Healthy Town Research reveals knowledge gap about health & wellbeing in Navan

 

58% of Navan adults believe health is important but just a quarter believe they are ‘very knowledgeable’ about health & wellbeing

63% believe they would definitely benefit from more involvement in sports or social clubs

59% agreed that they could improve their health & wellbeing by eating more sensibly

48% said that they could improve by learning more about nutrition

 

The Navan Healthy Town 2016 survey, commissioned by Pfizer and the Irish Times, reveals that the majority (58%) of adults in Navan place significant importance on maintaining their health and wellbeing and just under half claims to have a positive attitude towards it (43%). However, personal knowledge of how to maintain optimum health and wellbeing is low, with just a quarter believing themselves to be ‘very knowledgeable’ about the topic and 21% of Navan people surveyed admitting to know very little.

The research results have been revealed following the announcement that Navan is this year’s Pfizer Irish Times Healthy Town which will involve a series of free events, seminars and heart health checks in the town duringSeptember and October this year. Proud Navan native Hector Ó’hEochagáin has also been unveiled as Healthy Town 2016 Ambassador and is encouraging everyone to get involved in the programme.

Balanced diet & alcohol intake

According to the research results, 63% stated that they exercise regularly while 56% of those surveyed say that they take care of their mental health. However, the results reveal that diet and alcohol intake shows room for improvement; just 39% always eat a healthy balanced diet while a quarter rarely avoid excessive alcohol in-take. 59% agreed that they could improve their health & wellbeing by eating more sensibly, while 48% said that they could improve by learning more about nutrition.

Women versus men

The survey results show that women are more conscious of their health than men; 63% of women versus 52% of men stating that maintaining good health and wellbeing is very important. Women tend of focus on maintaining a healthy diet and avoiding unnecessary stress while men are concerned about reducing alcohol intake and place very little emphasis on mental health.

Involvement in sports & social clubs

Many people in Navan (49%) are directly involved in sports and social clubs, while just under a quarter (24%) are regularly involved in a fitness group. A majority admitted to there being room for improvement. 63% believe they would definitely benefit from more involvement in sports or social clubs.

Interestingly, while 52% of Navan adults surveyed believe that their personal health and wellbeing is better than the average person in the town, just 27% believe their personal exercise regime to be better than average! A large proportion, 69%, agrees that there are enough resources in Navan to enable people to learn about health and wellbeing.

Now in its fifth year, Pfizer-Irish Times Healthy Town is an annual programme that aims to enhance the health and wellbeing of communities around Ireland. Healthy Town 2016 aims to encourage the people of Navan to improve their health and wellbeing through events, health checks and talks.

Healthy Town 2016 will provide residents of Navan with an opportunity to pay more attention to their overall health and wellbeing while inspiring other town residents across Co. Meath and around Ireland to do likewise. It calls on everyone to make simple, small changes to benefit their overall health.

The Navan Healthy Town 2016 programme of events this autumn will include events along the themes of: ‘My Mind’, ‘My Body’ and ‘My Heart’. 

Kevin Stewart, Director of Services, Meath County Council said, “The Healthy Town programme is designed to encourage the people of Navan to make small changes that will have a big impact on their health and wellbeing and in doing so set an example to other communities all around Ireland. We hope the programme will help to bridge the knowledge gap that this research has revealed and that the programme will also encourage people to make the most of the wide variety of health related resources Navan has to offer. Plenty of ideas for the programme are being shared on the Healthy Town facebook page. I would encourage everyone to get involved and be a part of it!”

Members of the public are invited to share their thoughts and ideas on what the programme in September and October should involve by posting on the Healthy Town Facebook page using #MyHealthyTown. 

Karen O’Keeffe, Director of Corporate Affairs, Pfizer said, “Pfizer is proud to support Healthy Town as it underscores our ethos of ‘working together towards a healthier world’.  Everybody is familiar with ever-increasing health problems such as diabetes, obesity and heart disease but we can take steps to reduce our risk of ill health and illness.  ‘Healthy Town’ will bring groups and organisations together to join forces to improve the health and wellbeing of a community and we’re looking forward to another great programme this year.

Barry O’Keeffe, Irish Times, “It gives me great pleasure to see the ‘Healthy Town’ programme continue into its fifth year; building on the success of previous years. The Irish Times will feature ‘Healthy Town’ events and activities in our weekly health supplement, Health + Family, in addition to a regularly updated and dedicated microsite. This programme sees us partnering with some great organisations to educate, inform and encourage people to improve their health and wellbeing.”