Croydon Council recently launched a health and well-being website called JustBe. This website aims to get local people to adopt a healthier lifestyle by offering a number of recommendations and pointing Croydon residents to local services. To get their messages across they use a variety of tools such as apps, podcasts, expert advice, videos, diet plans and exercise routes.

The JustBe online health programme focuses on six key health and well-being areas which include: eating a healthy diet, being more active, drinking less alcohol, improving mental health, cutting out smoking and maintaining healthy sexual relationships. By focusing on these areas it is hoped that  local inequalities will be addressed and improved.

Croydon residents can start by completing a health MoT which is a quick online assessment which provides a short report with some suggestions on how to improve your health and well-being. Following this, residents can explore the website which is divided into the six health and well-being areas under the headings:

• Be happy
• Be active
• Be alcohol aware
• Be sex safe
• Be food smart
• Be smoke free

You can also register to receive weekly tips and advice by email from Croydon Council’s leading health guru and explore a range of health tools which include apps, podcasts, expert advice, videos, diet plans and exercise routes.

The Council will continue to expand the services available in the JustBe programme and next year one-to-one support from experts will be available. These sessions will last for up to 52 weeks and will be based on current best practice around behaviour change.

Councillor Louisa Woodley, cabinet minister for families, health and social care said:

“The new JustBe Croydon website means residents are just a click away to self-help and encouragement to lead happier and healthier lives”

The Lake Foundation encourages all Croydon residents to get online and visit JustBe for some useful health information.  You can find JustBe here , follow them on Twitter (@JustBeCroydon) and ‘like’ them on Facebook (JustBeCroydon).

This week, a new analysis by Public Health England has revealed a troubling conclusion: 40 to 60 year olds in the UK are facing a health crisis. This health crisis has been attributed to modern lifestyles, particularly “the car, the desk job and the computer”, which means that people are not as physically active as 20 years ago.

“People are busy with work, with families, with the daily grind and sometimes their own health is the least of their priorities.” – Professor Kevin Fenton, Director of Health and Wellbeing, Public Health England

Public Health England’s analysis explored how the behaviour and health of people aged 40 to 60 has changed over the past 20 years. They found that 83% of 40-60 year olds either drink too much,  are inactive or are overweight or obese.

When we looked at their data on obesity, their report states that 77% of men and 63% of women within the 40 to 60 age group are overweight or obese compared to 67% of men and 55% of women 20 years ago. Public Health England also noted that many middle aged people couldn’t identify what a healthy body looks like and they suggest that it is possible that obesity is now becoming the new normal. This is worrying as many people may not realise they are at an unhealthy weight.

Another important area the analysis looked at was diabetes. They found that the diabetes rate in 40 to 60 year olds has doubled – 3% of middle aged people had diabetes 20 years ago and today that has increased to 7%.  Apart from diabetes they found that the rate of heart conditions in men has increased, rising from 8.5% to 11.4% and mental health conditions had trebled (2% to 6%.) Although, with regards to mental health, it was felt that the increase could be due to a better understanding and recognition of mental health conditions.

Solutions

In order to address this health crisis Public Health England’s One You campaign will be reaching out to 40 to 60 year olds to help people assess their lifestyle and then provides tools on how to adopt a healthy lifestyle. These tools include apps like Couch to 5K, Alcohol Checker and Easy Meals.

Other similar solutions include Croydon Council’s online health programme, JustBe, which aims to get local people to adopt a healthier lifestyle by offering a number of recommendations and pointing Croydon residents to local services. To get their messages across they use a variety of tools such as apps, podcasts, expert advice, videos, diet plans and exercise routes.

At the Lake Foundation, we’re aiming to get people active through our free cycling club which is open to everyone. A limited number of bikes and helmets are available. For more information email us

Conclusions

Public Health England’s analysis concluded that compared to 20 years ago:

“Men aged 40 to 60 are:

• more likely to be obese
• less likely to smoke and less likely to drink alcohol (although most do)
• more likely to suffer from a heart condition
• more likely to be diabetic
• more likely to report suffering from a mental health disorder

Women aged 40 to 60 are:

• more likely to be obese;
• less likely to smoke and less likely to drink alcohol
• more likely to be diabetic
• more likely to report suffering from a mental health disorder”

Although the health of middle aged people seems to be declining, there is hope. We can turn things around if everyone makes simple changes to their lifestyle.

