Start4Life

A UK health-improvement campaign developed by the same creators of Change4Life. Start4Life targets pregnant women, parents of newborns and their key influencers, and aims to help support families by encouraging healthy habits regarding feeding and activity levels. It offers healthcare and childcare professionals current advice on breast feeding, introducing solid foods and active play, communicates 6 key behaviours (see table) which have huge benefits for both baby and mother, and are designed to build healthy habits from day one. Start4Life reflects the same friendly, supportive and accessible tone as Change4Life, but also appreciates that decisions made at the start of a baby's life require sensitivity and understanding, and that new parents often need reassurance at what can be an overwhelming time.

Key behaviours in Start4Life are:
• Breastfeeding;
• For as long as possible;
• Don’t switch babies to solid foods too soon;
• Food variability reduces picky eating;
• Avoid sweetened foods;
• Keep the baby active.

All 6 behaviours are designed to increase infant health and reduce obesity and other diseases in later life.

Mentioned in

Change4Life

References in periodicals archive

A recent survey by Start4Life found that 72 per cent of Britons support women breastfeeding in public, the NHS said.

Breastfeeding mum shamed and told to cover up by Wetherspoons pub worker; A staff member asked Becky Bolger to cover her 17-month-old son Sebastian's head to hide the act from others

The NHS's Start4Life (nhs.uk/ start4life), which recently launched new weaning hub full of NHSbacked advice and healthy recipes help parents through the process, says official advice is that most babies shouldn't be weaned until they're six months old.

10 expert tips for weaning babies; a to TV'S DR PIXIE MCKENNA SHARES A GUIDE FOR HANDLING THE WEANING PROCESS, WITH LISA SALMON

The NHS's Start4Life (nhs.uk/ start4life), which recently launched a new weaning hub full of NHSbacked advice and healthy recipes to help parents through the process, says official advice is that most babies shouldn't be weaned until they're six months old.

10 expert tips for weaning babies

The NHS's Start4Life (nhs.uk/start 4life), which recently launched a new weaning hub full of NHSbacked advice and healthy recipes to help parents through the process, says official advice is that most babies shouldn't be weaned until they're six months old.

10 expert tips for weaning babies; TV's DR PIXIE McKENNA SHARES A GUIDE FOR HANDLING THE WEANING PROCESS, WITH LISA SALMON

We created the first bespoke breastfeeding voice assistant to run on connected home and mobile devices called 'Start4Life Breastfeeding Friend'.

THE MARKETING OF 'GOOD'- CAUSE OR CARE?

The UK's NHS programme Start4Life has created the chatbot 'Breastfeeding Friend' to help.

Chatbot gives 24/7 breastfeeding help

Public Health England said it wanted to "break down the barriers and stigma" around breastfeeding in public with its Start4Life campaign.

Breastfeeding campaign starts; UK BULLETINS

Start4Life (2014), Guide to Bottle Feeding, Public Health England http://www.nhs.uk/start4life/Documents/PDFs/ Start4Life_Guide_to_bottle_feeding.pdf

Overcoming breastfeeding challenges

The NHS have now launched Start4Life so you can get advice from midwives.

What you can expect when you're pregnant

Start4Life is a new initiative aiming to give parents all the advice they need to help their children be healthy in the first few years of life and beyond.

Advice for mums on giving kids a healthy start

The new Start4Life campaign, to run alongside Change4Life aimed at adults, will urge new mums to breastfeed and not start solids for the first six months.

'Fat babies' blitz; Mums to get lessons on feeding healthily