Your doctors are committed to improving the health and well-being of all Nova Scotians.

The current state of health is this province is concerning. Currently, Nova Scotia has one of the highest rates of obesity in Canada. This is due to increasing rates of physical inactivity and unhealthy eating patterns.

Being active and reducing sedentary behaviour can have positive short and long-term benefits such as sleeping better, losing weight, and reducing the chance of developing chronic disease.

With inactivity and unhealthy eating becoming more prevalent, doctors in the province are looking to children and youth to start to lead the way to a healthier society. That’s why Doctors Nova Scotia began sponsoring the Youth Run at the Blue Nose Marathon nearly 12 years ago.

Last year, more than 3,800 children and youth participated in the Doctors Nova Scotia Youth Run at the Scotiabank Blue Nose Marathon, securing its position as the largest youth run in Canada!

Physicians are especially proud of the success of this event given that 90% of Youth Run participants train throughout the year in the Doctors Nova Scotia Kids’ Run Club at their school.

The Kids’ Run Club is a free school-based program that not only teaches children and youth about the importance of living a healthy life, but more importantly it creates opportunities for them to be active in a safe, accessible and inclusive way.

Physicians see first-hand the negative consequences of inactivity on youth every day in their practice and are committed to helping youth live better now so that they develop good habits that will last in adulthood.

Offering a free running program to schools across Nova Scotia is their way of walking the walk.

On Blue Nose Marathon weekend, thousands of children and youth in Nova Scotia will celebrate all their hard work and commitment to better health as they cross the finish line at the Youth Run! You can guarantee that we’ll be at the finish line celebrating and giving high-fives and medals to all the kids when they cross the line!

If you have not experienced the event before, you can register your family now, or simply head to downtown Halifax to watch it in action. It’s emotional and inspiring and unique to Nova Scotia. It worth checking out!

See you at the start line!