Budding journalists show off their writing skills to win prizes...and a tour of the newsroom

It is the third year Sally Anderson-Wai, of Write Wai PR and Copywriting Service, has been running Get Healthy Writing Competition.

Youngsters had to write about a 300 to 400 word article about health.

The winning entry was from Chloe Gregory, 14, from St Helena School who wrote about depression. It included a personal account of her family’s experiences.

Second place went to Jade Bethany Fleur North, 13, from St Mary’s School, who discussed how a childhood love of visiting our Colchester zoo resulted in a meatless diet lifestyle.

Third prizewinner was Angelica Hedges, 14, also from St Mary’s, who wrote about cancer awareness and our local resources. The competition was judged by Sally and Lyndee, who highly commended all of the entries.

Sally said: “In our digital age where standards of English seem to be falling, we feel it is important to encourage young people in their writing skills.

“As a former health reporter for various media before launching a PR and copywriting company, I felt a health theme would be a good topic for the competition, especially as Kids Backs 4 the Future was running the competition with us this year.

“We are delighted with the entries from across Colchester and had a difficult job choosing the winner.”

Lyndee Oscar, founder of Kids Backs 4 the Future, a community interest company, said: “Millions of pounds are spent each year on patients suffering from ill health that could be prevented.

“There are one in four young people suffering from regular or daily back pain.

“Understanding about living a healthy life, physically and emotionally is essential at a young age and should be enforced throughout schooling and beyond.”

An osteopath for 25 years, Lyndee has seen a dramatic increase in younger people needing treatment for back pain, a lot of which can be prevented.

The prizewinners enjoyed a tour of the Gazette and were shown how the next day’s paper was put together.

Their prizes included a Fit Bit gadget and £70 of vouchers sponsored by Write Wai PR and Copywriting Services and Marathon School Bag Specialist sponsored the Chiro Pak Spinal Endorsed Spinal Protection Backpack.

Deputy Mayor of Colchester Council, Gerard Oxford, presented the prizes.

Sally added: “It was a great inspiration to get our young people thinking about, researching and writing a wide range of challenging health issues.

“We hope some of our winners may go on to become journalists or writers.

“We would like to thank all of the parents who supported their children, the Gazette and Marathon School Bag Specialist.”

THE WINNING ENTRIES:

• Support is a vital tool in combatting depression

Nearly 80,000 children and young adults in the UK suffer from depression.

More than 8,000 children under the age of 10 are affected by this mental disorder.

That is a large number considering we are now in 2016.

More than half of all adults with depression were diagnosed sometime in their childhood. So what’s going wrong?

People of all ages, backgrounds, lifestyles, and nationalities suffer from depression.

Just because it is a mental condition and not something you can physically see, doesn’t mean that people should just push it away and forget about the ones that need support.

By 2020 depression will be the second most disabling condition in the world.

So what can done? When someone has depression, it can sometimes be difficult to get them back to health.

However, you can help to make sure that these people stay happy and healthy.

Sometimes it is good to know about how to cope with it yourself and for others. Just a little support can make so much difference.

When a young adult who is suffering from major depression was asked about what it is like to have depression, they said they could not see a future, it seemed as though all their problems would never go away: “It is like a bubble around you. When you have depression, nothing is enjoyable and nothing can make you smile.”

Miss Humphreys, one of St Helena’s pastoral managers described her experiences with helping young adults suffering from depression.

She said: “In my role as a pastoral manager, I see students dealing with depression on a weekly basis. They update me on how they are feeling and how the previous week has gone for them.

“Sometimes students suffering with depression like to talk to me about how they are feeling, this sometimes seems to help.

“However, in some cases, students don’t want to talk at all, but I leave it up to them to do what they feel is right.

“Also I make sure that they know I am always there for them if they ever need support or guidance.

“I think it is important for students suffering with depression to know that they have someone to talk to as this can make them feel better.

