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It's never too early to live healthy

Michelle Mottola and Western's Exercise and Pregnancy Lab are getting pre-schoolers active and eating healthy. Mottola and her lab have helped to develop a comprehensive healthy living kit that has been distributed to more than 200 Francophone families at the French-language preschool La Rimambelle.

The kit includes many eating and activity guides, posters, games, menus and even a food group adorned beach ball. The kits gives all the tools to educate and engage pre-schoolers (aged 0-6) and their families in a balanced, healthy and active life.

"We thought that it was important to get parents directly involved in promoting the health of their children, to make sure that the project had the best possible impact and that it last lasting impact," stated Jean-Marc Boisvenue, Reseau franco-sante du Sud de l'Ontario, a partner in this project.

"This is a very exciting initiative because there are very few studies and projects focusing on preschool-aged children," noted Mottola."It is never too early to think about healthy eating and activity! Getting the whole family engaged is exciting and important."

This project took over a year to complete and is currently only available in French although Mottola hopes that is will eventually be translated to English for a wider distribution allowing more families to live a healthy lifestyle.

Mottola and her lab partnered with many groups and agencies on this initiative. Partners include Reseau franco-sante du Sud de l'Ontario, La Ribambelle child care centre, Brescia University College, College Boreal's London Campus, the Middlesex-London Health Unit, the London Intercommunity Health Centre, the Ontario Heart and Stroke Foundation, London Intercommunity Health Centre, and experts in the field of nutrition and physical activity. The project was funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada through Societe sante en francais (SSF).

This project is just one of many currently underway at Western's Exercise and Pregnancy Lab where they firmly believe that healthy mothers = healthy babies=healthy communities. For further information about the exciting work being completed in this lab visit www.uwo.ca/fhs/EPL.

Want more news? Read previously posted stories on the Faculty of Health Sciences news archive.

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