Local Resource Now Online

September 2010

A new website will make it easier for people in Counties Manukau to create better futures for themselves, their family and their communities.

The website - www.betterfuture.co.nz- has information about healthy eating, physical activity, being smokefree and safe drinking. There is also advice on how to manage long term conditions such as diabetes, heart and lung diseases, and cancers.

The information is specific to Counties Manukau and can help people within the district access local services for help and support. This includes tips about where to get active in your community and who to ask locally for support to become smokefree. There are even free cookbooks packed with cheap, easy and healthy recipes.

New information will be added regularly.

“The website has a distinctly local focus,” says Tracey Barron of the Counties Manukau District Health Board (CMDHB). “We hope people in Counties Manukau will use it and feel inspired to lead healthier lives alongside their family and communities.”

The website is part of Creating a Better Future– a new, long-term strategy from the CMDHB and community partners which addresses poor nutrition, lack of physical activity, tobacco use and the misuse of alcohol. By doing so, it aims to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes, heart and lung diseases, and many cancers. It is also about improving the quality of life and management of people who already live with these diseases.