It’s cool to (self) care

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National Self-Care Week takes place from 16-22 November, drawing attention to the self-care methods available to the public, and supporting them to access these. Organised by the Self-Care Forum, the campaign will this year focus on one of the International Self-Care Foundation’s main pillars of self-care: healthy eating.

You are what you eat

There are multiple aspects to self-care, including health literacy; mental wellbeing; physical activity; healthy eating; risk avoidance and mitigation; good hygiene, and rational and responsible use of self-care products and services. Placing this year’s spotlight on healthy eating serves to emphasise the role that diet and nutrition play in building strong immunity against ill-health as well as in the maintenance of good health.

“An unhealthy diet is a major risk factor for chronic diseases and generally poorer health,” says the International Self-Care Foundation (ISF). “The prevalence of overeating, and consumption of nutrient-poor, calorie-dense foods has led to a global epidemic of obesity: in the last decade, the prevalence of obesity has passed that of malnutrition as the primary source of diet-related morbidity.”

By focusing on healthy eating, pharmacy teams can help customers understand how diet impacts day-to-day health in all sorts of ways – from affecting energy levels and sleep to the development of diet-related diseases. 

“Diet is considered one of the two primary risk factors for non-communicable disease, alongside physical activity. Maintaining a healthy diet has repeatedly been shown to have preventative benefits,” says the ISF. “In every country for which data is available, in both developed and developing nations, the determinants of non-communicable disease are largely the same: improving diet and exercise and quitting tobacco use could prevent up to 80 per cent of non-communicable diseases.”

Customers can also be reminded that it is never too late to improve their diets. The World Health Organisation recommends:

• Eating more fruits, vegetables, legumes (plants that have pods), pulses (seeds of legumes), whole grains and nuts
• Consuming less fat, and shifting fat consumption away from saturated fats to unsaturated fats
• Limiting intake of simple sugars and salt (sodium) from all sources.

Public Health England’s Eat Well Guide is a handy visual representation of what ‘eating well’ looks like. It is available for a range different cultural diets, some of which can be found on the Diabetes UK website (diabetes.org.uk).

Self-care messages

Apart from healthy eating, what other messages can pharmacy teams promote during Self-Care Week? Well, there are a lot of actions that fall under the self-care banner. Things like going for an eye test every two years or making sure to incorporate aerobic exercise into weekly routines all fall under the self-care umbrella. Here are a few other examples of how pharmacy teams can encourage good
self-care awareness:

• Educate customers on the benefits of vaccinations and preventative health screening
• Advise on who should take vitamin D supplements and when
• Highlight the importance of managing common ailments in a timely manner
• Signpost customers to local and online NHS services
• Support customers to look after their mental wellbeing.

You will find more information about self-care in your Counter Intelligence Plus training guide, while resources and fact sheets to support Self-Care Week can be accessed by scanning the QR code.