This will be old news to some folks (mostly because I scooped myself in our local newspaper last week) but please read on!
A few months ago, someone from Blueprint Public Relations contacted me about a campaign they were working on for the Champlain Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Network (CCPN).
The CCPN is a group of health and community partners from across the Champlain District of Ontario. They are implementing a five-year Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Prevention Strategy. (CCPN partners include Ottawa Public Health, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, the Healthy Active Living & Obesity Research Group at CHEO, and the Ottawa Hospital, among others.)
Their new campaign is called Know More, Do More and it grew out of an interesting survey.
Their research suggests there is a gap between parents’ perceptions and the reality of their children’s weight, physical activity levels, and eating behaviours. (Remember the post in which I asked about your children and their weight? I was already mulling this all over.)
Most parents in the region think their children are at a healthy weight and are physically active on a regular basis, BUT the findings of national organizations (such as Statistics Canada) tell a different kind of story.
Here’s the interesting part (at least is was to me). Almost 2000 parents were surveyed and not one thought their child was obese. Childhood obesity is on the rise yet few parents are willing to admit that their children might have an issue, and if they aren’t able to admit there’s a problem, well, they won’t be motivated to change their habits (i.e. eat smaller portions and get moving).
I hope the survey is going to be posted on their website because there were some very interesting findings. For example:
24 per cent of parents in our region say their child spends two hours or more per day at the TV, computer or video games but in reality, 90 per cent of Canadian children spend more than the recommended maximum of two hours per day at the TV, computer or video games.
They – or should I start saying we – want to make parents aware of this knowledge gap and to motivate families to incorporate more physical activities and adopt healthier eating habits into their daily routines.
The KMDM campaign is essentially about establishing lifelong healthy habits, because many children are not meeting the recommended guidelines for (1) physical activity and (2) healthy eating.
Makes sense right? Anyway, Blueprint has asked me to be a spokesmom of sorts and take on the KMDM challenge. Of course I had to say YES.
This means:
1) I will be speaking at the official launch at Dovercourt Recreation Centre on Saturday March 27, 2010 at 1:00 p.m. And you are invited! There’ll be information about fun family activities and healthy eating, and complimentary (healthy!) snacks. There’ll be activities set up for kids too. I urge you to come say hello and hang out with us for awhile. (And after all is said and done, let the kids run loose outdoors for awhile, that’s what I’m going to do!)
2) I am going to do be taking the KMDM challenge and will be focusing on building our health as a family unit using the resources available to me at the KMDM website. They’ve created a really neat “tip jar” idea to help inspire and motivate (which I appreciate because I can always use some new ideas and a kick in the pants). Some of these jars will be at the launch but you can make one yourself using the instructions on this page.
3) I’ll be blogging about our efforts a few times a month, but I will also be twittering some links and tips on a daily basis. If you have a twitter account you can follow me @knowmoredomore. Alternately you can also read the twitter feed right online. If you’re Twittering too, please use the hashtag #KMDM so I can see what you’re up to! I’d love to see how you’re incorporating KMDM into your family life. Or maybe you have tips of your own to share? Think of it as a daily reminder as well as an ongoing conversation (besides it will make this challenge a whole lot more fun)!
4) Looking for more info? Check out the official Know More Do More website (there are prizes if you register too – woot!) or the Facebook page. I am especially excited about the social media aspect of KMDM but I need your help to spread the word!
I am very excited to be a part of this campaign and to be promoting good family health in this way. Please join me at Dovercourt on Saturday. Until then, I’d love to hear what YOU do to stay healthy as a family. What can you work on? What kind of things do you do well?
