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Keeping Ourselves Safe and Healthy

Your body is an amazing thing. The more you find out about it, the more amazed you’ll be. Bones, muscles, heart, lungs, brain, blood - everything works together so that you can enjoy all that the world has to offer. If you look after your body well, it helps you stay healthy which means you can enjoy life to the max! If you don’t look after it, you’ll be more likely to get sick, feel tired and find it harder to do the stuff that makes you happy.

You can look after your body by remembering two important things. Eat healthily and keep exercising. We all get sick sometimes and you can’t eliminate illness entirely, but if you make sure you eat food that is good for your body and keep your heart, lungs and muscles in shape through exercise, you have a much better chance of not getting sick. You’ll also feel much better about everything you do!

Your body need lots of different nutrients to grow and stay in good health. The three main nutrient groups in food are carbohydrates, protein and fats and we also need minerals and vitamins. There is lots of information around to tell you what food is good for your body and what food is bad for it. But if you need something to keep you on the right lines then remember that too much fatty food like chips, crisps and pizza is really bad for your heart and will help you put on weight that you probably don’t need. Too much sugar is also bad for you so try to restrict the amount of treats you eat, such as sweets, buns, cake and chocolate. Stuff that is really good for your body includes vegetables (especially green ones), wholegrains, seeds, fish and fruit.

Oh, and drink lots of water!

Now, I know this sounds like you have to stop eating all the things you really love and it’s true that you do need to be careful how much fat and sugar you consume. However, it’s OK to have the odd treat, especially if you take a lot of exercise.

Most children are pretty active and love running around anyway, but extra exercise such as ball sports, swimming, cycling and even just walking help you get and stay fit. Not everyone wants to be an Olympic athlete, but exercise of any type is really good for your body and your brain, particularly these days when there are so many ways of finding reasons to stay on the sofa and look at screens!

Finally, it’s really important to look after your brain as well.

Being physically active is only part of who we are, the other part is what goes on inside our head. People are starting to understand in much more detail that having a healthy mind is just as important as having a healthy body. You can look after your mental health by getting lots of sleep and trying not worry about things too much. Everyone has anxieties, but you can stop them causing you stress by talking to friends or family and practising ways of overcoming them such as reminding yourself of all the good things in your life.

As you grow older, you will become more independent and be able to make choices about healthy and unhealthy activities. Try to stay informed about what is good for you and what isn’t. Remember, just because others are doing something, doesn’t mean you have to. The world can be a dangerous place as well as a wonderful one. Make sure you keep yourself safe by eating well, exercising and making good decisions about how you spend your time. If you aren’t sure about anything always ask someone you trust to help. Stay healthy and love life!