Little steps to better health during International Walk to School Month

October is International Walk to School Month and the Public Health Agency (PHA) is encouraging parents in Northern Ireland to do the school run on foot and start to feel the benefits for both them and their children. Statistics from the charity Living Streets show that in the UK 81% of parents with primary school children walked to school when they were younger, but today only 47% of their children walk to school.

Stop smoking in Stoptober!

Stoptober is back and the Public Health Agency (PHA) is supporting the campaign by urging all smokers to take part in the 28 day stop smoking challenge during October, as smokers who give up their habit for four weeks are five times more likely to stop for good. Gerry Bleakney, Strategic Lead for Tobacco Control with the PHA, said: “Stopping smoking is the single most important thing you can do for your health, so Stoptober is the perfect opportunity to give up your habit and enjoy both the health and financial benefits that stopping will bring.

National Eye Health Week – your vision matters!

Research from the College of Optometrists shows that 84% of adults value their sight more than any other sense, yet many people are living with poor vision and putting their sight at risk because of failure to get their eyes checked. During National Eye Health Week (22–28 September) the Public Health Agency (PHA) is reminding everyone of the importance of eye health and the need for everyone to have their eyes tested every two years.

Dig for mental health

Gardening is being used as a tool to promote mental and emotional wellbeing through a new pilot project funded by the Public Health Agency (PHA). The project ‘Wellbeing with nature’ will run over two years and involve around 200 people from across Belfast. Participants will take part in an eight week course which uses gardening as a form of therapy for people with mental health issues including anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Aneurysm screening programme success

The Northern Ireland Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) Screening Programme has published its first annual report highlighting the programme success, with 81% of the men invited attending for a scan. The report has been produced by the Public Health Agency (PHA) and the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust on the programme, which is available across Northern Ireland.

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) Screening Programme annual report

This is the fifth annual report for the Northern Ireland Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm (AAA) Screening Programme since it was introduced in June 2012. It has been produced jointly by the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust and the Public Health Agency. As well as updates on the role of primary care and service users in helping with programme development and ongoing improvements this is the first year health inequalities data has featured in the report. Overall performance of the programme remained high (refer to Section 5 for more detail) with the following of note: • Almost 9,000 men in their 65th year were invited to attend for screening • Uptake was 84% of those invited attending for screening, up slightly from the previous year’s 83% • 830 men over 65 who had never been screened before self-referred to the programme and were screened • 107 men screened had a newly detected AAA • 24 men had a large aneurysm and were referred to the vascular team to consider treatment options

Switch off, step out and take your first steps to better health

The Public Health Agency (PHA) is encouraging everyone to switch off the telly, pull on your walking shoes and take the first steps to better health, after figures revealed that almost half of adults in Northern Ireland are sitting in front of the TV for more than two hours per day. Reduced activity, combined with a poor diet, can lead to becoming overweight or obese.
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