Healthy Families

Better Health: Healthier Families

(Formerly known as Change 4 Life) offers fun ideas. These ideas help your kids stay healthy. They also help your family maintain good health.

The site includes information on food facts, recipes and activities. Better Health exists to motivate and enable the nation to lead active and healthy lives.

It’s there to support and encourage all of us in taking steps to improve our physical and mental health.

Immunisations

Immunisations saves lives. The World Health Organisation estimates that 3 million lives are saved every year worldwide through immunisation.

It is important that all children and babies are fully immunised to protect them from potentially serious diseases.

There are a number of vaccinations that your baby will have. Your doctor’s surgery or clinic will automatically send you an appointment for you to bring your baby for their vaccination.

NHS Direct Wales offers a checklist of vaccines. These vaccines are routinely provided to everyone in the UK for free on the NHS. It also details the ages at which they should ideally be given.

NHS Healthy Start Scheme

If you’re more than 10 weeks pregnant, you may be entitled to get help to buy healthy food and milk. The same applies if you have a child under 4.

If you’re eligible, you’ll receive a Healthy Start card. It has money on it that you can use in some UK shops.

You can use your card to buy:

• Plain liquid cow’s milk
• Fresh, frozen, and tinned fruit and vegetables
• Fresh, dried, and tinned pulses
• Infant formula milk based on cow’s milk

You can also use your card to collect:

• Healthy Start vitamins – these support you during pregnancy and breastfeeding
• Vitamin drops for babies and young children – these are suitable from birth to 4 years old

Cardiff and Vale Maternity Service

The Cardiff and Vale Maternity Service is the NHS team that supports you through every stage of pregnancy, birth, and early parenthood. They provide all your routine appointments, scans, labour and birth care, and postnatal support across Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan. You’ll meet community midwives, have access to hospital clinics and specialist services if needed, and receive guidance to help you make informed choices throughout your pregnancy.

Nutrition for your Little One (NYLO)

The aim of NYLO is to support families in building confidence. We help them provide a healthy, balanced diet that encourages life-long healthy eating habits for their children.

NYLO is open to all families with children aged 5 years and under, living in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan.

NHS Every Child

Public Health Wales has launched Every Child Wales as they believe every child in Wales has the right to the very best start in life and to help them along the way.

Their website is full of ideas to help you give your child a healthy and happy future.

They have also produced four parent information resources from pregnancy through to age 7, highlighting the key areas during these milestones.