Government response to the Nutrition Action Plan Delivery Board end of year progress report (25th February 2010)The Government's response to the Nutrition Action Plan Delivery Board's end of year report on implementation of the Nutrition Action Plan, published in 2007.
Document European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) opinion on health claims published (25th February 2010)The EFSA has published its second batch of opinions on a wide variety of health claims submitted by food businesses from across the UK and other EU member states.
Report FSA E-news Issue 1 February 2010 (22nd February 2010)Anyone interested in nutrition and healthy eating can get the 'buzz' of the latest news as it is published, following the launch of a new electronic newsletter from the Food Standards Agency.
FSA News, the Agency’s monthly newsletter, which has been going since 2001, has been re-launched as an electronic publication, FSA e-News. This means that readers will be able to get the news emailed direct to their computers as soon as it has been published.
Newsletter
National Diet and Nutrition Survey (9th February 2010)The findings of a UK dietary survey, published by the Food Standards Agency, suggest that the nation is eating less saturated fat, trans fat and added sugar than it was 10 years ago. The National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) is the first comprehensive survey of people’s eating patterns since 2001, when the survey was last carried out.
Survey
Citizens' forum findings on front-of-pack nutrition labelling (28th January 2010)The Food Standards Agency has published the latest report of people's views on food labels and their awareness and understanding of front-of-pack nutrition labelling. This is part of a nationwide series of 'citizens' forums' set up to establish a dialogue with the public on food.
Report
Health Effects of Exposure to Ultrasound and Infrasound (1st February 2010)The independent Advisory Group on Non-Ionising Radiation (AGNIR), which reports to the Health Protection Agency, has reviewed the latest scientific evidence on the health effects of ultrasound (frequencies above 20 kilohertz) and infrasound (below 20 Hz).
The report finds that the available evidence does not suggest that diagnostic ultrasound affects mortality of babies during pregnancy or soon after birth. The evidence also does not suggest any effect on childhood cancer risk. There have, however, been some unconfirmed reports suggesting possible effects on the developing nervous system - for instance, on handedness of the child.
AGNIR concluded that there is no established evidence that diagnostic levels of ultrasound are hazardous. However, further research is needed to determine whether there are any long-term adverse health effects, especially following exposure of the unborn child.
Report Warrington - using libraries to raise health awareness (21st January 2010)Warrington Borough Council used Communities for Health (C4H) funding to run a health programme based in its libraries.
Information Summary of insight research with middle aged adults (2nd February 2010)Change4Life asked research company 2CV to carry out research to help inform a campaign aimed at adults. The research was carried out between July and October 2009 with middle aged men and women to investigate their habits and attitudes to diet, physical activity and weight status.
Summary A liberal dose? Health and wellbeing: the role of the state (1st February 2010)The role of the state in health and wellbeing is a complex and controversial issue. A difficult question for any government is how far to intervene in the choices and behaviour of individuals in order to promote their own, or others’, health. Good health is a vital ingredient of a good life – but so is freedom.
This report:
- sets out evidence for what the public think about this question;
- explores the key issues at stake and clarifi es principles for state intervention;
- suggests a new framework to guide decision making; and
- proposes a new narrative for future state intervention.
Report Influencing public behaviour to improve health and wellbeing (1st February 2010)This independent report builds on current approaches, using the latest evidence from areas such as behavioural economics and psychology, to suggest ways in which the Government could become more effective in this area, to help people to make healthier choices where they wish to do so.
Report Enabling effective delivery of health and wellbeing (1st February 2010)This independent report offers recommendations to the Secretary of State on how better to enable the delivery of improved health and wellbeing. The terms of reference for this report requested an assessment of the current opportunities and barriers in delivery systems, to identify where practical changes could be made to improve effectiveness.
Report
Pharmacy in England: building on strengths - delivering the future - Draft regulations under the Health Act 2009: pharmaceutical needs assessments. Consultation document (1st December 2009)Following consultation in Autumn 2008, two clauses were introduced in the Health Bill 2009 (now the Health Act 2009).
