criteria and guidelines for referral, should there be concern about whether the child has a significant problem. The resource provides additional guidance on: • communication and child play; • speech sound development; • dummies; • stammering; • dysphonia; • bilingualism; • feeding and swallowing difficulties. Lists of supplementary leaflets, handouts and websites, as well as a bibliography, are also included.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy: Factsheet for parents 1. Does my child speak clearly?

This factsheet describes how parents can help their child speak more clearly.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy: Factsheet for parents 2. Helping your young non-fluent child

This factsheet outlines how parents can help their child speak more fluently, without stammering.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy: Factsheet for parents 4. Dummies and talking

This factsheet gives advice to parents on the use of dummies and their effect on a child's speech.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy: Factsheet for parents 5. Does my child have a voice problem?

This factsheet describes voice disorders such as 'hoarseness' in children and what parents can do to help their child with a voice problem.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy: Factsheet for parents 6. Tips for talking: children aged 4 to 5 years

This factsheet highlights simple ideas to encourage speech in children around 4 to 5 years old.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy: Factsheet for parents 3. Talk to your child in your own language

This factsheet encourages non-English speaking parents to talk to their children in their own language.

Healthy child, healthy future - Speech and language therapy aide memoire for health visitors

This card outlines the key skills, causes for concern and management options for children aged 24 months and 30 months.

Healthy child, healthy future - Information on the child health programme (0-4 years)

This booklet provides parents with information on the first four years of the child health programme for all families in Northern Ireland.

A Happy and a Healthy 2012

Many of us start the New Year with the best of intentions to lose weight, get fitter and eat well. It's that sense of new possibilities and fresh beginnings that can also help motivate changes in lifestyle. The Public Health Agency advises that making small changes to your own and your family's lifestyle can have a significant impact on improving overall health. Taking time to reflect, and making a plan, can all help. Choosing healthier food and increasing your physical activity will help maintain a healthy weight and prevent unwanted weight gain, which can have serious implications for a person's physical and mental health as it is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, respiratory problems, joint pain and depression.What can I do to improve my health?Make 1 or 2 small changes at a time - don't try to change your lifestyle radically or all at once as you're more likely to fail. Small changes in what you eat, or how active you are, are easier to make and more likely to be maintained.Mary Black, Assistant Director of Health and Wellbeing Improvement, PHA, said: "The New Year brings a time when many people reflect on their lives and very often eating more healthily is one of things they identify for change. I recommend setting a couple of small, achievable targets that can then be continued in the long term, for example:Eat breakfast everyday;Eat an extra portion of vegetables every day;Swap deep fried chips for oven chips;Choose fruit for between-meal snacks instead of a biscuit or bun;Begin to enjoy a hot drink on its own without feeling the need to have something sweet at the same time.Be active. Any sort of activity will be good for you. Think about how you can be more active each day. This doesn't have to involve running a marathon or joining a gym. Some suggestions include:· Go for walks with the children/family or friends. It's free! Walk on your lunch break;· Take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator;· Park further away and walk to work/school;· Get off the bus a stop earlier and walk the rest;· Minimise the amount of time you are sitting down - take breaks from the computer at work or watching TV at home and walk around;· Children and adults can build up to the recommended daily activity levels in 10 minute sessions rather than doing it all in one session.Adults need at least 30 minutes, five days a week of moderate physical activity and children need 60 minutes of physical activity every day.Mary continued "It's easy for people to get into the habit of spending their spare time sitting down - watching TV, playing computer games, listening to their MP3 players - but being active will help you maintain a healthy weight and generally make you feel better. It can also improve your mood, reduce anxiety and protect against depression."It is what you do most of the time that really matters, so if you eat too much or don't exercise on any one day, don't worry too much - just accept it and get back to your new way of eating and being more active as soon as possible.

Simple steps to a healthy heart

The number of deaths from coronary heart disease in Northern Ireland has dropped significantly, according to recent figures. However, the Public Health Agency is urging everyone to take steps to protect their heart and reduce their chances of developing the disease during National Heart Month (February).Despite the number of deaths dropping significantly in recent years, coronary heart disease is still the number one killer across the country. Over 2,200 people died in Northern Ireland from coronary heart disease in 2010 compared to just over 2,300 people in 2009 - an overall reduction of 100 province-wide. The latest figure reveals the positive downward trend is continuing - in 2008, there were 2,410 deaths, 2,493 in 2007 and 2,554 in 2006, while in 1979 there were nearly 5,000 deaths. Throughout National Heart Month in February, the PHA is calling for people to follow a number of steps in a bid to reduce their chances of developing the disease.Smoking is a major risk factor and, the more cigarettes you smoke, the higher the risk, according to Dr Christine McMaster, Consultant in Public Health Medicine, with responsibility for cardiovascular disease in the PHA."The reduction in smoking over the past number of years through public education, stop smoking programmes and smoke free legislation has had a major impact on reducing deaths from heart disease. However, 24% of the population in Northern Ireland still smoke, putting them at risk of developing the disease."People who suffer from high blood pressure also run an increased risk of developing coronary heart disease. High blood pressure is a silent, but treatable condition. In order to minimise the risk, I would urge everyone over the age of 45 to have their blood pressure measured every five years by their GP," said Dr McMaster.Simple lifestyle changes will also reduce the risk of heart disease, including eating at least five servings of fruit and vegetables a day, avoiding saturated fats, limiting alcohol intake and taking at least 30 minutes of exercise a day, five days a week.Dr McMaster described the reduction in deaths from coronary heart disease over the past few years as "a big success story". "It shows that people can take very positive steps to reduce their risk of heart disease by getting their blood pressure checked and adopting a healthier lifestyle; in particular by not smoking," he added. "The message is clear during National Heart Month - you only have one heart and you can take steps to keep it healthy."

Healthy breaks: tasty tips for the under fives

Today the Public Health Agency is launching a new resource pack designed to assist nursery schools and playgroups deliver a healthy breaks scheme.All nursery schools and playgroups in Northern Ireland will receive the pack - 'Healthy breaks for pre-school children' - which includes a poster and information leaflets for parents explaining why a healthy break is so important for pre-school children and some tips and ideas for healthy nutritious breaks.Judith Hanvey, Regional Food in Schools Co-ordinator, appointed jointly by the PHA and the Department of Education, said: "Break-time snacking schemes currently operate in many pre-school settings across Northern Ireland, however they are implemented in different ways. The PHA has developed this new guidance so that any existing or future schemes have the information that they need to deliver a healthy break programme."Judith explained why a healthy break is so important for pre-school pupils."Young children have small stomachs but high requirements for energy (calories) and nutrients. This means that healthy snacks between meals are very important to make sure that they get all the nourishment they need."Childhood is also an important time to establish good eating and drinking habits for later life."Healthy eating schemes give children the knowledge and opportunity to make healthier choices."The Department of Education and Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety recently launched 'Healthy Food for Healthy Outcomes: Food in Schools Policy', which builds on the nutritional standards which were introduced in 2007 by the Department of Education.The policy encourages a 'whole school approach' to all food and drink provided and consumed in schools. This ensures that children have the opportunity to benefit from a healthy balanced diet, which can aid learning, leading to improved educational outcomes. It also requires that every school should have their own whole-school food policy in place by September 2014. Nursery schools that receive funding from the Department of Education must follow this policy.This is also in line with the position taken by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety's 10 year obesity prevention strategy, A Fitter Future for All, which aims to take a consistent approach to healthy food within early years settings.