From the canteen to the playground, schools in Abu Dhabi are charting a healthy journey towards promoting children’s health as stakeholders in the Eat Right Get Active campaign. Launched in 2011 by the Health Authority Abu Dhabi (HAAD), in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Education Council and the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, the campaign took head-on the modern-day scourge for children — a love for junk food and physical inactivity coupled with dismal awareness of healthy eating habits.
The climbing graph of increased physical activities of students and improved nutritional choices as a result of the campaign is a cause for cheer, given that in 2010, the World Health Organisation, as part of its Global School Health Surveys, has highlighted the worrying trends in nutritional and physical activities of UAE schoolchildren. While parents play a big role in steering their children towards a healthy lifestyle, the school, as a powerhouse of evolvement, can undeniably make more impact. By tapping into this power, the authorities are ensuring that success is the inevitable outcome — a result that schools in other emirates can strive to achieve with good reason.
