8 July 2006

Joint Hands to Create a Healthy Eating Culture in School Children

Hong Kong Healthy Schools Award Presentation Ceremony & Healthy Schools Sharing 2006
cum Registry of Health Promoting Schools, Western Pacific Region Launching Ceremony

The Centre for Health Education and Health Promotion, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong conducted a health survey for a total of 7,057 students aged 2 to 7 from 78 local kindergartens last year. More than 40% of parents reported that their children are picky eaters and the food they do not like to take is different, including vegetables, meat, fruits, fish and a specific kind of vegetables. Nearly 70% of these kindergarten children have less than a bowl of cooked vegetables per day and about 60% of them have less than one serving of fruits per day as well. Nearly 30% of these children have sugary drinks more than three times a week and more than 40% of them have less than two glasses of water. On the other hand, 7% of the parents reported that their children do not have regular exercises and almost 60% of them watch television more than two hours per day. The survey indicated that the alarming unhealthy lifestyles of children start at an early age. (Please refer to Appendix I for more details.)

The Centre launched the Hong Kong Healthy Schools Award Scheme since 2001 which aims to encourage educational achievement, better health and emotional well-being; thereby supporting students in improving the quality of their lives. As the first territory wide ‘Healthy Schools’ movement that recognized by WHO Western Pacific Regional Office in meeting the WHO standards, there are now more than 100 schools from different districts joining the Scheme. This year, a total of 16 schools will be presented “Hong Kong Healthy Schools Award” including 3 Gold, 7 Silver and 6 Bronze. (Please see Appendix II for the list of awardee schools.) The Education and Manpower Bureau (EMB) of the Government of the HKSAR together with the Centre are the awarding bodies. A student health survey was conducted for 6,645 students of the awardee schools to review their health status. The findings indicated that the students’ eating habit have been improved in a large extent.(For details, please refer to Appendix I.)

The Hong Kong Healthy Schools Award Presentation Ceremony is held on 8 July 2006. Dr. Linda Milan, Director of Building Healthy Communities and Populations, WHO/WPRO, Dr. KK Chan, Principal Assistant Secretary (Curriculum Development) for Education and Manpower, HKSAR, Dr. Regina Ching, Assistant Director of Health (Health Promotion), Department of Health, HKSAR and Professor Albert Lee, Director of Centre for Health Education and Health Promotion, Faulty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong jointly officiated at the Ceremony. Hundreds of representatives of schools, parents, students, stakeholders in Hong Kong as well as health educators from Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Macau joined the Ceremony.

Professor Albert Lee, Director of Centre for Health Education and Health Promotion, The Chinese University of Hong Kong congratulated the awardees for their outstanding achievement and added “The fruitful results of promoting student health achieved by the local schools have been worldwide recognized and appreciated. As well, our experience in developing health promoting schools has become the good models to be shared with many health education and health promotion professionals from other countries. The Centre has also been appointed as the Steering Committee Member of the International School Health Network and we will continue to share the good practice of Hong Kong to the world.” Professor Lee also stated that the Centre was commissioned by WHO to develop and maintain the Registry of Health Promoting Schools for the Western Pacific Region. The Registry aims to promote the interaction of Health Promoting Schools in the Region by sharing experiences of Health Promoting School, promoting good practices on Health Promoting School and mobilizing resources for the development of Health Promoting School. It is envisaged that the establishment of the Registry would further consolidate the network of health promoting school in the Region and strengthen the collaboration of schools, parents and the community so as to promote better health for all in the Region.

Appendix I

Health Survey for Pre-school Children

Sample: 7,057 students aged 2 to 7 from 78 local kindergartens

Eating habit

Exercising habit

Student Health Survey for 2004/05 Awardees of Hong Kong Healthy Schools Award Scheme

Sample: 6,645 students from 15 awardees of 2004/05

Eating habit

*P value<0.05

Appendix II