Belgian cities join fight against adolescent obesity

Six Belgian municipalities – Hasselt, Comines-Warneton, Jette, Liège, Marche-en-Famenne and Mouscron – have joined a European intiative to fight obesity among young people.

All plan to launch actions specifically targeting adolescents from poorer socio-economic circumstances as part of the Obesity Prevention through European Network (OPEN) launched last year to promote community-based actions.

Due to run until October of 2016, the OPEN project aims to offer support to existing obesity prevention programmes as well as boost their capacity and help them extend their reach to underprivileged adolescents.

In Belgium, the OPEN actions are being co-ordinated by Viasano, part of the not-for-profit EPODE International Prevention Programme promoting childhood obesity prevention programmes around the world. Each of the six Belgian cities will receive €5,000 to organise specific actions targeting adolescents.

Mouscron has been very active on this front already, encouraging pupils to commute to school by foot, on bicycle or via public transport instead of getting a ride from their parents. It has also launched a mobility competition between schools, which it’s promoting through a video produced with students.