Health – Fizz Free Whānau health promotion campaign calls for community to “phase out the fizz”

Back for the fifth year, Fizz Free Whānau, is a multifaceted public health campaign to engage whānau to be involved in the healthy lifestyles kaupapa by taking a pledge to go without Sugar Sweetened Beverages (SSB’s) throughout the month of February and beyond.

Sugar sweetened beverages (SSB’s) are the greatest contributor of added sugar to the diets of adults and children alike, in Aotearoa. High consumption of SSB’s contributes to a myriad of health risks including but not limited to – tooth decay, type 2 diabetes, weight gain, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, gout and some cancers.

Hāpai Te Hauora GM Māori Public Health, Janell Dymus-Kurei says, “While Hāpai are engaged in several initiatives at both policy and community levels, we understand how difficult it is for our communities to stand up against the tide of marketing and obesogenic environments which shape their food and drink habits today. We see the FFW campaign as being one which inherently empowers whānau to contribute to the determinacy of their own wellbeing”.

The FFW campaign is delivered through a mix of face-to-face community events and through the FFW social media platforms. In the lead up to Fizz Free February, the FFW team have been fronting the FFW kaupapa at community events across Tāmaki Makaurau and beyond, having attended the Waka Ama Nationals at Karapiro and Tāmaki Herenga Waka in Auckland CBD.

Public Health Promoter and Campaign Manager, Eva Wilson says, “being able to get out into our communities to promote this kaupapa, and witness the willingness people are showing to jump on board and make a change, even if it seems challenging at first, has been amazing”.

“February is a great opportunity for whānau to jump on the hauora waka by giving the FFW challenge a go! What this campaign is about, is supporting our whānau and communities to champion their own hauora,” says Wilson.