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News digest
This frequently updated news digest on the subject of Childhood Obesity highlights key articles from major journals, news publications and blogs. The digest is a free service of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. All rights reserved. Sign up to receive the digest free via email.
| Feb 2, 2012 |
YMCA's 'Fit Start' Program Aims to Curb Childhood Obesity Carrollwood Patch, Camille C. Spencer, 02/02/2012 School funding cuts and a focus on academics over physical fitness has emptied playgrounds and stalled physical education programs across the country, causing the childhood obesity rate to skyrocket. That prompted Phillip Newman, wellness director at the Bob Sierra YMCA Youth & Family Center, to brainstorm a solution. His idea came to fruition last August, when Newman started the Fit Start program at the YMCA. The program allows kids and teenagers to participate in physical activity through activities such as obstacle courses, spinning, zumba classes and boot-camp style training. |
| Feb 2, 2012 |
Get Kids to Eat Their Veggies Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jeremy Olson, 02/02/2012 Want kids to eat their vegetables? Try pictures, not words. Using a Richfield elementary school as their lab, researchers from the University of Minnesota placed images of green beans and carrots on the cafeteria food trays for one day. More kids took vegetables, and more kids ate them, according to a study published online Wednesday. |
| Feb 2, 2012 |
Richmond Program Will Take Residents to Grocery Stores Richmond Times Dispatch, Michael Martz, 02/02/2012 [Richmond mayor Dwight C.] Jones said Wednesday that he is launching the RVA Shoppers' Shuttle as a six-month pilot program to help people in so-called "food deserts" reach the oasis with transportation to local grocery stores. The pilot program… will initially provide a twice-monthly shuttle service to residents of Fay Tower, a public apartment complex for the elderly, and the public-housing complexes of Hillside, Creighton, Fairfield, Mosby and Whitcomb courts. |
| Feb 1, 2012 |
School Lunches Feature Local Produce Wisconsin Rapids Tribune, 02/01/2012 Each month, the Farm to School program helps connect local farmers and school food service staff to bring a new Harvest of the Month product into Wood County schools. The program highlights a single, locally grown fruit or vegetable to taste test. Students, teachers and parents also receive educational materials about that item. |
| Feb 1, 2012 |
Study Says Hamilton County Students Not So Healthy, Well Chattanooga Times Free Press, Chris Carroll, 02/01/2012 Thirty-five percent of Hamilton County high school students spend at least five hours a day watching television, playing video games and scouring the Internet, according to new survey results… Nearly 20 percent of students said they hadn't exercised in the seven days before they took the survey, and 18 percent drink three or more "sugar-sweetened soft drinks" every day. |
| Feb 1, 2012 |
First Lady to Promote Healthy Food in Calif. Associated Press, 02/01/2012 First lady Michelle Obama [will visit] the site of a future Northgate Gonzalez Market in Inglewood on Wednesday to showcase efforts being made to draw grocers to low-income neighborhoods. Obama, who is on the second day of her two-day visit to the Los Angeles area, is making the stop as part of her "Let's Move!" campaign to boost healthy food and fitness. Part of the campaign includes promoting initiatives such as the new $264 million California FreshWorks Fund, which finances grocery businesses in areas underserved by traditional supermarkets. |
| Jan 31, 2012 |
Phys Ed a 'Must' in Fighting Obesity [Op-Ed] Westport News, Woody Klein, 01/31/2012 For budget cutting purposes, removing two full-time physical education teachers from the staff would save the school district approximately $140,000 next year, according to a front-page article in this newspaper by reporter Paul Schott last Friday. This is pennywise and pound foolish (no pun intended). As one physical education teacher, Joyce Evans of Coleytown Elementary School, put it at the meeting: "Physical education is a necessity, not a luxury, for the health and well-being of the whole child. It is an integral part of the educational process." |
| Jan 30, 2012 |
Agua Caliente Elementary School Takes a Step Toward Better Health The Desert Sun, Michelle Mitchell, 01/30/2012 All students at Agua Caliente Elementary School received pedometers Monday to kick off the school’s monthlong walking program. Every Friday in February, students who record the highest number of steps on their pedometer will be given prizes. |
| Jan 30, 2012 |
Communities Learn the Good Life Can Be a Killer New York Times “Well”, Jane E. Brody, 01/30/2012 Developers in the last half-century called it progress when they built homes and shopping malls far from city centers throughout the country, sounding the death knell for many downtowns. But now an alarmed cadre of public health experts say these expanded metropolitan areas have had a far more serious impact on the people who live there by creating vehicle-dependent environments that foster obesity, poor health, social isolation, excessive stress and depression. As a result, these experts say, our “built environment” — where we live, work, play and shop — has become a leading cause of disability and death in the 21st century. Editor’s Note: The upcoming “Designing Healthy Communities” public television series described in this article is partially funded by RWJF. Developers in the last half-century called it progress when they built homes and shopping malls far from city centers throughout the country, sounding the death knell for many downtowns. But now an alarmed cadre of public health experts say these expanded metropolitan areas have had a far more serious impact on the people who live there by creating vehicle-dependent environments that foster obesity, poor health, social isolation, excessive stress and depression. As a result, these experts say, our “built environment” — where we live, work, play and shop — has become a leading cause of disability and death in the 21st century. Editor’s Note: The upcoming “Designing Healthy Communities” public television series described in this article is partially funded by RWJF. |
