Getting the next generation to quit

With today's youth more likely to communicate through social media, mobile phones and the internet, the Menzies School of Health decided to tap into those mediums to encourage young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders to give up smoking.

The result is No Smokes, an interactive website that uses humour, videos and games to share factual information about the harmful effects of tobacco.

"Statistics show that smoking is responsible for one in five deaths for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians," says Dr Sheree Cairney, Senior Research Fellow at the Menzies School of Health.  

"It's not a healthy activity, it's not worth taking up in the first place."

Dr Cairney hopes the website will stop young people from taking up the habit as well which can be a hard to break.

"The brain gets really addicted to tobacco really quickly which is why it's difficult to give up.

"But it's not impossible,"  she added.

One of the most popular links on the site is the No Smokes Addiction Animation video -  a simple cartoon explaining tobacco addiction and how to break it.

No Smokes Fact sheets 

What's in a cigarette?  Read here.  

Ways to quit?  Read here.

Pic:  Students from Kormilda College (NT) holding No Smokes postcards.  Image courtesy of Menzies School of Health. 

Not as active as you used to be in your younger days?

Inactivity can lead to weight gain and increase your risk of developing chronic diseases like Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

"Being active is the most important thing our elders can do," says Anne Chapman, a member of Griffith University's Elders Council.

"There are a lot of young people out there who need to hear from the elders."

Aunty Anne stays active through her community work and encourages her fellow elders to think healthy. 

"Once we sit down and say 'I'm tired', we become tired."

"So if we brandish ourselves and say we're healthy, we're fit, we're gonna to do this, we gonna get out..it happens," she said. 

Click here to read about physical activity programs for elders in Queensland.  

Did you know your body has two special organs that act as waste disposal units? These nifty llittle appliances need regular checks to make sure they're working properly.  

Poorly functioning kidneys can make you sick.  

But sometimes people don't even know their kidneys are in bad shape.

"That's the problem with kidney disease, there are no warning signs," says Ann Wilson from Kidney Health Australia.

"You can lose up to 90 percent of kidney function and not experience any symptoms."

Ann says Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people face an increased risk of developing kidney disease.  Other risk factors for kidney disease include people who:

• have diabetes
• have a family history of kidney disease
• have established heart problems
• have had a stroke
• have high blood pressure
• have a BMI above 30 and are obese
• smoke                                                         

Early detection and treatment can help prevent kidney disease.  If you're at risk of developing kidney disease ask your doctor for a kidney health check. 

Image courtesy of Dream Designs/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The Stayin' Strong project is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing.  Read more.