“I try to point them into the right direction of help, such as agencies like The Junction who help with young adults and children suffering with depression.”

BY CHLOE GREGORY

• I’ve cut out meat from my diet... and now I feel healthier

Since I was a little girl, I have adored visiting Colchester Zoo.

As I got older, I began to feel uncomfortable eating meat and so, in the last year or so, I became a pescetarian in that I still occasionally eat fish but no longer consume animal flesh.

Some might think I am a little half-hearted in my approach to vegetarianism but I am in fact not only doing my bit to protect individual animals but am also improving my health.

Since changing my diet, I am slimmer and fitter and, yes, sometimes I get up on a school day before the second shout from my father!

My experience is not unique as there is reliable scientific research that eating less meat has health benefits, including reducing the risk of heart disease and cancer.

As meat meals usually contain more calories, you are more likely to become obese if you rely primarily on the traditional meat and two veg for your main food source.

I know people enjoy their meat but a US National Cancer Institute study of 500,000 people over a ten-year period found that the biggest red meat eaters were 30 per cent more likely to die of any cause than those who ate the least.

I am suggesting that everybody can benefit from eating less meat (perhaps a month off each year or one day per week) which incidentally will probably save you some money as meat costs more to produce than grains and vegetables.

Even in the short time that I have been a pescetarian, I have noticed that there are an increasing number of meat substitutes like Quorn sausages and burgers and tofu and halloumi.

The supermarkets do their own versions which shows that there is, forgive the pun, an appetite for it.

So while I have not yet managed to give up eating tuna and salmon, I am still enjoying many health benefits.

There would appear to be much truth in the old adage of a little bit of what you fancy being good for you.

Our problem in the Western world is an over indulgence in meat-eating instead of embracing the health benefits of a more balanced diet with a greater emphasis on vegetables, grains and fruits.

I can now look my favourite animal at Colchester Zoo in the eye, the venerable Rajang (an orangutan) without guilt.

BY JADE BETHANY FLEUR NORTH

• Simple tips that can help us all fight off the Big C

Many of us know that an appeal for a £4.5 million cancer centre in Colchester was launched, and spear-headed by the chairman of the Cancer Centre Campaign, Sir John Ashworth.

An amazing idea to help families cope and help those in need of it, and offer support.

There are many different cancers that affect this area us, such as, lung, breast, bowel, cervical, oesophagea, ovarian and stomach cancer.

The incidence of these cancers in north Essex is similar to the English average, however, according to Cancer Research UK, prostate cancer is higher than the English average (206.2 per 100,000 compared to 181.4 per 100,000).

I looked into it, and found many different aspects of life that could trigger the cancer, and being overweight or obese is one of the causes, in fact, it increases your chance of advanced prostate cancer.

Other things on the list are family history and genes or height.

Those aren’t things we can change, but we can live healthier.

According to the book Stealth Health by Katie Askew, there are many different foods that can help you prevent cancer, such as garlic.

It could stimulate your body’s natural immune system, contains the possibility of reducing tumour growth and can reduce the chance of stomach cancer by as much as a factor of 12.

Colchester is probably full of kids and maybe even adults who push their steamed broccoli aside and jump straight to a crisp glass of sugary drinks, but broccoli is a super food when it comes to preventing cancer.

Steaming your broccoli (or eating it raw) is the only way to ensure you get most of its goodness, as microwaving broccoli kills 97 per cent of the super food’s cancer-preventing flavonoids.

On that note, fizzy drinks affect the chance of obesity and diabetes, not only that, they increase your chance endometrial cancer.

Studies show that women who drink liquids high in sugar have an 87 per cent higher chance of endometrial cancer.

Taking all of this into account, there is an even easier way to prevent cancer – simple exercise.

People who will spend most of their day sitting and watching a screen have a 24 per cent higher chance of colon and endometrial cancer than those who are active.

BY ANGELICA HEDGES