St Lucia: Nutrition Unit interacts with students in educational talks, physical activities

Castries, St Lucia: The government of St Lucia, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Wellness and elderly affairs, held training to enhance the benefits of physical activities. They outlined certain aspects of the physical routines and encouraged students to remain healthy. 

As part of its efforts to educate students on the benefits of physical activity, the Nutrition Unit recently visited the Patience Mon Repos Combined School and engaged the students in educational talks and fun-filled physical activities.

Chief Nutritionist Lisa Hunt says this initiative is necessary and believes making physical activity fun and creative will encourage students to continue exercising and remain healthy.

“We realized that children are very inactive. Especially as the summer is just around the corner, we want to encourage them to be more physical activity and so whatever we are teaching them here today is that we want them to know that physical activity does not always have to be structured. You can have fun activities; for example, today we did hula hoop, hop pooch, we did skipping with them and a number of activities that they quick enjoyed.”

Hunt also spoke on the importance of promoting physical activity among students at an early age to assist in addressing the increasing global burden of chronic diseases.

“Physical activity plays a key role in preventing obesity and we have a high rate of childhood obesity around the Caribbean, including Saint Lucia. So not only will physical activity help them to maintain a healthy weight but it will help to reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and cancers. These are the health conditions in which Saint Lucia has so much morbidity or mortality in. If we start from a very early stage we are able to curb these conditions.”

The Nutrition Unit will continue the physical activity sessions in other schools around the island.