Healthy Eating, Healthy Living - An Africa Community Project
The Refugee Healthy Eating Healthy Living (HEHL) project has been designed to reduce the long term health effects of poor nutrition (CVD, obesity, diabetes) within refugee communities by
- encouraging healthy eating and healthy cooking among refugee communities
- discourage the intake of foods with a low nutritional value, particularly foods high in saturated fat, sugar and salt
- encouraging physical activity as a normal part of daily life
The project has two streams and uses a strengths-based settings approach to achieve its objectives.
- A healthy setting approach at Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre (MRRC), in which MRRC agencies were supported by ARPHS to work towards an environment which will be more supportive of healthy nutrition and physical activity choices. This will be achieved by working with caterers, a stocktake to determine opportunities for health changes and developing an integrated approach to nutrition and physical activity components within the MRRC 6 week orientation programme for each refugee intake
- Community focussed roll out that developed the capacity of men and women within refugee communities to educate other community members on healthy eating and nutritional issues. The development of resources and a TV series to increase community understanding of healthy eating and healthy lifestyles and to support the communities to take action on key nutrition messages and behaviours delivered by the peer educators. Finally a setting regularly used by refugee communities was targeted to embed healthy eating and living policies and practices.
Contact details:
Ailsa Wilson
Phone: (09) 623 4600 ex 27271
Email: Ailsaw@adhb.govt.nz
ARPHS, Private Bag 92605, Symonds St Auckland
www.arphs.govt.nz
