BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC—The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has launched a Creative Play initiative in schools to help address childhood obesity.
PAHO said the new initiative, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Wellness, aims to address the growing issue of overweight and obesity in children by developing innovative approaches to encouraging physical activity in schools.
According to data from a school health study in Barbados, 30 percent of school children are either overweight or obese.
PAHO said increasingly sedentary lifestyles are a crucial driver of this.
“The Creative Play Initiative aims to tackle this by implementing life-sized versions of children’s games, such as Snakes and Ladders, to encourage increased physical activity at school,” PAHO said.
“Not all children are interested in competitive sports, but most children enjoy playing and having fun,” said Donna Barker, senior health promotion officer at the Barbados Ministry of Health and Wellness and creator of the Creative Play Initiative.
“While on social media, I found several videos showing colorful and stimulating obstacle courses drawn onto yards or play areas for children. I thought this could be introduced in Barbadian primary schools as a creative way for children to stay active since that is where they spend most of the day,” she added.
PAHO said two schools, St. Albans Primary School and Charles F. Broome Memorial Primary School, were chosen to pilot the initiative.
“So far, the Creative Play areas have been well received by both students and teachers and provide schools with a space to reinforce concepts taught in subject areas such as mathematics, social sciences, and health through play activities,” PAHO said.
Dr. Amalia Del Riego, PAHO/WHO Representative for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, highlighted that due to the increased use of mobile phones, tablets, and other devices, children are not as physically active as they used to be.
“We must think outside the box and be creative to get kids more active,” she said. “This initiative achieves this by infusing excitement into physical activity.”
As the pilot continues to prove successful, PAHO and Barbados plan to expand the initiative to other schools throughout the next academic year.
PAHO said there are also plans to join forces with other partners to expand the initiative throughout the country.
New data released by the World Health Organization (WHO) last week shows that, worldwide, one in eight people are now living with obesity.
WHO said obesity among adults has more than doubled since 1990 and has quadrupled among children and adolescents aged 5-19 years.
At the World Health Assembly in 2022, Caribbean and other member states adopted the WHO Acceleration plan to stop obesity, which supports country-level action to address this growing issue, PAHO said.
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