Police run for health

Approximately 250 police officers and their families converged on the grounds of the National Police College of Jamaica for the JCF's Medical Services Branch (MSB) 'Force it Out Challenge' 5k Run today.

The ‘Force it Out Challenge’ is a wellness and lifestyle competition geared toward helping police men and women improve their lifestyle with physical activities and proper nutrition.

The competition was launched in 2017 and has seen police personnel from across the island participating in physical activities and maintaining a balanced diet to gain fitness and lose weight over a period of time.

Detective Corporal Desroy Sangster, who is assigned to the Trelawny Division, was named a champion for the challenge. At 350 pounds, he lost 80 pounds since he started the challenge.

The 5k Run is a new addition to the challenge, which is a Memorandum of Understanding between the JCF and the National Health Fund. It seeks to further enhance the health of police officers.

Dr Claudia Campbell, clinical nutritionist and nutrition consultant for the JCF at the MSB, believes that the challenge was well needed as policing is a physically demanding job.

"We are primarily seeking to improve the health status of Jamaican police officers. Some of the challenges they are facing are non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes and elevated cholesterol levels and those are the conditions we are trying to address, as we believe once you're in good health you will be productive," said Campbell.

The first place female winner of today's ‘Force it Out Challenge’ 5k Run is Constable Lastine Hylton-Brown. She decided to participate in the competition to motivate her colleagues.

"We as officers do not have a very balanced diet due to the long hours of work and the stress level of the job, this does affect our health. So I decided to get a team together and we frequently do exercises, do our check-ups and encourage each other to keep going," said Hylton-Brown.

Constable Oval Burton, the first place male winner in the competition, also shared similar sentiments: “I decided to be a part of the challenge as it dealt with the overall wellness of the participants, such as their nutrition as well as their mental and physical state. I am glad that I decided to be a part of this initiative," said Burton.

The competition wraps up on November 30 with a recreational activity with all the participants.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169, email us at editors@gleanerjm.com or onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com.