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Perhaps the nexus of all components of Special Olympics Healthy Athletes®, Health Promotion seeks to find the best ways to convey and reinforce key concepts and information to people with intellectual disabilities and has interacted with thousands of Special Olympics athletes at Games and in local communities. The objectives of Health Promotion are to:
- Improve long-term health outcomes for Special Olympics athletes by giving them the information, encouragement, and facilities they need to sustain physical fitness and healthy lifestyle choices (health screenings at Games include body mass index and bone mineral density measurements)
- Improve the quality of life and self-image of athletes
- Provide the athletes the means by which they can work to better their own health and wellbeing
- Allow more people with intellectual disabilities to participate in Special Olympics and to retain those athletes who are currently active.
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Healthy snacks, such as fresh fruit, and educational literature is distributed to Special Olympics athletes at the Health Promotion venue during the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Dublin, Ireland. |
Although Special Olympics has provided sports training and competition for persons with intellectual disabilities for almost 40 years, its original orientation was towards training and physical conditioning and paralleled the standards and goals used by the then-President's Council on Physical Fitness. Over time, fitness and conditioning were incorporated into individual and team sports and became less prominent as objectives unto themselves. Several developments, however, have led to a renewed focus on physical fitness and promoting better health.
There have been data and increasing awareness of the decline in physical activity and the increase in obesity in America and many other countries. Health screenings conducted during the last three Special Olympics World Games showed that many of the athletes were overweight or obese; at the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games, 56% of athletes had body mass index (BMI) greater than 24. These trends are directly linked with higher rates of diabetes and heart disease. Surveys of Special Olympics coaches (from all over the world) report a consensus that the athletes are in need of fitness training above and beyond what they receive during their sports practices.
Health Promotion venues empower and motivate athletes to make healthy lifestyle choices that will improve their long-term health by using interactive educational games and literature. Athletes are offered guides for healthy eating, lifestyle choices and fun ways to increase physical fitness. Laura Hays, a Special Olympics North Carolina (USA) athlete, credits the lessons she's learned for her 35 pound weight loss — which bought her diabetes under control so that she doesn't require medication. < Read about Laura Hays >
In addition, information (content varies with the health needs of the population) on topics such as tobacco avoidance, sun safety and skin care is available. Special Olympics Healthy Athletes is a Supporting Member of the Sun Safety Alliance, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to significantly reduce the incidence of skin cancer in the United States by motivating people to actively adopt and practice safe sun behavior. ( Healthy Athletes has been recognized with the Gold Triangle Award by the American Academy of Dermatology for its work educating people with intellectual disabilities.)
For more information on Health Promotion, contact Heather Driscoll, MS, Senior Manager, Health Promotion and MedFest, +1 (202) 715-1149 or hdriscoll@specialolympics.org. |
