Youngsters learn from Rhinos how smart swaps mean healthy habits

Children at one Morley school were delighted when they won a chance to meet Rhinos players Ash Handley and Robbie Ward after a top performance in the Smart Swaps healthy eating challenge this year.

Recent data suggests more than one in ten Leeds children in their last year at primary school are overweight, so Leeds City Council’s Public Health team have teamed up with schools and Leeds Rhinos to encourage families to make easy swaps from unhealthy snacks and healthy ones. Following this year’s Smart Swapathon challenge, Morley Newlands Primary were the winners of the Smart Swaps Leeds Rugby Assembly.

Notes for editors:

More information about Smart Swaps can be found at: http://www.leedsletschange.co.uk/smartswaps

• Consuming food and drink high in sugar means extra calories which causes fat to build up inside, that could lead to heart disease, cancer or type 2 diabetes

• By the time they leave primary school, one in three children are carrying excess weight

• Children who are overweight or obese are more likely to develop illnesses such as type 2 diabetes , go onto experience weight and health problems in adolescence, and are more likely to become overweight or obese adults

• Consumption of foods high in sugar can lead to tooth decay

• In 2012, almost one-third of five year olds in England had tooth decay with stark inequalities across the country

• Children’s sugar consumption, as a percentage of energy intake, is up to 50% greater than the current SACN recommendation. Soft drinks contribute 17% of sugar intake amongst 4-10 year olds and 30% of sugar intake amongst teenagers