Australians’ love of sport will be used throughout Queensland’s Cape York region to encourage Indigenous children to embrace healthy eating habits and the benefits of regular physical activity.
Rural Health and Sport Minister Bridget McKenzie joined Federal Leichardt MP Warren Entsch at the weekend to announce $105,000 in Commonwealth funding for a new health program delivered by AFL Cape York.
“The Coalition Government is committed to ensuring better health outcomes for indigenous kids,” Minister McKenzie said.
“The new ‘On the Move with Deadly Foods’ initiative combines kids’ passion for sport with healthy food messages, that will help establish good habits for a lifetime.”
“AFL Cape York already travels extensively to communities and schools through Far North Queensland to help young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids understand the benefits of participating in sport.”
“This announcement would not have happened without the strong advocacy of Warren Entsch, who is a champion for indigenous communities in Cape York and the Far North.”
Federal Leichardt MP Warren Entsch said that poor diet and physical inactivity are major contributors to childhood obesity and other chronic diseases in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
“The ‘On the Move with Deadly Foods’ program will see new messages about healthy food choices delivered alongside broader physical education programs,” Mr Entsch said.
“Over the next 12 months, this program will target up to 8,000 boys and girls aged between six and 17 years, across 21 communities in the Torres Strait, Cape York peninsula and Gulf Savannah,” Mr Entsch said.
“It will not only give these young kids the tools they need to make sensible choices about what they eat and the importance of getting active, but also provide an opportunity for them to share those healthy lifestyle messages with their parents and the community.”
The ‘On the Move with Deadly Foods’ initiative will run until March 2019.