- to require Primary Care Trusts to develop and publish pharmaceutical needs assessments (PNAs); and
- then to use PNAs as the basis for determining market entry to NHS pharmaceutical services provision
In July 2009, a regulatory Advisory Group drawn from interested parties was set up, chaired by Paul Burns. The first set of draft regulations regarding PNAs have now been prepared by the Department of Health with assistance from the Group and are available for consultation.
Closing date for comments is 28th February 2010.
Consultation A Consultation on proposals for the Innovation Pass pilot (28th November 2009)In July the Office for Life Sciences (OLS) published the ‘Life Sciences Blueprint’ which announced a package of measures to help maintain a competitive life science sector. One of the initiatives announced in the blueprint was the introduction of an ‘Innovation Pass’.
This consultation seeks views from the NHS, industry and other stakeholders on the Government’s proposals for an Innovation Pass pilot. These proposals will be revised in light of comments received as part of this consultation and will be used to inform the first set of decisions for the pilot in 2010/1
Closing date for comments is 8th February 2010.
Consultation Personal care at home: a consultation on proposals for regulations and guidance (25th November 2009)A consultation document containing proposals for regulations and guidance made under the Personal Care At Home Bill has been published today. An impact assessment accompanying the consultation is also available. An easy read version will be available soon.
Although closing date for comments is 23rd February 2010, the Department of Health would like, if possible, comments to reach them by 26th January 2010.
Consultation Provision of calorie labelling at point of choice in catering outlets (3rd December 2009)The Food Standards Agency is seeking views on how a voluntary scheme to display calorie information on menus would work best in practice.
A calorie labelling scheme would help people make healthier choices when they are eating out, by letting them see the number of calories in the food and drink they order – whether they are in restaurants, coffee and sandwich shops, pubs, leisure attractions or staff restaurants.
Closing date for comments is 11th March 2010.
Press Release
Consultation
Food Standards Agency's Strategy for 2010-2015 (7th December 2009)Consumers should expect to be eating safer food and be choosing healthier and more balanced meals by 2015 as a result of the Food Standards Agency’s Strategy for 2010–2015, published today.
The five outcomes the Agency aims to deliver are:
- food produced or sold in the UK is safe to eat
- imported food is safe to eat
- consumers understand about safe food and healthy eating, and have the information they need to make informed choices
- food products and catering meals are healthier
- regulation is effective, risk-based and proportionate, is clear about the responsibilities of food business operators and others, and protects consumers and their interests from fraud and other risks
Strategy
Healthier Food Mark: Promoting healthier, more sustainable food - draft criteria to be tested during Phase 1 of the pre-consultation pilot (14th October 2009)This scheme concerns the establishment of a voluntary Healthier Food Mark in the public sector so that public sector food reaches a standard to make a positive contribution to a nutritionally balanced diet and improves the sustainability of public sector food procurement
The first draft of the criteria was presented to stakeholders at the event on 30 April 2009. Further to feedback from that event and more detailed discussions with the food industry, public sector organisations and other stakeholders, a revised proposed and potential list of criteria has been developed for testing during Phase 1 of the pre-consultation pilot.
Document Snack Right. Using social marketing to achieve healthier food choices in the under fives (27th October 2009)In response to social marketing references in the White Paper Choosing Health: Making healthy choices easier, Cheshire and Merseyside's directors of public health established a social marketing group with the objectives of:
- Testing social marketing by delivering a project around food that addressed growing concerns about obesity;
- Developing capacity and capability in social marketing in Cheshire and Merseyside
This report looks at the project of Snack Right that arose from this.