| Jan 30, 2012 |
78,000 Area Residents Live in Food Wastelands Dayton Daily News, Cornelius Frolik, 01/30/2012 About 78,000 people in the Miami Valley live in poorer areas that lack markets that sell affordable and nutritious food, and low-income residents and those without post-secondary educations have some of the highest obesity rates in the state. |
| Jan 28, 2012 |
Michigan Should Make Fitness a Priority [Op-Ed] Grand Rapids Press, John Kilborne, 01/28/2012 During his first year in office, [Governor Rick] Snyder has become a spokesperson reminding residents everyone has a responsibility to help Michigan fight its high rate of obesity. In addition to his Obesity Summit and his introduction of Pure Michigan Fit, he has taken a pledge to eat more nutritious foods, and exercise. While I applaud the efforts of his first year, he can and must do more. Gov. Snyder needs to expand Pure Michigan Fit to include comprehensive wellness programs for every K-12 student. |
| Jan 27, 2012 |
Researchers Untangling Link Between Hunger and Obesity Minnesota Public Radio, Julie Simple, 01/27/2012 The picture of hunger in the America is changing. In the past, hunger may have conjured up images of gaunt faces or rail-thin children. Today, some people who struggle to feed their families are actually obese. It's a paradox that researchers are trying to untangle: how can people be both hungry and overweight? Editor’s Note: Mary Story, interviewed for this piece, is the director of Healthy Eating Research, an RWJF national program. |
| Jan 26, 2012 |
In 'Food Deserts,' Attracting Grocers Remains a Struggle Palm Beach Post, Michael Finch II, 01/26/2012 The lack of a supermarket near the four-mile stretch of the Seacrest Boulevard corridor has long been a problem, said Vivian Brooks, executive director for Boynton Beach's Community Redevelopment Agency. Major grocery chains like Publix and Winn-Dixie build in densely populated areas. But the area identified as a food desert in Boynton Beach only has about 10,000 residents, which is not enough to attract them. |
| Jan 26, 2012 |
Charter School Fights Fat Buffalo News, Janice L. Habuda, 01/26/2012 Instead of using cartoon-size scissors, dozens of enthusiastic students broke through a ceremonial ribbon in full stride Thursday to mark the grand opening of the new fitness center at Charter School for Applied Technologies in the Town of Tonawanda… The 8,700-square-foot expansion of the elementary school gym means that all students in kindergarten through eighth grade receive four, 45-minute periods of physical education and one period of health-based classroom instruction weekly. |
| Jan 26, 2012 |
$1 Million Grant Will Help Lemon Grove Eat Better, Live Healthier Lemon Grove Patch, Christine Huard, 01/26/2012 A new community group will help residents of Lemon Grove lighten up and improve their bottom lines. The San Diego-based nonprofit group Community Health Improvement Partners has received a $1 million grant from Kaiser Permanente to fight obesity in Lemon Grove through eating better and living more active lifestyles. |
| Jan 25, 2012 |
Many Districts Have Already Adjusted to New School Lunch Rules Kansas City Star, Karen Dillon, 01/25/2012 The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s long-awaited rules to revamp school meals were announced Wednesday, the first major change to school meals in 15 years… The proposed rules were announced a year ago in December. Since then many schools, realizing change was coming, began preparations, working with vendors and finding new recipes. As a result, many Kansas City-area schools say they’ll be ready when the rules go into effect July 1. |
| Jan 25, 2012 |
New Rules for School Meals Aim at Reducing Obesity New York Times, Ron Nixon, 01/25/2012 Hoping to combat the growing problem of childhood obesity, the Obama administration on Wednesday announced its long-awaited changes to government-subsidized school meals, a final round of rules that adds more fruits and green vegetables to breakfasts and lunches and reduces the amount of salt and fat. |
| Jan 25, 2012 |
L.A. County Takes Step to Promote Exercise, Reduce Obesity Los Angeles Times, Anna Gorman, 01/25/2012 Los Angeles County supervisors approved an ordinance Tuesday that requires new developments to have wider sidewalks, bicycle parking and other changes to promote exercise and reduce obesity. The ordinance also would make it easier for communities to start community gardens and hold farmers markets. |
| Jan 25, 2012 |
School Lunches to Have More Veggies, Whole Grains Associated Press, Mary Clare Jalonick, 01/25/2012 Schoolchildren's favorite lunch — the ubiquitous frozen pizza — is about to get healthier. First lady Michelle Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack are expected to announce Wednesday that most school meals, including pizza, will have less sodium, more whole grains and more fruits and vegetables as sides. The popular pizzas will still be on school lunch lines but made with healthier ingredients. |
| Jan 24, 2012 |
U.S. States and Cities Ranked for Biking, Walking Habits Los Angeles Times, Jeannine Stein, 01/24/2012 The Bicycling and Walking in the United States: 2012 Benchmarking Report, released by the Alliance for Biking & Walking, provides a look at commuting by cycling and walking in the U.S., how safe those commutes are, and where transportation funding is going -- or not going -- to promote these alternative means of local travel. The report ranked states and cities on bicycling and walking levels (how many people commute by bike or foot) as well as fatality rates. |
