The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

WITH the aim of ensuring that we become a healthier nation, the Bahamas is joining countries around the world in celebrating “Wellness Week”.

Following a successful fun run/walk on Saturday, the week will continue with health symposiums for the elderly as well as the younger generation, and end with a “Health & Wellness Explosion”.

The local Caribbean Wellness Week Organising Committee (CWWOC) kicked off activities on Saturday with a fun run/walk, the first of many events to be held this week to promote and celebrate good health while highlighting avenues to the reduce of risky behaviours that adversely impact physical, mental and the social being of Bahamians.

According to the committee, Caribbean Wellness Day (CWD) was initiated from the Port of Spain Declaration 2007 and was first observed in 2008. CWD aims to empower individuals to make healthy lifestyles choices throughout the region, and is observed annually on the second Saturday in September. Additionally, Wellness Week in the Americas is a week-long observation by PAHO member countries that immediately follows CWD and was first observed in 2011.

Under the theme “Love that Body. Create a Legacy of Health” and with the focus on healthy aging populations, these two events were combined in the Bahamas this year, commemorated as Caribbean Wellness Week 2015.

“ ‘Create a Legacy of Health’ was chosen as the Caribbean Wellness Week theme to remind us that as we age, we should seek to lead (healthier) lives and develop habits that build a legacy of well-being,” said committee members.

The route of the fun run/walk last began at Arawak Cay onto the roundabout at West Bay Street, then back to Arawak Cay. Organisers also shared a health message in their bulletins with churches on Saturday and Sunday.

Activities this week will include a wellness symposium at 10am today at the Christ The King Anglican Church Activity Centre in Ridgeland Park where organisers will pay special attention to the elderly. During the symposium, patrons will discuss physical activity/movement, good nutrition and how to remain mentally healthy. On Thursday at the same time and venue, the focus will shift to the younger generation to discuss safe physical activity and entertainment. The week will conclude on Saturday with what organisers are calling the “Health & Wellness Explosion” at Arawak Cay from 10am to 6pm.

“We want to set good examples for children on things like how we perform our maintenance health checks and annual visits, manage our stress levels, balance work and family and other activities, and also create healthy and personal relationships,” said Dr Phillip Swann, committee member and public health specialist at the Ministry of Health.

He said the fun run/walk was one of the best ways to show the committee’s health efforts; inviting the local population to walk and run as groups.

“We had football and track clubs, churches, ministries and more sign up. The idea is to highlight activities that will encourage Bahamians to focus on what it takes to maintain and pursue healthiness. Hopefully this will play into other campaigns that the ministry have took on in the past. We also plan to have some celebrations on the islands going forward,” said Dr Swann.

When it comes to health and wellness in the Bahamas, Dr Swann said he believes the country has a long way to go.

“Bahamians know what it takes to be healthy so we hope that these events will help jump-start them on the way into putting into practice what it is that they know mentally and guide them better, making sure that the Bahamas becomes a healthier nation,” said Dr Swann.