Implementation and evaluation of a health education programme on chronic diseases of lifestyle in high schools learners in the Northern Cape

Abstract

Non-communicable disease (NCD’s) accounts for 80% of the deaths in low and middle socio-economic countries. Emphasis should be placed on the prevention of behavioural risk factors for chronic diseases like alcohol consumption, physical inactivity and smoking to control health risk behaviours in order to lower the amount of deaths caused by NCD’s. In South Africa adolescents indulge in behavioural risk factors that may increase their risk for subsequent chronic diseases of lifestyle. Adolescents should be primary targets for preventative interventions as prevention interventions are usually targeted at healthy individuals. Health education taught in the early years of life is believed to influence the health decisions that individuals make later in life. Health education programmes are currently being implemented worldwide but not many are evaluated to determine the effect of the programme. Thus the aim of this study is to implement and evaluate a health education programme on chronic diseases of lifestyle in a high school in the Northern Cape province of South Africa.