| Jan 23, 2012 |
New Orleans Area Schools Test Healthful-Snack Vending Machines New Orleans Times-Picayune, Barri Bronston, 01/23/2012 Just outside the Gretna school's cafeteria, the Fresh Healthy Vending machines dispense such fare as baked pita chips, soy milk, apple sauce, low-fat granola bars and organic iced teas. Adjacent to it is a Pepsi machine that carries only water and flavored water. Gone are the chocolate bars and soft drinks to which students once flocked. Thomas Jefferson is among 17 public and private schools that have welcomed the machines on campuses in Jefferson and Orleans parishes amid a national obesity epidemic. |
| Jan 22, 2012 |
Physical Education a Vital Link to Students' Health and Success [Op-Ed] Tampa Tribune, Robert Sanchez, 01/22/2012 Florida House Bill 4057, sponsored by Rep. Larry Metz, and Senate Bill 1644, sponsored by Sen. Evelyn Lynn, would remove the current requirement for physical education in our middle schools. According to Capital News Service, Metz said: "I don't think parents get a pass for the health and welfare of their students. I think they're primarily responsible for that." We absolutely agree that parents ultimately decide what is best for their children; however, schools serve as an excellent venue to assist parents in providing their children the opportunity for daily physical activity and educating them as to the importance of exercise and developing the skills necessary to support an active and healthy lifestyle. |
| Jan 22, 2012 |
Walgreens Targets 'Food Deserts' in Cities St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Georgina Gustin, 01/22/2012 Walgreens plans to turn at least 500 of its 7,800 U.S. stores, most in low-income neighborhoods, into what the company is calling “food oases.” |
| Jan 21, 2012 |
Jefferson County Food Council Pushes Healthy Helpings Birmingham News, Hannah Wolfson, 01/21/2012 A group formed to tackle food access issues in Jefferson County has chosen a list of members that includes cooks, gardeners, food industry employees, health experts and business owners. The Birmingham-Jefferson Food Policy Council, which formed last fall, announced its 21 members and held its orientation meeting this month. Supported by the Greater Birmingham Community Food Partners and funded in part by a federal grant designed to tackle health issues in the county, the organization is part of a new breed of food councils forming around the country to tackle food-related problems from hunger to obesity. |
| Jan 21, 2012 |
Grant Will Help Quiet Corner Health Group Spread Its Winning Formula Norwich Bulletin, Adam Benson, 01/21/2012 The HealthQuest Northeast Connecticut coalition was one of 15 groups nationwide selected to mentor another community as part of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention program. HealthQuest is a grant-funded community collaboration project that is part of the Centers’ Action Communities for Health, Innovation and Environmental Change, or ACHIEVE. The HealthQuest project started informally in 2007 and formally in 2009 after receiving a three-year grant from the centers. The project seeks to improve community health, especially by lowering obesity rates, through policy change, according to its mission. |
| Jan 20, 2012 |
Summit Focuses on Community Health in Natrona County Wyoming Star-Tribune, Joshua Wolfson, 01/20/2012 Natrona County could reduce chronic illness in the community by improving access to nutritious foods and creating more options for exercise, participants at a health summit said Friday. The recommendations will be used by a health committee to develop new resources for improving public health. The group, which goes by CINCH — Casper’s Initiative to Nurture Community Health — is working to cut obesity and other chronic illnesses in the Casper area. |
| Jan 20, 2012 |
Food Lion Closings to Expand Chattanooga Area ‘Food Deserts’ Chattanooga Times Free Press, Carey O’Neil, 01/20/2012 It takes hours for thousands of Chattanoogans to get to the grocery store. With Food Lion shutting down seven of its eight Chattanooga-area stores, that number is only going to rise. |
| Jan 19, 2012 |
Big-City Mayors Dig In To Food Policy NPR “The Salt”, Nancy Shute, 01/19/2012 Food policy can sound like a dreary enterprise best left to Washington, D.C. But big-city mayors are starting to see local food policy as a key step in getting healthy, affordable food to their constituents. This afternoon, the mayors of America are meeting in Washington, D.C., to launch their own food policy task force. The goal is to share information on projects that work, and also make sure that federal food policy doesn't muck up those local efforts. |
| Jan 18, 2012 |
Two Tucson Groups Receive Grants to Fight Childhood Obesity Arizona Star, Stephanie Innes, 01/18/2012 The Tucson-based Grow 2B Fit Foundation and the Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona have received grants from UnitedHealthcare for projects they developed to combat childhood obesity… The projects are two of eight youth-led initiatives to receive money from the healthcare company. UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group company, awarded $8,000 in HEROES grants to organizations in Arizona for youth-led projects that address childhood obesity. The program is considered important in Arizona, where 30.6 percent of children between the ages of 10 and 17 are overweight or obese. |
| Jan 18, 2012 |
