Health and wellbeing
Physical wellbeing
Find out more about:
- eating well
- getting active
- healthy weight
- counselling, help lines, support groups and wellbeing services
- school nurses
- school wellbeing services
In addition, find support services online.
Eating well
Eating a varied and balanced diet will help to keep your body healthy and maintain a healthy weight. The Eatwell Guide is a simple and useful way to understand how much of each type of food we need to eat in order to achieve a healthy, balanced diet.
Change4Life
Change4Life has lots of information and support to help you eat well, move more and live longer. You can also find healthy eating tips, quick and easy recipes and fun activities for you to become happier and healthier.
It offers free apps, available to download from Google Play and Apple App stores. The Change4Life Food Scanner app is a great way to make sense of food labels and find out what is really in the foods you buy. You can download the app for free and use it to help you find healthier swaps when you shop.
It's so easy for sugar to add up throughout the day. Find out how much sugar there may be in the food you eat and get tips for making healthier swaps Change4Life Sugar Calculator.
Getting active
No matter how much you do, physical activity is good for your body and mind. There are many ways which you can build physical activity into your day. A brisk daily walk can boost your energy, lift your mood and make everyday activities easier.
Live Well York have provided lots of suggestions with links to local opportunities to stay active through a partnership campaign to get York active, called #whatsmynextstep.
The Active 10 app records every minute of walking you do (anonymously). It tracks your steps, helps you set goals, and monitors your achievements. Just pop your phone in your pocket and away you go!
You should aim for 30 to 60 minutes (depending on your age) of moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity a day. Try to include a variety and different types of activity across the week.
Examples include:
- walking to school, college, work or walking the dog
- playground activities, including jumping, running and catching
- physical education
- sports, like football or tennis
- swimming
- skipping
- dancing
- skateboarding or rollerblading
- cycling
NHS Get active your way has useful information, exercise tips and fitness guides to help you keep active and healthy.
Healthy weight
It's not always easy to tell if you are healthy weight. The NHS website offers a wide range of services to help you take control of your health and wellbeing, including a healthy weight BMI calculator. You can use the calculator to check your body mass index (BMI) and find out if you are a healthy weight. If you are under 18 years use the children’s BMI calculator. The website also has useful information to help you understand your BMI result.
NHS Managing your weight has information and advice about how to manage your weight if you're overweight or underweight.
If you're concerned about your weight you can contact your school nurse for further information and advice telephone: 01904 555475 from 9.00am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday, email: [email protected] or speak to your GP.
Counselling, help lines, support groups and wellbeing services
There are many services offering support by a range of methods including text, face to face, telephone, email and face to face support. Find out more information on services providing emotional health and wellbeing support.
Alternatively, get in touch with the Young People Information Service and we will try and help you find support.
School nurses
Need to talk to a school nurse? The City of York Healthy Child Service (5 to 19) team is made up of Specialist Community Public Health Nurses and Children and Young Peoples Outreach Nurses who work with school age children in the York area.
The school nurses are there to offer support and advice around all your healthy needs and have a key role in supporting children and young people in school settings.
They:
- help support the physical and emotional health and wellbeing of children and young people
- provide advice on healthy choices (healthy eating, dental health, sexual health and substance misuse)
- offer health reviews to ensure your child continues to reach its full potential
- provide specific support for families with complex needs such as diabetes and asthma
- offer advice and information on health issues such as bed wetting and behavioural problems
- work closely with your child’s school to promote a healthy lifestyle
- offer the childhood immunisation programme to protect against disease and infection
You can now book online appointments with the nurses using Attend Anywhere, an online appointments service allowing you to talk to a nurse using your phone, tablet or laptop.
To book an appointment email: [email protected] with your name, email address and mobile number. The school nurses will organise a time and date for your virtual appointment and send you a link to access the virtual waiting room where a nurse will admit you to the call.
The link contains all the information you need to get started with the Attend Anywhere service. It is very straight forward to access and can be accessed via mobile, tablet or computer without the need to install any applications. Having a virtual appointment is often more convenient as it will not require travel, however the face to face options are still available.
Read the Consultation Attend Anywhere Guide.
School wellbeing services
The School Wellbeing Service provides support for young people who are presenting with mental health issues and concerns, which are below an intervention from CAMHS, but above what school pastoral structures can support.
In addition to The School Wellbeing Service information, the webpage contains lots of useful resources for both young people and parent carers; including additional support services; website information; information about apps to download; links to self-help booklets; helpline information and practical information.
