Soweto teenagers urged to live healthier

UCT's Professor Karen Sliwa returned to some familiar stomping grounds recently.

The teams from the Hatter Institute, SOCRU and HEDUZA (with Prof Karen Sliwa at the back) at a health awareness day at Ibhongo Secondary School in Soweto.	Learners from the Ibhongo Secondary School in Soweto listen intently to health tips.

This when students from the Ibhongo Secondary School in Soweto were informed of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle by a team of professionals and students from UCT's Hatter Institute for Cardiovascular Research in Africa, Wits University's Soweto Cardiovascular Research Unit (SOCRU) and Health Education South Africa (HEDUZA).

"We want to create awareness of the chronic diseases of lifestyle," said Sliwa, director of both the Hatter Institute and SOCRU, from where she established and led the pioneering Heart of Soweto Study. "We want teenagers to understand the importance of taking responsibility for their way of living and following basic principles of a healthy lifestyle."

Learners were subjected to routine medical tests, while talks also covered the importance of a good diet and exercise.

Ibhongo is the second of four schools at which such awareness days will be held.