Allentown Receives $120,000 Award for Childhood Obesity Prevention Program Lehigh Valley Express-Times, Colin McEvoy, 01/18/2012 Allentown has received a $120,000 award for one of the city's childhood obesity prevention initiatives. The city was awarded for its Fruits and Veggies on the Move program, which includes a truck that brings free fruits and vegetables to Allentown playgrounds and recreation sites… Allentown was one of six cities around the world to receive 2012 Childhood Obesity Prevention Awards from the U.S. Conference of Mayors, according to city spokesman Mike Moore. |
| Jan 17, 2012 |
President Clinton Waging War on Childhood Obesity Today Show on NBC, Nancy Synderman, 01/17/2012 President Clinton is working with 13,000 schools across the country to provide healthier meal choices to millions of kids… Nearly 25 million children in this nation… are overweight or obese. Today a war is being waged on the front lines, and students are getting the support of the school, ultimately choosing healthier foods and opting for exercise. Editor’s Note: The Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program is featured in this story. The program is a grantee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. |
| Jan 17, 2012 |
Bill Clinton Tackles Childhood Obesity NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, Nancy Snyderman, 01/17/2012 With nearly 25 million American children being overweight or obese, the war is being waged on the front lines. A major anti-obesity initiative launched in 2006 has found its way into 13,000 schools, most of them in urban districts, changing menus from frozen to fresh, from sugary sodas to fresh-squeezed juices. Editor’s Note: The Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program is featured in this story. The program is a grantee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. |
| Jan 17, 2012 |
Obesity Rates in U.S. Appear to Be Finally Leveling Off Los Angeles Times, Shari Roan, 01/17/2012 After a 30-year, record-shattering rise, U.S. obesity rates appear to be stabilizing. New statistics cited in two papers report only a slight uptick since 2005 — leaving public health experts tentatively optimistic that they may be gaining some ground in their efforts to slim down the nation. Many obesity specialists say the new data, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are a sign that efforts to address the obesity problem — such as placing nutritional information on food packaging and revising school lunch menus — are beginning to have an effect in a country where two-thirds of adults and one-third of children and teens are overweight or obese. |
| Jan 17, 2012 |
US Obesity Epidemic Shows No Hint of Retreating Associated Press, Lindsey Tanner, 01/17/2012 More than one-third of adults and almost 17 percent of children were obese in 2009-2010, echoing results since 2003, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Tuesday. "It's good that we didn't see increases. On the other hand, we didn't see any decreases in any group," said CDC researcher Cynthia Ogden. |
| Jan 16, 2012 |
Learning to Be Lean New York Times, Reed Abelson, 01/16/2012 As one of the many outgrowths of the sweeping federal health care law, health insurers and employers must now pay the cost of screening children for obesity and providing them with appropriate counseling. The early results of efforts [from UnitedHealth and YMCA of the USA] are promising, according to the insurer, which said that 84 percent of the 155 children and teenagers who completed the program had an average 3.5 percent reduction in weight after six months. Parents also lost weight, according to UnitedHealth. The insurer says it is expanding the program, even as it continues to study its longer-term impact. |
| Jan 15, 2012 |
Santa Rosa ‘HEAL’ Zones Target Obesity [Op-Ed] Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Judy Coffey, 01/15/2012 Kaiser Permanente recently awarded Santa Rosa a three-year Healthy Eating Active Living (HEAL) grant to help Santa Rosa residents, particularly those living on the southern edge of the city, eat better and move more. |
| Jan 15, 2012 |
Valley Schools Look to Curb Childhood Obesity Youngstown Vindicator, Denise Dick, 01/15/2012 Last year, Ohio’s Healthy Choices for Healthy Children Act took effect, aiming to curb childhood obesity by offering more-healthful food and beverage options and increasing students’ physical activity. Austintown schools have several programs in place that address the goals, said Superintendent Vince Colaluca. “We’re a big believer in impacting students on all avenues,” he said. “We have a total wellness committee that looks at the total welfare of children and staff.” |
| Jan 14, 2012 |
Urban Farming, and Lots of It, in Cleveland [Editorial] Cleveland Plain Dealer, 01/14/2012 Local nonprofit Neighborhood Progress Inc. led the way in re-imagining Cleveland's shift from cratered, garbage-strewn lots into sustainable civic investments and from inner-city food deserts into urban oases of grapevines, bean trellises and native plantings. Their innovative blueprint just won the 2012 American Planning Association's National Planning Excellence Award for Innovation in Sustaining Places. |
| Jan 14, 2012 |
Live54218 Initiative Gains $88,000 Boost Green Bay Press-Gazette, Hannah O’Brien, 01/14/2012 A Brown County initiative to reduce childhood obesity has gotten a boost from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Live54218, a collaboration between the Green Bay Press-Gazette and other community organizations, recently received $88,000 through Action Communities for Health, Innovation and EnVironmental change (ACHIEVE), an initiative of the CDC…The [Live54218] program kicked off in 2011, and its next steps will be to increase access to farmers markets, impact community street plans to encourage walking and biking, implement physical activity policies for child care, and introduce broad strategies for physical activity in schools. |
| Jan 14, 2012 |
