SA gets health makeover on TV
2009-06-23 13:57
Cape Town - Get ready for a lifestyle makeover with the new Discovery Vitality HealthyFood, Healthy You lifestyle show on DStv Home Channel which promises to bring holistic healthy living solutions to South Africans.
“The new show will review the health challenges facing people from all walks of life, from a working part-time student living alone to a middle-class family that has teenagers and fussy eaters,” Dr Craig Nossel, Head of Wellness at Vitality told News24 on Monday.
According to Nossel the participants are all ordinary South Africans.
“We wanted to tackle common lifestyle issues and problems, and therefore identified different types of lifestyle to profile. The producers of the show handled recruitment and auditions based on these profiles,” he explained.
Tim Noakes
The Vitality HealthyFood Panel consists of Nossel, dietician Anne Till and Prof Tim Noakes (Discovery Professor of Exercise and Sports Science at UCT) and will take an in-depth look at the day to day lifestyle issues faced by participants and give practical advice regarding exercise, healthy eating and stress relief.
Justine Drake, Discovery Vitality’s resident HealthyFood Cook will then show participants how to shop smart and buy quality, affordable, ingredients as well as give them ideas for exciting, wholesome meals.
And after each show, viewers can go to the website or the mobi site, to view the recipes used on the show.
“I loved Justine,” says 27-year-old participant Kirsten Maple. “I wish I could take her home with me. I actually made the meal that she prepared on the show. My fiancé loved it!”
'Chocolate sniffer dog'
According to Maple, a production manager for a film company, participating in the show was an amazing experience and has had a big impact on her choices and health.
“My health has improved dramatically. I’ve lost weight, don’t have dizzy spells at work anymore and am much more productive.”
With a history of diabetes in her family, Maple wanted to gain control of her life in an attempt to avoid developing the disease herself
“I used to be a ‘chocolate sniffer dog’ and crave sugar all the time. By eating healthily I can now withstand the cravings and only occasionally have a treat.”
Teaching kids to eat healthily
Another participant, advertising executive Kitieka Bhoola found the show very helpful in teaching her kids to eat healthily and “to do so voluntarily”.
“Anne Till, the dietician, explained the importance of certain foods in laymen’s terms which enabled me to explain it to my children. So when we go shopping now I empower them to choose what they want to eat as they also know what the do’s and don’ts are now.
“Even when I prepare a meal like burger and chips, the kids and I ensure that we include vegetables such as tomatoes and lettuce,” she says.
According to Nossel there will be thirteen episodes in total. “We are currently in the middle of production with the final episodes still being shot,” Nossel told News24.
“We know that people find it difficult to make healthy choices and to live a healthy lifestyle, so we want to help with practical ways to make the right choices for themselves and their families. The HealthyFood, Healthy You programme will show South Africans that healthy living can be easy and affordable,” Nossel concludes.
HealthyFood, Healthy You will be aired from Tuesday on The Home Channel, DStv 182, at these times:
- Tuesday 20:30
- Wednesday 08:30
- Thursday 12:30
- Friday 16:30
- Saturday 07:30 and 13:30
- Sunday 10:30 and 18:30
Discovery Vitality, with a membership of 1.3 million is the largest wellness programme of its kind in the world and the first in South Africa to incentivise members with a range of health, leisure and lifestyle rewards for making healthy behaviour and lifestyle changes.