There are many ways to improve public health

Readers discuss public health strategy and national identity

Readers express their views on how to improve public health. Pawan Singh / The National

On the national fitness strategy, start with one of the most basic requirements – indoor air quality (We need to stop talking and start taking action on public health, January 27).

Despite being mandated, there is almost no IAQ testing carried out. A great many buildings have excessive carbon dioxide levels, high humidity, possibly formaldehyde and mould spores. All should be tested for daily and remedial action taken. This is not difficult to do and it is not costly.

Schools and hospitals should be targeted first. Few of us have any idea of the effects that carbon-dioxide levels have on retentive learning ability, attention spans and energy levels.

Dave Pryce, Abu Dhabi

Start with the youth and make physical education and nutrition priorities.

Dawn Venturas, Dubai

Good health is 80 per cent diet and 20 per cent exercise. The mistake many people make is that they think it’s fine to eat sugars and fatty foods as long as they hit the gym three days a week.

That’s wrong. Good health begins with a good diet. Cut down on the soft drinks and consume more water. Lay off the fast foods and processed foods. When shopping, think green and lean. When dining out, think fish and greens instead of beef and chicken. If eating desserts, look for those made from dates and honey as substitutes for sugar.

Quantity is just as important as quality. When eating out try sharing the dish. At home divide your plate into quadrants, making sure each item fits neatly in each one.

Randall Mohammed, Dubai

Where are the dedicated outdoor spaces? The community football pitches, the public swimming pools, the linked cycle paths with showering facilities, the free outdoor BMX tracks and skate parks, and so much more. There are some facilities, but not anywhere near enough. It is all about commercial leisure in Abu Dhabi. That is fine to an extent, but free and local access everywhere is of paramount importance if you are really serious about health.

Adrian Nichol, Abu Dhabi

I was visiting a cardiovascular specialist unit in a hospital in Dubai last year. A metre away from a screen showing a public information film on obesity and what to do to avoid it was a vending machine full of canned drinks, chocolate and potato crisps.

Louise Halmkan Slantenburg, Dubai

So why does the education authority make it so difficult for schoolchildren to do activities?

Mark Freeman, Abu Dhabi

Questions about national identity

I agree with Khalid Al Ameri on a lot of things he has said in his article Life lessons: 'My mother is British ... but I am 100 per cent Emirati' (January 27), but one things seems to be amiss – he doesn't seem to give equal weight to the nationalities of both of his parents.

I think you should equally respect both nationalities. If someone asked me about him before this, I would say he is 50 per cent British and 50 per cent Emirati as his bloodline would respect. His mother needs to be taken into account as well.

Beth Angharad, Abu Dhabi

I fully understand the writer. I have also a 100 per cent Emirati child and I find it weird when I hear people correct me that I should say “half”. It was my decision to raise my child as an Emirati and I can’t be more content than that.

Usually mixed children turn into ardent patriots, these children can never quite realise how their mothers also cling to the countries of their birth.

To their minds, their mother belongs to them and to the country her children were born in and they cannot imagine any other love in their parent’s heart.

Mariyah Fatimah, Dubai

Having two nationalities myself, I will always feel that I am half of both.

Asking me which nationality I prefer is the same as asking me which hand of mine will hurt less if someone cut it. I believe multiracial children should love and accept their nationalities equally.

Eva-Nikoleta GR, Dubai