Our Planet, Our Health

Still in the midst of a global pandemic, the world is experiencing increasing rates of pollution and associated diseases like cancer, heart disease and asthma. Therefore, the WHO has chosen the theme of “Our planet, our health” for World Health Day 2022. You can read more about this campaign here.

Here are a five actionable tips to help you protect the health of our planet and our people, this World Health Day:

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Plastics are ending up in our oceans and ultimately in our food chain, which can lead to long term health problems in our communities. Try to buy less single use plastic in your daily life and use reusable grocery bags when you go to the shop. They are surprisingly durable and will save you 10p every time!

Walk more, drive less

A whopping 90% of people across the world breathe in unhealthy air as a result of burning fossil fuels. To reduce pollution in your everyday life, try walking, biking or taking public transport to work instead of driving. If this is not possible for you, try carpooling with a neighbor or colleague!

Exercise to reduce your risk of disease

Increase your daily movement. Go for a midday walk outside just to get the body moving and break up your day, especially if you have a desk job. If you want to take it a step further, try integrating a mix of cardio and weight training into your fitness routine at the gym. This will help keep your heart and lungs healthy, while building muscle mass and strength.

Reduce consumption of highly processed foods

As much as we may not like to admit it, we all know by now that highly processed foods full of saturated fat and sugar are not the best for our health when eaten in large quantities. Not only are they not so good for our health, but they are also harming the planet. Highly processed foods generate a total of one third of all greenhouse gas emissions….whoa. We all love a packet of crisps and a coke every now and again, but try focusing on eating whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, and good quality protein. If you can buy your produce and proteins locally, even better!

Quit smoking

Smoking can be one of the most difficult habits to break. However, it is detrimental to your health and is contributing to both air and water pollution of our planet. Visit the NHS website for helpful tools and resources to help you quit smoking for good.

Hopefully these tips will help you to reimagine our health, society and economy. Reimagine our world. We only have one planet. We need it and it needs us. Let’s aim to be #HealthierTomorrow together.