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The Department of Health (DH) today (June 14) called on members of the public to care for the health of their parents and practise healthy family lifestyles while enjoying Father's Day.
A spokesman for the DH said many parents might have considered their primary school children as too young to understand and care for the health condition of their parents. However, a DH survey conducted earlier this year on over 9,000 Primary 4 and 5 students revealed that 20 per cent and 7 per cent respectively of the respondents considered the dietary habits of their parents unhealthy. Among those who had given this response, over 60 per cent were worried about the health of either their fathers or mothers due to their unhealthy dietary habits. The findings of the survey also revealed that students found the dietary habits of their fathers worse than their mothers. Consequently, more students were concerned about their father's health.
In the survey, students were also asked what they would expect their parents to do for better health. The most popular answers turned out to be doing more exercise, eating more fruit and vegetables, and eating less high-fat foods.
In fact, the life expectancy of men is about six years less than that of women in Hong Kong, likely due to people's lifestyles. Medical research indicates that unhealthy dietary habits with high fat and sugary foods, plus physical inactivity, are sufficient to induce people to become overweight and obese, which in turn are major causal factors of many non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as heart disease and diabetes mellitus.
In measuring whether adults are overwieght or obese, one method is to assess the Body Mass Index (BMI), calculated by dividing the body weight (in kilogrammes) by height (in metres) squared (people with a BMI of 23 or above are classified as overweight). Another method is to measure the waist circumference (a waist circumference over 90cm or about 36 inches for males, or 80cm or about 32 inches for females, is considered central obesity). According to DH's data, there is a higher proportion of men than women classified as overweight. Also, men are less likely than women to have a healthy diet. Hence, while celebrating Father's Day, fathers should consider improving their health for their own and their children's benefit.
The spokesman added that while celebrating Father's Day, both children and parents should pay more attention to and care for the health of their family members, as well as practise healthy lifestyles together to reduce the risk of NCDs.
Healthy eating can be made possible when one buys and prepares food, such as:
* Follow the recommendations of the food pyramid to eat a wide variety of food and have a well-balanced diet;
* Eat grains and cereals in every meal, especially high-fibre options like red rice, brown rice, rice with added vegetables, buckwheat noodles or wholemeal bread, etc.;
* Eat at least two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables every day;
* Choose food containing less salt, fat and sugar, e.g. low-fat milk/skimmed milk, lean meat, fish, poultry with skin removed, fresh fruit and vegetables, etc.;
* Reduce consumption of preserved or processed food, e.g. ham, bacon, sausage, preserved Chinese sausages or meat, salted duck egg, salted fish and preserved vegetables, etc.;
* Avoid eating snacks high in salt, fat/oil and sugar, e.g. French fries, deep-fried chicken drumsticks, hamburgers, candies, soft drinks and instant noodles, etc.; and
* Prepare food with low-fat cooking methods, e.g. steaming, boiling, baking and poaching, etc.
Physical activity should be done with perseverance. Adults should engage in 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity every week for improved health. Doing exercise with children helps to foster a closer parent-child relationship as well as enhance health. People who are not used to exercising or who suffer from chronic diseases should consult their family doctors before embarking on an exercise programme.
To promote healthy lifestyles, the DH has made available BMI measuring tapes for free distribution to members of the public as Father's Day gifts. The tapes will be available at DH's Central Health Education Unit (Address: 7/F, Southorn Centre, 130 Hennessy Road, Wan Chai) during office hours (between 9am and 6pm from Monday to Friday) from June 15 to 21. Each person can obtain a maximum of two measuring tapes on a first-come, first-served basis while stock lasts.
More information about healthy eating, physical activity and prevention of NCDs is available at DH's Health Zone (www.cheu.gov.hk) and on the "Change for Health" website (www.change4health.gov.hk).
Ends/Thursday, June 14, 2012
Issued at HKT 16:30
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