‘Garden on the Go’ Expands Route, Surpasses 5,000 Sales Indianapolis Recorder, 01/14/2012 Garden on the Go, Indiana University Health and Green B.E.A.N. Delivery's mobile produce truck, is on the move again, this time expanding its route to 16 stops shortly after celebrating its 5,000th transaction. The truck, which provides fresh, affordable fruits and vegetables to low-income Marion County neighborhoods, started in May with 12 stops and has already built a strong enough following to warrant expanding the route. |
| Jan 13, 2012 |
California Soda Tax Dies in the Legislature Santa Cruz Sentinel, Jason Hoppin, 01/13/2012 A controversial soda tax aimed at fighting childhood obesity failed to make it out of a key state legislative committee this week, effectively killing the bill. |
| Jan 13, 2012 |
Flipping Over Kids' Health: YMCA Gets $20K Grant for Schools Projects Redding Record Searchlight, Joe Szydlowski, 01/13/2012 Workers from the Shasta Family YMCA were bending over backward to help students at Cypress Elementary School literally bend over backward. The students were also bouncing, jumping, rolling, cartwheeling, flipping and balancing Thursday, as workers from the YMCA stopped by to encourage kids to use unconventional ideas to stay fit… The program comes from a $20,000 Y-USA Pioneering Healthier Communities grant. |
| Jan 12, 2012 |
Sugary Soda Ups Risky Fat Deposits Reuters, Kerry Grens, 01/12/2012 Drinking a liter of regular cola every day increases the amount of fat in the liver and in the muscles and surrounding the organs in the belly, according to a new Danish study. That kind of fat buildup has been linked in other studies to an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease. |
| Jan 12, 2012 |
Ways to Empower Kids to Take Charge of Their Health USA Today, Rose Pastore, 01/12/2012 Sure, you can stock your fridge with nutritious snacks and offer a good example when it comes to exercise, but recent studies suggest that, just like grown-ups, kids need strong internal motivation (not micromanagement) in order to get fit. |
| Jan 10, 2012 |
Can Online Games Influence What Kids Eat? Time “Healthland”, Alice Park, 01/10/2012 As if the ads on TV for the latest toy, fast food, sugary snacks and fat-laden meals weren’t bad enough, now researchers say you have to worry about another insidious way that manufacturers are appealing to the youngest among us — advergames. That’s the term for the enticing and engaging online games that food makers are increasingly supplying on their web sites as a way to introduce children to their products. The companies’ logos and goods are unavoidable on these games, which also include inducements to buy the products in order to launch new features on the game. |
| Jan 10, 2012 |
Soda Tax Could Prevent 26,000 Premature Deaths, Study Finds Los Angeles Times “Booster Shots”, Karen Kaplan, 01/10/2012 The soda tax is back on the table, and this time proponents say that a tax of a penny per ounce of sugar-sweetened beverage would not only raise $13 billion a year but also save $17 billion in medical costs by reducing the incidence of heart disease and diabetes. |
| Jan 10, 2012 |
Rhode Island Congressman Pushes Farm, School Link Associated Press, 01/10/2012 A Rhode Island congressman called Tuesday for the expansion of an initiative that aims to increase the availability in the state's schools of healthy, locally-grown food. Rep. James Langevin visited schools in Warwick and North Kingstown to promote the "Farm to School" program. "Farm to School" encourages schools to buy produce and other foods locally as part of an effort to support local farms and get healthier lunches in schools. |
| Jan 10, 2012 |
In U.S. Food Desert, a Vision of Oases (Op-Ed) Philadelphia Inquirer, U.S. Representatives Allyson Schwarts and Robert Brady, 01/10/2012 If we want to fight the obesity epidemic in this country, we should start with the most basic solution: access to healthy foods. Increasing access to grocery stores in underserved communities will address this growing problem and will help stimulate local economic development… To address this growing health and economic problem, we have recently reintroduced the bipartisan Healthy Food Financing Initiative, aimed at creating a national effort to expand access to healthful, fresh foods in underserved communities. |
| Jan 9, 2012 |
Freshness of Winter Has Arrived Boston Globe, Miriam Valverde, 01/09/2012 Yesterday was opening day of the Dorchester Winter Farmers’ Market, which organizers hope will attract all members of the community - including low-income families - to shop healthy and locally… The farmers’ market in Codman Square is the only one in the city where shoppers can use their electronic benefit transfer cards issued as part of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to pay for groceries. Those who qualify for the program include low-income families and some people with disabilities. |
| Jan 9, 2012 |
Chick-fil-A Kids Menu Getting Healthier Options, Dumping Hi-C Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Leon Stafford, 01/09/2012 Chick-fil-A is making some menu changes to offer a little healthier options for children. The Atlanta-based chain said on Monday it will introduce Grilled Chicken Nuggets and Buddy Fruits applesauce for kids meals and eliminate Hi-C from its children's beverage line… Chick-fil-A's said that when its grilled nuggets, fruit cup and one-percent milk are combined as a meal, the intake is 210 calories and 3 grams of fat. That is a 56 percent reduction in calories and 86 percent cut in fat from previous offerings, the company said. |
| Jan 7, 2012 |
Green Bay Area Day Cares Take Steps to Get Children Active Early Green Bay Press-Gazette, Patti Zarling, 01/07/2012 The Active Early program, now in its second year…works with local child care centers to improve fitness among young children by teaching them to stay active through organized movement and free playtime. The goal is two hours of activity a day. |
