“How are you Shropshire?”: new campaign launches to help double chances of being healthy at 70 and beyond

Today, Shropshire Council’s public health team has helped to launch the national One You campaign, to support adults across the county to stay well for as long as possible.

The new groundbreaking campaign, led by Public Health England, aims to help adults across the country avoid future diseases caused by modern lifestyles. The campaign will also help adults in Shropshire to move more, eat well, drink less and be smoke free, as well as providing information on how people can reduce their stress levels and sleep better.

Shropshire figures* show:

• In 2014, 24 % of people over 16 were classed as physically inactive.
• 65% of adults (over 16yrs) were classified as overweight or obese (2012 to 2014 data)
• In 2013 there were 1,992 hospital admissions for alcohol-related conditions and 139 alcohol-related mortality cases reported in 2014.
• In 2014 there was a 15.3 % prevalence of smoking among people aged 18 years and over; current smokers.
• Between 2012 to 2014 there were 489 accounts of mortality from lung cancer.
• During 2014/15 it was estimated that there were around 3,005 accounts of smoking-attributable admissions (people 35+ yrs).
• Between 2012 to 14 it was estimated there was 1568 accounts of deaths attributable to smoking (people 35+ yrs).

Modern day life makes it hard for people to live healthily, with bigger portions for everything we eat, a desk-bound job or a long commute. Without knowing it, by the time we reach our 40s and 50s many of us will have dramatically increased our chances of becoming ill later in life. Whether we are eating the wrong things, drinking more alcohol than we should, continuing to smoke, or just not being active enough, all of these things add up.

These habits could make it harder to keep up with the kids in the park or mean that your favourite pair of jeans are a bit tighter. More seriously, they increase the risk of you developing conditions such as type 2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

One You gives people the chance to reappraise their lifestyle choices, put themselves first and do something about their own health before it’s too late.

A good way to start the fight to healthy is to take the new free One You health quiz, “How Are You?”. This innovative quiz provides personalised recommendations based on your results, and direct you to tools and offers to help you take action where it’s most needed.

Karen Calder, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for health and well-being, and Chair of Shropshire’s Health and Well-being Board, said:

“One You encourages people to reappraise their lifestyle choices, put themselves first and do something about their own health. It reminds people that it’s never too late to improve their health – making small lifestyle changes such as eating well, drinking less alcohol, quitting smoking or being more active can double your chances of being healthy at 70 and beyond.

“Our busy lives often means that our own health is at the bottom of our list of priorities. One You is here to remind you that your health matters.

“I can’t stress enough how important it is for us all to stop, pause and really ask yourself how am I? So please take the health test, find out how you really are, and do something about it, after all there is only one you.”

Dr Kevin Lewis, Director of Help2Change, who provide health preventative services on behalf of Shropshire Council, added:

“Help2Change offers a wide range of support services to help people lead healthier lives. These include NHS Health Checks, Help2Quit for smokers, Help2Slim for a healthy weight, information on physical activity opportunities, and alcohol advice.

“The One You campaign is a great opportunity to improve your health. So if you’ve taken the How Are You? quiz and feel that you want to make some changes, please contact the Help2Change helpline on 0345 678 9025 or email information@help2changeshropshire.nhs.uk“

For more information about the One You campaign, and to take the online How Are You? health quiz, search ‘One You’ online now or click here.

There is a wealth of advice and information that can help people to improve their lifestyle behaviour on our Healthy Shropshire website. Information ranges from eating well and moving more to stopping smoking and drinking less.

For information on visit www.healthyshropshire.co.uk.