We are delighted to announce our fibroids Twitter chat on Wednesday 18^th January 2017 from 7pm-8pm. We will be joined by special guests Dr Sydney Dillard, CEO of Fighting Fibroids and Renee Brown Small Co-founder of The Fibroids Project with host, our own Abi Begho, founder of The Lake Foundation.

This Twitter chat has been organised to allow for an in-depth discussion on fibroids, what they are, why black women are more at risk, symptoms, treatment and more.

We’ll be putting questions to our expert panel and you can put your questions to them too. So if you have a burning question about fibroids or just want to get involved in the discussion then do join us on the day. To take part in the conversation please use the hashtag #FibroidsChat.

We look forward to tweeting with you!

Yesterday, the UK government published its policy document, ‘Overview of Legislation in Draft’,  which outlines the changes to tax law which the government plans to introduce in its 2017 finance bill, in secondary legislation and in future finance bills.

This draft legislation includes information on the soft drinks industry levy (sugar tax) which will come info effect from April 2018.

With regards to the sugar tax the Overview of Legislation in Draft says:

“As announced at Budget 2016, and following consultation on the design and implementation of the levy over the summer, the government will legislate in Finance Bill 2017 for the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. This is a levy on importers and producers of beverages that contain added sugar to help tackle childhood obesity. The 2 thresholds, at 5g and 8g of sugar per 100ml have been designed so that, by taking reasonable steps to reduce sugar content, UK producers and importers of soft drinks can pay less or escape the charge altogether. The levy will take effect from April 2018.

There will be an exemption for the smallest operators and a credit against levy liability, subject to evidence, for liable drinks that are exported.”

The government expects the sugar tax to raise £520M in its first year and these funds will be used to double the funding available to primary schools for PE and sports programme. The government has estimated that the sugar levy will raise £320 million a year for primary schools to support healthier more active lifestyles in children. The funding will not only go towards expanding PE and sports programmes but to also expand breakfast clubs in primary schools ensuring that children have access to a healthy breakfast every week day.

The government has also published a full policy document on the sugar tax which gives further information on the objectives of the tax, who it will affect and how it will be monitored.

The Lake Foundation is glad to see that the government is making progress on implementing the sugar tax and hope that it will go some way to tackling obesity in the UK.

Have you been diagnosed with fibroids? Are you considering treatment options, or have you recently received treatment for fibroids? Then the fibroids patient support group at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital may be of interest to you.

Living with fibroids and being asked to make a decision around surgical options can be emotional and difficult for both you and your loved ones. So, Transforming Outcomes and Health Economics Through Imaging (TOHETI) organise regular fibroids support sessions that  provide a safe, informal setting for  patients to meet other women and share their questions and concerns, both before and after surgery. All are welcome to attend, you do not need to be a patient of Guy’s and St Thomas’.

The next session will be on Monday 23rd January, 6:00 – 7:30pm at the  McNair Centre, Guy’s Hospital. Refreshments will be provided.

This next session will  include a presentation from Dr Irfan Ahmed, Consultant Interventional Radiologist, Guy’s and St Thomas’. Dr Ahmed will talk more about a minimally invasive procedure he performs called uterine artery embolization, and answer any questions you may have.

For more information and to book a place at this session please, email fibroids@kcl.ac.uk or just turn up on the evening!

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Women’s Health is a cross-party group of MPs and Peers in the UK Parliament of Westminster. The group aims to empower women to ensure that they can make an informed choice about the best treatment for them and that they are treated with dignity and respect.

The group has launched an inquiry into whether women are given informed choice about the treatment options available for particular conditions. They aim to publish a report that will assess their findings around informed choice and provide recommendations on the improvements that need to be made.

Fibroids is a condition that they would like to shine the spotlight on and they would like to hear from women about their experience of living with and accessing treatment for fibroids. They are asking women with experience of fibroids to complete a survey which you can find here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/fibroids-informed-choice

If you’ve been affected by fibroids we strongly encourage you to complete the survey so that any issues that exist can be identified and addressed to ensure that the diagnosis and treatment pathway for all women is improved.