| Jan 6, 2012 |
Philabundance Puts Groceries in Chester Philadelphia Business Journal, Jessica Herring, 01/06/2012 The city of Chester, Pa., which has been without a grocery store for more than 10 years, will soon be able to provide needy residents with low-cost, nutritious food. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation donated $1 million to the food pantry Philabundance to help build a new community food center in Chester. The food center will address food inequality by providing citizens with fresh produce and other food products at low prices, with some food free of charge. |
| Jan 5, 2012 |
Phys Ed Classes Target of Bill Fort Myers News-Press, Chris Umpierre, 01/05/2012 Earlier this month, a Florida House committee approved a measure that would eliminate a state law requiring P.E. classes between sixth and eighth grades and instead leave that decision to locally elected school boards. |
| Jan 5, 2012 |
Texas Must Win War on Diabetes [Op-Ed] Austin American-Statesman, Carol Alvorado, 01/05/2012 Hopefully, lawmakers in the next session will realize it is more effective and efficient to use our resources to prevent a disease rather than waging a costly battle against it. Of course there is only so much laws can do. We need parents, teachers, and entire communities to help, to lead by example. Nobody wants our children to be permanently weighed down — literally — with bad choices made by default. Our children should have access to the building blocks they need to lead strong, healthy and productive lives. |
| Jan 5, 2012 |
Sugary Drinks Tied to Breastfed Kids' Weight Reuters, Andrew M. Seaman, 01/05/2012 Babies who were breastfed longest and drank few or no sugary beverages were about half as likely to be obese as kids who weren't breastfed or who consumed the most sugary drinks, in a new study of Hispanic children in southern California. |
| Jan 5, 2012 |
Sen. Gillibrand Visits Hostos Community College in Bronx to Discuss Food Stamps and Farm Bill New York Daily News, Daniel Beekman, 01/05/2012 Farm country the Bronx is not. But the concrete jungle will have plenty at stake as Congress debates the 2012 Farm Bill, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand told nearly 100 anti-hunger advocates Wednesday at Hostos Community College. The junior senator outlined her Food Bill goals with U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-Bronx/Queens) and addressed concerns about hunger and nutrition in poor Bronx neighborhoods. |
| Jan 4, 2012 |
Daycare Providers Say Kids Are Too Inactive Reuters, Kerry Grens, 01/04/2012 Potential playground hazards, a focus on classroom learning and boring play equipment have children spending too little time being physically active at daycare, according to a survey of staff members at child care centers in Ohio. |
| Jan 4, 2012 |
Daycare Providers Say Kids Are Too Inactive Reuters, Kerry Grens, 01/04/2012 Potential playground hazards, a focus on classroom learning and boring play equipment have children spending too little time being physically active at daycare, according to a survey of staff members at child care centers in Ohio. |
| Jan 4, 2012 |
More Cash Coming to Help Eliminate New Jersey's Food Deserts NJ Spotlight, Beth Fitzgerald, 01/04/2012 The struggle to eliminate New Jersey's food deserts -- urban neighborhoods where fresh fruit and vegetables are scare and obesity and diabetes are correspondingly common -- is getting critical assistance from two sources. First, the state Economic Development Authority's New Jersey Food Access Initiative has gotten a loan and a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Second, legislation is before the Assembly that could divert funds from Urban Enterprise Zones to the EDA initiative. |
| Jan 4, 2012 |
Dayton Receives $161K for School Sidewalks Northern Kentucky News, Jeff McKinney, 01/04/2012 The city of Dayton will receive a grant of $161,200 as part of a program Gov. Steve Beshear announced Wednesday that enables children to walk or bicycle safely to school. Dayton was among eight Kentucky cities to get a combined $1.53 million to help pay for projects tied to the Safe Routes to School program. |
| Jan 4, 2012 |
Some In Congress Ready to Act Against Schools' PE Cutbacks Seattle Times, Rob Hotakainen, 01/04/2012 With public schools cutting back on spending for physical education, some members of Congress want to intervene… "It's obviously a clear problem," said Rep. Adam Smith, D-Tacoma. "Childhood obesity is spiking, and actually our overall health is to some degree declining." When Congress considers overhauling its federal education law early this year, Smith and a bipartisan group of 84 other House members want to include language that would pressure schools to offer more PE: Their idea is to force school officials to issue yearly reports on how much time students engage in physical activity, making it easier for the public to compare schools. |
| Jan 4, 2012 |
Lincoln Senator Would Tax Soda Pop to Help Fight Childhood Obesity Lincoln Journal Star, JoAnne Young, 01/04/2012 Whether you call it soda, pop or a soft drink, Lincoln Sen. Bill Avery would like to tax it. Avery introduced a bill (LB753) Wednesday that would no longer allow sugary soft drinks to be classified as food, and thus take away their sales tax exemption. They would join alcoholic beverages, dietary supplements and tobacco as nonfood products. |
| Jan 3, 2012 |
School Gets a Playground for the Pre-K Set HealthyCal, Melissa Flores, 01/03/2012 The preschool students at Toro Park School have been enjoying more time outdoors since community members and school officials helped to install pint-sized playground equipment at the Washington Union School District campus in Salinas. |
| Jan 3, 2012 |