Final Report
Monthly Digest of Statistics - September 2009 (25th September 2009)
Quarterly Population Estimates (experimental) - Q2 2009 and revised Q3 2007 to Q1 2009 (25th September 2009)
Estimates of Household Population for England and Wales (experimental) - Mid 2008 (25th September 2009)
Genito-Urinary Medicine Access Monthly Monitoring - July 2009 (24th September 2009)
Food Statistics Pocketbook 2009 (24th September 2009)
Road Casualties in England: Local Authority Tables - 2008 Results (24th September 2009)
Reported Road Casualties Great Britain Annual Report - 2008 Edition (24th September 2009)
Population Trends No 137 (24th September 2009)
Place Survey - England - 2008 Further Results (23rd September 2009)
Autism Spectrum Disorders in adults living in households throughout England - report from the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2007 (22nd September 2009)
NHS Referral to Treatment Waiting Times - July 2009 (17th September 2009)
Direct Access Audiology Waiting Times - July 2009 (17th September 2009)
NHS Staff Earnings April to June 2009 (17th September 2009)
Referrals, assessments and children and young people who are the subject of a child protection plan, England - Year ending 31 March 2009 (17th September 2009)
Population estimates of the very elderly (experimental) - Mid 2008 estimates (17th September 2009)
Investment in General Practice: England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland - 2003/04 to 2008/09 (16th September 2009)
GP Earnings and Expenses - 2007/08 Provisional report (16th September 2009)
Supporting People - Quarterly Client Records and Outcomes - April 2008 to March 2009 - Finalised (16th September 2009)
Labour Market Statistics - September 2009 (16th September 2009)
Regional Labour Market Statistics - September 2009 (16th September 2009)
Practice-based commissioning: GP practice survey (wave 8) (30th September 2009)
Bed availability and occupancy, 2008-09 (30th September 2009)
Quality and Outcomes Framework, 2008/09 Achievement data (29th September 2009)
Statistics on Smoking, England 2009 (29th September 2009)
Social Care and Mental Health Indicators from the National Indicator Set - further analysis, provisional, England 2008-09 (30th September 2009)
Community Care Statistics: Social Services Activity, England - Councils with Adult Social Services Responsibilities tables, provisional, 2008-09 (30th September 2009)
Personal Social Services Expenditure and Unit Costs, England Provisional 2008-09 (30th September 2009)
Personal Social Services: Home Care Users Aged 65 or over, England - Councils with Adult Social Services Responsibilities tables, provisional, 2008-09 (30th September 2009)
Routine Mental Health Minimum Dataset (MHMDS) Data Quality (Trust Analysis) Reports - Quarter 3 2008/09 (delayed from June 30th and 13th August for technical reasons) (30th September 2009)
Food route: a journey through food (10th August 2009)'Food route: a journey through food' is a range of colourful age-appropriate resources designed and developed to enable young people to gain food-related skills and knowledge.
Informed by young people themselves, and their teachers, the resources bring the Food Standard Agency's food competences to life.
Resources New online learning tool launched to help kids protect themselves from infections (3rd September 2009)School children across England and Europe can now learn about protecting themselves from swine flu and other infections, following today's launch of an education programme and interactive website by the Health Protection Agency (HPA).
e-Bug is made up of educational activities for primary and secondary school-age children, complemented by online games, on microbes, hygiene, antibiotic use and vaccines. The programme features age-appropriate animated characters and cartoon microbes; and lesson plans and materials for teachers. Topics include hygiene measures to stop the spread of swine flu and other respiratory infections.
Press Release
Website
Healthy lunch and bowls for over 50s (14th August 2009)‘Fit as a fiddle’ is a national programme supported by the National Lottery through the Big Lottery Fund and delivered by Age Concern. It aims to improve the health and wellbeing of older people, promoting physical activity, healthy eating and developing ‘active networks’ for the over-50s.
Information
Change4Life has only just started! An update on how the campaign is doing (27th August 2009)The Change4Life team have sent out a letter to healthcare professionals to let them know that Change4Life has had a very positive response from young families in its first six months. The letter also recommends that healthcare professionals register as Change4Life Local Supporters and points out the ways they can support the campaign.
A booklet and poster were enclosed with the letter – the booklet offers information about what Local Supporters can practically do to support the campaign, where to find free support materials and offers examples of what is already happening at a local level.
Letter, Booklet and Poster
Food Route: a journey through food (10th August 2009)The Food Standards Agency has published a new range of resources to enable young people to learn essential food-related skills and knowledge.
