Plymouth kids get Sugar Smart
A new Change4Life campaign from Public Health England is encouraging families to get Sugar Smart and take control of the amount of sugar they consume.
It follows revelations that four-to-10 year olds consume the average weight of a five-year-old in sugar, that’s 22kg or more than 5,500 sugar cubes. ,
Matthew Norton, Head Chef at River Cottage Canteen is supporting the campaign to encourage children to learn about the amount of sugar in everyday food and drinks. He will be taking part in a special lesson with pupils at High View School in Efford on Friday 4th March to show them some easy-to-prepare low sugar snacks.
The lesson complements the current ‘Food Detectives’ Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 lesson plans, which are being provided to primary school teachers across the region, via the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme, to highlight to children how much sugar is in everyday food and drink. Five million Sugar Smart packs will be given away to primary age children and their families via schools, local authorities and retailers.
A new Sugar Smart app has been launched to help parents see how much sugar there is in everyday food and drink. The free app works by scanning the barcode of products and revealing the amount of total sugar it contains in cubes and grams.
The Change4Life Sugar Smart campaign aims to warn both children and parents about the health harms from eating and drinking too much sugar. A fifth of four-to five-year-olds and a third of 10-to 11-year-olds are overweight or obese. This means they are more likely to become obese adults who are prone to a range of life-threatening health problems, such as heart disease, some cancers and Type 2 diabetes. There are now 2.5 million people suffering from Type 2 diabetes, 90% of whom are overweight or obese. ,
Kim Dorian-Kemp, headteacher at High View School comments: “We’re delighted to welcome Matthew to High View School to engage the children on how to eat less sugar. We all know that children eat too much sugar so it’s great that this campaign offers helpful tips for parents on how to cut down. The new ‘Food Detectives’ lesson plans provide a great way of getting children thinking about how much sugar is in the every day food and drink we all consume. By teaching them about sugar consumption at a young age, we hope that they will get into good habits which will set them up for life.”
Matthew Norton, Head Chef at River Cottage Canteen comments: "Reducing sugar consumption is something I’m really passionate about so I’m really pleased to support the new Change4Life Sugar Smart campaign. I think it’s incredibly important to not only highlight the harms of eating too much sugar, but also show children low sugar options that they’ll really enjoy.”
Councillor Sue McDonald, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People for Plymouth City Council, said: “We are really pleased that Plymouth has been chosen to host this regional launch of Change 4 Life’s Sugar Smart campaign.
“As a Council we are passionate about improving health and reducing health inequalities and this year we are working with local schools through our Thrive Plymouth agenda to promote healthier lifestyles. Sugar Smart supports our own public health objectives and we are delighted to be able to be a part of this alongside our local schools.”
