Learning healthy lifestyles at Kokiri Marae

Strong existing relationships with families helped ensure the success of a lifestyle intervention programme run by the Kokiri Marae Health and Social Services in Lower Hutt.

The service runs a lifestyle intervention programme for tamariki who want to lose weight and used Feeding our Futures funding to help run cooking demonstrations for tamariki aged between nine and 12 years and their whānau.

Spokesperson Marina Kirikiri says the nutrition part of the programme aimed to empower whānau and their tamariki to make healthier food choices through healthy cooking.

Goals included the whānau making healthy lifestyle changes, such as reducing fat and sugar consumption, through learning practical cooking skills. Marina says the programme also involved supermarket tours, a camp, and production of a cookbook resource using recipes cooked in the course.

The cooking classes were held at the Kokiri Marae and Marina says participants successfully learnt about label reading, cost, healthy food choices, hygiene and food safety.

The tamariki learned how to make healthy pizza, soup, stir-fry and other meals such as hangi and sushi during the course. On one occasion the parents were asked to bring a 'mystery' ingredient without knowing what others were contributing and the parent group then had to put everything together and cook a meal.

Marina believes an existing relationship with the tamariki was important for the success of the programme, especially because the young people were committed to taking part.

She says most of the tamariki and their whānau have remained committed, although follow-up and support is needed for some families.

Marina’s tip:

• If you are working with a group of tamariki for the first time, have a ratio of two adults to four children.