Battling obesity in high school |05 August 2019

Ms Mousbe conducting a physical activity class at the Perseverance secondary school

Obesity, which is described as a “global epidemics” and qualified as “excessive accumulation of fat impairing health” by the World Health Organisation, is an important public health problem affecting children and adolescents as well as adults.

For Fadia Mousbe, she considers obesity in children has a very big risk on their health especially at a very young age, this is why she has set a programme for secondary school in the central region to combat this epidemic.

“It has been two years since I started this programme. Its aim is to not only help teenagers lose weight but also to educate them about healthy living,” said Ms Mousbe when she officially launched the programme at the Perseverance secondary school on Friday morning.

With the collaboration of the Seychelles children special fund, Ms Mousbe has been working with five schools over the course of two years.

Each session goes for an entire term and takes place for one hour during the students’ physical education (P.E.) class.

“I come to the school four times a week and work with S2, S3, S4 and S5 students,” Ms Mousbe noted.

She added that starting next term she will also be working with a nutritionist so that the students learn the best ways to eat healthy and avoid fast food.

With good evidence that school-based prevention programmes can successfully – and without many added resources – help students to eat better, be more active, and achieve healthier weights, schools are poised to become an integral part of the fight against the obesity epidemic. As with education in general, the sooner we act, the better.

Schools can also promote health outside of the classroom, by surrounding students with opportunities to eat healthy and stay active. To improve nutrition, schools can include healthier food offerings in the cafeteria and eliminate marketing of unhealthy foods. To improve activity, schools can develop safe walking and biking routes to school, and can promote active break time.