Healthy Ireland Summer Campaign 2018

Schools out and the sun is out too…… Here’s to a healthy and fun Summer together….

– Why not make this Summer one you and your family will remember forever?

There’s nothing like the buzz of a family experiencing activities, adventures and excitement together and building Summertime memories.

The long school break and holiday season, together with warmer weather makes Summer a popular time for family adventure.

The Healthy Ireland Summer campaign ‘Feel Good Together’ encourages people to get out and get active together this summer – whether walking with friends or a group, visiting some of our many parks and heritage sites with family or sharing a salad or summer fruit with friends.

Kate O’Flaherty, Head of Health and Wellbeing, Department of Health commented:

These positive changes are focused on three key areas:

• eating more healthily
• being more active
• minding your mental well-being

Healthy Ireland Summer campaign highlights the benefits of making changes with others and ‘getting out and feeling good together’ – research shows that starting a healthy habit with someone, such as a family member, friend or colleague, is more likely to last than if you do it alone.

With the opportunities that the Summer brings – the longer, brighter days and often better weather, along with healthy, seasonal fruit and veg – people are encouraged to ‘pause the boxset’ and take the opportunity to be outdoors, to connect with others in their communities and enjoy their natural amenities.

Healthy Ireland, along with all our partners, provides support and information to help people make these healthy choices. Having a Summer to remember – childhood Summers are so memorable – create some healthy and happy memories.

Healthy Ireland Summer campaign – top tips and links:

Be Well

• Walk with Friends – Instead of that cup of coffee for a chat, get outside, go for a walk or run with the someone.
• Check out a new location, amenity, nearby park, walking trail or heritage site.
• Walk and talk – Join a local walking group or a parkrun and make new friends. You’ll likely come home likely feeling invigorated and inspired, with memories to enjoy.
• Walk the dog, or the neighbour’s dog.
• Hop off bus one stop early. Challenge yourself to ‘Take the stairs’.
• The more you move – the better your mood.

Check out our Healthy Ireland partners for more information and ideas

• Get Ireland Walking – www.getirelandwalking.ie
• Parkrun – www.parkrun.ie
• Sport Ireland – www.sportireland.ie
• Get Ireland Active – www.getirelandactive.ie
• Ireland Active – www.Irelandactive.ie
• Community Games – www.aldicommunitygames.ie
• Office of Public Works – www.OPW.ie

Eat Well

• Share some fruit – Eat more fruit. Have some fruit at breakfast with the family or share some fruits on a Summer picnic. Replace treats with fruit.
• Drink more water – it’s really important on warm days, especially if you’re active.
• Boost your mood with healthy food – choose more salads instead of chips this summer.
• Try sharing that dessert if you’re having one!
• Have fruit as your mid-morning snack instead of a scone or biscuits.
• Choose grilled over fried.

Check out our Healthy Ireland partners for more information and ideas

• Bord Bia – www.bordbia.ie
• Safefood – www.safefood.eu
• HSE healthy eating – www.hse.ie/healthyeating

Think Well

• Pause your Boxset – Make one or more days a ‘play day’ in your family, instead of turning on the telly.
• Turn off phone for 30 minutes.
• Have a ‘no phone at the table’ rule so the family can all have conversations at mealtimes.
• Go for a walk with someone and get the mental and physical benefits.
• Get out and volunteer with someone.
• Get a good night’s sleep.

Check out our Healthy Ireland partners for more information and ideas

• Your Mental Health – www.yourmentalhealth.ie
• Little Things – www.littlethings.ie
• Volunteering – www.volunteer.ie
• Spunout – www.spunout.ie
• Dementia – www.dementia.ie
• Mens Sheds – www.menssheds.ie
• GAA Healthy Clubs – [external-link www.gaa.ie/my-gaa/community-and-health/healthy club | www.gaa.ie/my-gaa/community-and-health/healthy club ]
• Quit smoking – Quit.ie

Visit gov.ie/healthyireland and follow #HealthyIreland and #FeelGoodTogether to find out about the changes you can make, and to find resources, tips and ways to get involved.

Please contact the Press Office if you would like to make an interview bid for our Head of Health and Wellbeing Programme, Kate O’Flaherty.

http://www.healthyireland.ie/about-healthy-ireland/healthy-ireland-team/

ENDS

Healthy Ireland is a major Government-led programme to encourage and support everyone living in Ireland to have the best possible physical and mental health and well-being.

The Healthy Ireland Summer campaign looks to build on the work done by Healthy Ireland over the past three years, as well as a first phase of the 2018 Communications Campaign launched in January.

The implementation of Healthy Ireland involves significant collaborative, cross-governmental work to develop and implement policies to address our major public health challenges such as obesity, smoking and physical inactivity, and to ensure related policy areas, such as education, planning, transport, rural and community development are aligned to facilitate and prioritise health and well-being.