Government’s new anti-obesity expert will focus on schools

<h4 style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;"><b><&sol;b>The Ministry of Education &lpar;MoE&rpar; has taken on a health and well-being specialist to work with schools to combat childhood obesity&period;<&sol;h4>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Professor Grant Schofield&comma; of Auckland University of Technology &lpar;AUT&rpar;&comma; is director of the university’s Human Potential Centre and his research focuses on disease prevention&comma; physical activity and nutrition health promotion&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Education secretary Iona Holsted says Professor Schofield will be working across government agencies &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;to help New Zealand learners achieve their full potential through the use of international and national health and nutrition research&&num;8221&semi;&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;The government is committed to combating childhood obesity&period; The 2015 Childhood Obesity Plan developed by chief science advisor Sir Peter Gluckman acknowledges that education settings are an important environment for influencing children’s physical activity and food choices&comma;” she says&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">Professor Schofield has been tasked with &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;lifting the quality of public debate around health and nutrition education”&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p style&equals;"text-align&colon; justify&semi;">&OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;He will also help foster good practice within the ministry&comma; build bridges to academia and the profession to lift overall performance&comma;” Ms Holsted says&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;