Introduction

Our family relationships can have a strong influence – positive and negative – on our health, and on how we behave in relation to our health. This course explores how family life impacts on the health of individuals, and how the family is often the focus for health promotion initiatives, such as the national '5 A DAY' campaign. Many informal health care interventions are carried out in the family (in contrast to the formal care provided by hospitals and health centers). The course will examine the changing demands on families who care for one another during illness – for example, when a family member is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Finally, the course considers 'young carers': those children who take on the major responsibility of caring for a family member. Alongside studying issues of family health, this course will introduce you to interpreting information given in graphs or charts. Working with statistical information is a key skill and the course will guide you in this through two structured activities. Activity 3 asks you to explore a website for information about family health. Again, a step by step approach is taken to guide you through this process.

Course learning outcomes

After studying this course, you should be able to:

• Understand how ‘health intervention’ is targeted to change family eating habits
• Understand the rise in obesity and how it can be linked to family lifestyles
• Understand how families care for and cope with illness
• Interpret information in graphical form and explore a website for information to support your understanding.