Outside Forces Affect What We Eat, How Much Exercise We Get Orlando Sentinel, Marni Jameson, 01/03/2012 Beyond what we eat, what we're born with and what we do, our environment contributes in major — and mostly unnoticed — ways to our health and our weight. All have conspired to make two-thirds of adult Americans and one-third of American youths overweight. As this four-part series has revealed, the reasons Americans are fat and getting fatter are complex. The answer is not simply that too many Americans eat too much and exercise too little… In today's finale, local and national obesity experts weigh in on 10 ways our environment and government policies have contributed to Americans' growing girth. |
| Jan 3, 2012 |
Battle to Stem Childhood Obesity Expected to Be a Focus of 2012 Public Radio International, 01/03/2012 New research shows that kids who eat school lunches are more likely to be obese than kids who bring lunch from home. The battle to cut back childhood obesity is expected to be of increasing importance in the next few years. |
| Jan 2, 2012 |
Healthy Eating Fuels Students Pensacola News Journal, Erin Kourkounis, 01/02/2012 Escambia and Santa Rosa schools adhere to U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines for nutrition. And they follow the MyPlate concept for their breakfast and lunch programs. MyPlate replaces the traditional food pyramid and calls for half of each meal to consist of fruits and vegetables, with servings of protein, dairy and whole grains. Teaching it to children is part of the state and national push to promote a healthy lifestyle. |
| Jan 2, 2012 |
Lots of Exercise May Boost Kids' Grades HealthDay, Alan Mozes, 01/02/2012 A Dutch review of prior research reveals that the more physically active school-aged children are, the better they fare in the classroom. |
| Jan 1, 2012 |
Looking Ahead to Food Politics in 2012 [Column] San Francisco Chronicle, Marion Nestle, 01/01/2012 What's on the food politics agenda for 2012? |
| Jan 1, 2012 |
Grim Childhood Obesity Ads Stir Critics Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Carrie Teegardin, 01/01/2012 Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta is hearing strong criticism from some camps for its in-your-face advertising campaign designed to attack Georgia’s childhood obesity epidemic. But the pediatric health system stands firmly by its approach, saying the grim advertisements featuring overweight kids are necessary to get families to recognize the widespread public health problem. |
| Jan 1, 2012 |
Salad Bars Are a Hit at Hurst-Euless-Bedford Elementary Schools Sarah Bahari, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 01/01/2012 As part of a plan to promote health, introduce children to fresh fruits and vegetables and wean them off junk food, the Hurst-Euless-Bedford district is adding salad bars to elementary schools.The bars have opened at Wilshire and South Euless elementary schools. Bedford Heights, Meadow Creek and Lakewood will have them next school year, and more are on the way.The salad bars have proved popular, school officials say. |
| Dec 31, 2011 |
Bill Would Mandate Physical Education in All Public K-12 Schools in Michigan Capital News Service, 12/31/2011 Rep. Maureen Stapleton, D-Detroit, recently introduced a bill that would mandate every school offer physical education and health programs. The bill would establish the amount of time a student would take part in physical education during the course of the school year. The bill states that schools have a program for health and physical education for students of both sexes in all schools and that each student attending public schools that is physically able would have to take the class. |
| Dec 30, 2011 |
Obesity, Diabetes Pose 1-2 Threat to Young Americans HealthDay, Dennis Thompson, 12/30/2011 Doctors have long been concerned that increasing rates of childhood obesity could fuel a diabetes epidemic. Study results have now underscored that fear. Researchers have found that the length of time a person carries excess weight directly contributes to an increased risk for type 2 diabetes. |
| Dec 29, 2011 |
Kansas Health Official Says Targeting Obesity Top Priority Associated Press, 12/29/2011 Kansas' top health official has targeted obesity as his main priority for change in the new year, noting there has been steady rise in the number of overweight Kansans over the past 15 years. |
| Dec 29, 2011 |
Fruits, Vegetables Go Direct to Markets San Diego Union-Tribune, Tawny Maya McCray, 12/29/2011 Each week farmer Steve White from Ramona delivers a small truckload of his fruits and vegetables to four corner stores in western Chula Vista. The fresh produce is brought in through a $75,000 program called Cilantro to Stores, which is intended to improve access of locally grown, healthy, affordable food to underserved communities. |
| Dec 28, 2011 |
Students Try New, Healthy Snacks Springfield News-Leader, Claudette Riley, 12/28/2011 In December, students at 17 Springfield elementary schools snacked on snow peas, Satsuma mandarins, blood oranges and baby avocados. Thanks to a federal grant administered through the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, students at select schools are trying a wide variety of fresh and healthy snacks each week. |
| Dec 28, 2011 |
Grant to Chico State Aims to Get Healthier Food to Low-Income People Chico Enterprise-Record, Heather Hacking, 12/28/2011 More fruits, nuts and veggies in local hands is the goal of a new $500,000 grant awarded to Chico State University. Specifics of the program include more community gardens, cooking classes and better access to healthful food for low-income buyers. The grant was awarded by the specialty crop program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. |
| Dec 28, 2011 |
