The 5/30 Health and Wellness Challenge—Let's Get Healthy!

Hurry! There are only two weeks left to register!

MONTREAL, Feb. 17, 2014 /CNW Telbec/ - Eat better, get more active, and sleep better—that's the message being sent out this year by the 5/30 Health and Wellness Challenge team! The campaign—back for year 10—encourages Quebecers to improve their lifestyle by making a commitment to achieve three goals for six weeks, from March 1 to April 11. Registration is open at www.healthchallenge.ca until March 1. Free support and prizes are available to all participants!

Campaign spokesperson, actress, and TV host Mélanie Maynard encourages everyone to join. "This fun challenge is a reminder to put your health first. It's also the perfect opportunity to get those healthy habits, old or new, working for you—and even your family and friends—every day! For some, the biggest challenge will be to include fruit and vegetables in their meals and snacks, while for others it will be to add 30 minutes of physical activity to their routine or to improve the quality of their sleep."

One Health Challenge, three goals
With its flexible formula, the campaign is suited to anyone who wants to join on their own, as a family, or as part of a team. Throughout the six-week campaign, participants aim to achieve the following three goals:

• 5 Goal: Eating at least 5 servings of fruit and vegetables a day
• 30 Goal: Getting active at least 30 minutes a day
• Wellness Goal: Sleeping better for increased wellness in life

By signing up, participants are entered to win one of many prizes, including $5,000 of groceries courtesy of IGA and the Desjardins Family Prize, $5,000 in customized financial products from Desjardins.

New for the 10th anniversary
To mark the 10th anniversary of the Health Challenge, participants will gain access to numerous support tools, including the brand new 6-Week Program that will guide them throughout the campaign. Each week, participants will receive tips to help them achieve their goals, plus a meal plan, a walking program, and a downloadable audio file. Participants will also be encouraged to take up six mini-challenges to help them sleep better. Families taking part in the Health Challenge can also take advantage of the Healthy Home Pathway.

What's more, as early as today, participants can pick up their IGA Passport, available in limited quantities, at IGA supermarkets throughout Quebec. In addition to tips and discount vouchers, the 2014 IGA Passport features 10 healthy recipes by Ricardo!

The Health Challenge . . . to the rescue of Quebecers' lifestyle choices!

• 53% of Quebecers aged 12 years and over do not eat fruit and vegetables 5 times or more a day
• 51% of Quebecers aged 12 years and over are not physically active during their spare time
• 46% of Canadians aged 15 years and over cut back on sleep because they need more time
• A healthy diet and an active lifestyle are key to preventing the weight problem faced by 51% of Quebec adults and 32% of Canadian youth aged 5 to 17
• 80% of heart diseases and type 2 diabetes and more than a third of cancers could be avoided by adopting a healthy lifestyle (not smoking, eating well, being physically active, and not abusing alcohol)

The Health Challenge invites the public to assess their lifestyle and take action to improve it.

For more information, visit www.healthchallenge.ca or www.facebook.com/defisante (in French).

About the 5/30 Health and Wellness Challenge
Launched in 2005, the Health Challenge is an annual public health campaign that invites Quebecers to improve their lifestyle habits. The campaign has since surpassed the million mark in registrations. In 2014, it won the DUX Award in the Public's Choice category. The Health Challenge, a Capsana initiative, is made possible through the assistance and financial support of Québec en Forme and through partnerships with Quebec's Directions de santé publique, Agences de la santé et des services sociaux, and the Quebec government (the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux; the Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir, et du Sport; and the Ministère des Affaires municipales, des Régions et de l'Occupation du territoire). The Health Challenge is produced in collaboration with IGA, Desjardins, Danone, Leclerc, Oasis, and Evian.

Since 2011, the Health Challenge for Municipalities and Families has encouraged healthy lifestyle choices among children by engaging and supporting municipalities, local communities, and Quebec families. It wouldn't be possible without the following partners: Québec en Forme and the Quebec government, in collaboration with the Fédération québécoise des municipalités, the Union of Quebec Municipalities (UQM), Kino-Québec, and the Réseau québécois de villes et villages en santé.
To learn more, please visit www.healthchallenge.ca.

About Capsana
Capsana is a social enterprise owned by the Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont Foundation, the ÉPIC Foundation, and the Fondation PSI, and associated with the Montreal Heart Institute. Its mission is to help individuals take an active role in their health. Founded in 1988 under the name ACTI-MENU, Capsana is dedicated exclusively to the promotion of health and healthy lifestyles, as well as the prevention and management of chronic diseases.

Capsana is behind well-known social campaigns such as the 5/30 Health and Wellness Challenge, the Quit to Win! Challenge, and Smoke-Free Family, which are geared toward the general public, municipalities, and families. It also implements health-promotion programs in the workplace and produces publications and other patient information tools for the clinical setting. The organization obtained the Healthy Enterprise - Elite certification from the Bureau de normalisation du Québec (Quebec Standards Bureau).
For more information, visit www.capsana.ca.

SOURCE: Défi Santé 5/30 Équilibre

For additional information or interviews with our spokespeople Mélanie Maynard and Dr. Johanne Blais, please contact:

Marie-Noël Phaneuf
Annexe Communications
Tel.: [phone], ext. 211
Cell: 514 553-2570
[email protected]