'Food route: a journey through food' is a range of colourful age-appropriate workbooks designed and developed to bring the Agency's food competences to life. The materials are supported by teachers' user guides and downloadable certificates, which can be awarded on completion of the various activities.
Resources
Spreading the healthy eating message in Northumberland (22nd July 2009)To really understand the importance of healthy eating, it helps to appreciate where food comes from. And that is just what school children in Northumberland have been learning about through the ‘Roots and Shoots’ project.
Information Footballers help children shoot for healthy lifestyles (22nd July 2009)Footballers can often find themselves in the headlines for the wrong reasons. But Newcastle United’s stars are showing they can be positive role models by encouraging children to adopt healthier lifestyles. The club has teamed up with the local city council and primary care trust (PCT) to run activities in schools. They focus on the importance of healthy eating and staying active.
Information
Evaluation of the Phase 2 Snack Right Social Marketing Project – Final Report (25th June 2009)The Cheshire and Merseyside Directors of Public Health decided in 2005 to focus on a single social marketing intervention on food.
The aims of this project were:- to improve the nutritional quality of snacks given to pre-school children in deprived areas of Cheshire and Merseyside
- to gain experience and build capacity in social marketing throughout Cheshire and Merseyside;
- to put marketing theory into practice on a Cheshire and Merseyside footprint
- to disseminate the learning in social marketing.
Thank you to the author, Lyn Winters, for forwarding this document to me for inclusion.Report
Health Profiles 2009 (July 2009)Health Profiles 2009 for every local authority and region across England have been published. Health Profiles provide a snapshot of health for each local council in England using key health indicators, which enables comparison locally, regionally and over time. They are designed to help local councils and the NHS decide where to target resources and tackle health inequalities in their local area.
Profiles Public health and sustainable composting (6th July 2009)Factsheet about the health effects of composting, at the industrial as well as home and community levels.
Factsheet
Real meals: simple cooking - cold food that tastes great (16th June 2009)This is the second in a series of free "Real Meals" recipe books aimed at children, young people and families to help build on the cookery lessons children and young people are receiving at school. The book features healthy meals and snacks which have been designed to help children and their families prepare fun, nutritious and well balanced food.
Cookbook
Swapping biscuits for fruit (7th June 2009)Swapping a chocolate biscuit for a piece of fruit is easy in principle, but getting kids to do it is another matter. However, that is just what is happening across Cheshire and Merseyside through the Snack Right campaign. This has held a series of fun activity days to promote healthy eating to parents and under-fives.
Information
DH advice for toddlers and young children (1-5 years) to avoid rice drinks due to risk of exposure to inorganic arsenic (27th May 2009)The Department of Health advises that all toddlers and young children should avoid the consumption of rice drinks in order to minimise their exposure to inorganic arsenic. This follows research published by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) looking at levels of arsenic in rice drinks.
Advice
Arsenic in rice research published (21st May 2009)The Food Standards Agency (FSA)has published results from two studies:
- Arsenic levels in rice drinks
- Cooking methods to reduce arsenic levels in rice
As a result of the first study, the FSA recommends that toddlers and young children should not have rice drinks.
The FSA is not advising anyone to change the way they cook rice as a result of the second study.
Reports
Comprehension and use of UK nutrition signpost labelling schemes (6th May 2009)The final report of the independent group of experts who have led the front of pack (FOP) nutrition signpost evaluation project was published 3rd May 2009. The main conclusions from the report are:
- A single FOP scheme would be most helpful for shoppers
- Overall, the balance of evidence demonstrated that the strongest FOP label is one which combines use of the words 'high, medium and low', traffic light colours and percentage of Guideline Daily Amount (GDA)
- Shoppers who use FOP labels value them
- There is a generally high level of understanding of FOP labels, even among those who don't tend to use them.
Report Products free of colours associated with hyperactivity (1st May 2009)The Food Standards Agency has updated its list of product ranges that do not contain the six food colours associated with possible hyperactivity in young children. A further 22 manufacturers producing product lines free of the colours have been added to the list.
Information