If you have any questions about the survey or about the work of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Women’s Health please  email  appgwh@pbpoliticalconsulting.com or call 020 7735 6963

If you would like help completing the survey, please get in touch with The Lake Foundation by emailing us

OpenMinds is a new not-for-profit, specialist mental health organisation based in Croydon which makes recovering from a mental health difficulty the main focus of their work. Their core values are recovering, advocacy and changing mindset.

OpenMinds will be hosting their launch event on Tuesday 22^nd November at the Croydon Voluntary Action Resource Centre, 82 London Road, CR0 2TB from 5pm to 8pm.

The purpose of this event is to promote the work of OpenMinds’ floating support service, but more importantly, to stimulate conversations that will challenge and facilitate change in mindsets, with the goal of reducing stigma and discrimination in mental health service and provision.

All are welcome to attend and for more information please contact: info@openmindssocialcare.co.uk or you can find out more about OpenMinds by downloading their brochure below.

This week, supermarket giant Tesco announced that it will make further reductions to the amount of sugar in its soft drinks and these newly reformulated drinks will be available in-store from 11^th November.

This reduction in sugar is a direct result of the government’s sugar tax and is part of Tesco’s ongoing commitment to reduce the sugar, fat and salt content of the products the company makes.  This reduction in sugar content means that Tesco’s soft drinks will now have less than five grams of sugar per 100ml meaning that the average Tesco customer will be consuming 20% less sugar than they did in 2011.

Tesco is working in partnership with Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation to improve the nation’s health and so far they have reduced the salt, sugar and fat content of over 4,200 products.

Matt Davies, Tesco UK’s CEO said of this recent reduction in sugar:

“This is just one part of our plans to make the food on our shelves healthier by reducing levels of sugar, salt and fat in our own brands”

This reduction in sugar can be seen as a success of the government’s sugar levy (sugar tax) which will apply to drinks with a total sugar content above 5 grams per 100ml. A higher rate will be applied to drinks with more than 8 grams per 100ml. The levy won’t be applied to milk-based drinks or fruit juices. The levy will come into effect from April 2018.

The money raised from sugar levy will be used to double the funding available to primary schools for PE and sports programme. The government has estimated that the sugar levy will raise £320 million a year for primary schools to support healthier more active lifestyles in children. The funding will not only go towards expanding PE and sports programmes but to also expand breakfast clubs in primary schools ensuring that children have access to a healthy breakfast every week day.

The Lake Foundation is happy to hear that Tesco has taken this step to reduce the sugar content of its soft drinks and if more companies follow suit this can make a significant contribution to improving the health of the UK’s population.

On 8^th November 2016 Target Ovarian Cancer will be holding an event called Being Together in Hertfordshire. This is a free event for all women with ovarian cancer and will take place at the Jurys Inn Hotel in Watford from 10am – 4:30pm and will include lunch and refreshments.

Feedback  from previous Being Together events have shown that these days are extremely beneficial in helping women feel less isolated and more knowledgeable about ovarian cancer:

“The whole day has been brilliant. The hospitality was superb and the quality of the event was excellent”

 The event is an ideal opportunity for women to meet those with similar experiences and put their questions to a panel of experts. Women will also have the opportunity to take part in workshops surrounding living well, such as nutrition and relaxation. Although the event is free booking is essential.

You can book a place at www.targetovariancancer.org.uk/hertfordshire or by calling Target Ovarian Cancer on 020 7923 5475.

Voices for Autism host coffee mornings every month in a warm, relaxed environment. Families are invited to come along for two hours to enjoy some refreshments and conversations surrounding autism, or not.

Voices for Autism has been created to raise awareness of autism as well as create a community for parents/carers to feel a part of. Being an autism parent/carer can sometimes feel like a lonely place and we want you to know that you are not alone; autism affects approximately 70,000 people in the UK alone.

Voices for Autism is striving to create a haven where those affected by autism can come together to share advice, ideas, good news stories and so on. They want to echo the message that young people with autism are unique and they should be able to access the same services and opportunities as those without a disability or additional needs.

The organisation is a friendly bunch who have a mixture of skills, knowledge and experience. They are not medical professionals but walk and breathe autism on a daily basis.

Do pop along to one of their coffee mornings if you can. No booking required. Details are posted on their website www.voicesforautism.co.uk or alternatively you can drop them a line on info@voicesforautism.co.uk

Their next coffee morning is on Saturday 12^th November at The Vaughn Room, Christ Church Southwark, 27 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NY