Kishwaukee Family YMCA Working Out Co-Ops DeKalb Daily Chronicle, Jeff Engelhardt, 12/28/2011 The Kishwaukee Family YMCA has opened a new facility at Huntley Middle School as the organization looks for ways to incorporate healthy habits in schools and workplaces… Kim Jass-Ramirez, community outreach director for the YMCA, said the new location is a great example of how the YMCA is teaming with entities such as DeKalb School District 428 to fight the obesity problem plaguing the community. |
| Dec 28, 2011 |
A Vast Child Obesity Gap Between Affluent City, Lower-Income Los Angeles Times, Anna Gorman, 12/28/2011 One Manhattan Beach has the lowest child obesity rate in L.A. County, Bell Gardens the highest. Their demographics are starkly different, and residents' perceptions on the issue can contrast sharply. |
| Dec 27, 2011 |
Successful Anti-Obesity Program Expanding in Maine MPBN Maine, Josie Huang, 12/27/2011 An anti-obesity program adopted by greater Portland-area schools and promoted by First Lady Michelle Obama is working so well that supporters are expanding it to other parts of Maine. The five fundamental principles of the program, known as "Let's Go!," are also catching notice from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. |
| Dec 27, 2011 |
Losing Baby Fat Lowers Heart Risks Later Wall Street Journal, Ann Lukits, 12/27/2011 Obese children who grow up into normal-weight adults have the same cardiovascular risk as people without a history of obesity, according to a meta-analysis in the New England Journal of Medicine. Obese children are at high risk for type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease but the contribution of childhood obesity to long-term cardiovascular risk, independent of adult weight, has never been clearly established, researchers said. |
| Dec 26, 2011 |
Getting Another Chain Grocery in Camden Remains Difficult Philadelphia Inquirer, Claudia Vargas, 12/26/2011 The acute shortage of supermarkets has landed parts of Camden on the list of the country's worst food deserts - defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as low-income urban areas in which at least a third of residents live more than a mile from a supermarket that does at least $2 million in annual sales. Areas of downtown, North Camden, and Cramer Hill were labeled food deserts by the department this year. Nutrition and poverty experts have linked the lack of food options to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, and other health problems. |
| Dec 24, 2011 |
New Marion County Program Gives Families Tools to Live a Healthier Lifestyle Statesman Journal, Queenie Wong, 12/24/2011 The 5210 in 30 (days) Challenge is simple. Every day, eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables, spend less than two hours in front of the computer or television, exercise for at least one hour and don't drink any sweetened beverages. Track these goals in a booklet for 30 days, then share the challenge with others. The challenge was launched at various schools and workplaces throughout the county this year, including Howard Street Charter School, Marion County government offices and Hope Orthopedics. More than 600 people have participated in the program. |
| Dec 23, 2011 |
Obesity Linked to Higher Esophageal Cancer Death Rates HealthDay, 12/23/2011 Obese people who have had surgery to treat esophageal cancer are twice as likely to have a recurrence of the disease or die from cancer within five years as patients of normal weight, according to a new study. |
| Dec 23, 2011 |
Parents May Hold Key to Healthy Weight in Hispanic Kids HealthDay, 12/23/2011 Parents of overweight Hispanic children are willing to make food and lifestyle changes that will benefits their kids' health, a new study suggests. The findings may help improve efforts to combat the childhood obesity epidemic among Hispanic Americans, the largest and fastest-growing ethnic group in the United States, said the researchers at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. |
| Dec 22, 2011 |
Wealthy Nations with a Lot of Fast Food: Destined to be Obese? Los Angeles Times, Jeannine Stein, 12/22/2011 The growing worldwide obesity epidemic has been blamed on a number of factors, but a study argues that it may be inexorably linked with wealthy nations and their fast-food restaurants. |
| Dec 22, 2011 |
Startup Grocer Gets Fresh-food Loan The Times-Picayune, Jaquetta White, 12/22/2011 A Central City grocery store is the first to receive a loan through an initiative that seeks to provide residents with greater access to healthful food choices in New Orleans, Mayor Mitch Landrieu's administration announced Wednesday. |
| Dec 22, 2011 |
Access to Groceries Slim for Many in BR [Column] The Advocate, Stephanie Riegel, 12/22/2011 While we have a plethora of supermarkets in many parts of the city — a direct result of the economic prosperity of those areas — some neighborhoods have few food options, if any. The grass-roots community group Together Baton Rouge is trying to change that. The organization, which seeks to bridge the wide gaps in income, education and quality of life that exist within our community, has identified a so-called food desert in Scotlandville and is working to bring a full-service grocery store to the north Baton Rouge area. |
| Dec 22, 2011 |
As Obesity Rises, More Suffer From Acid Reflux HealthDay, Steven Reinberg, 12/22/2011 As the obesity epidemic spreads around the world more people are suffering from acid reflux, likely increasing the number of those who will develop esophageal cancer, a new study suggests. |
| Dec 20, 2011 |
Overweight Children May Be at Risk for Asthma WebMD, Jennifer Warner, 12/20/2011 Overweight children may be more likely to develop asthma by the time they go to school, but losing weight early on may counter that risk. A new study shows children who were overweight at ages 1, 4, and 7 were up to twice as likely to have asthma by age 8 as normal-weight children. |
| Dec 20, 2011 |
Farm Subsidies: We Can Cut the Fat in Spending and in Our Food [Opinion] Oregon Live, Earl Blumenauer, 12/20/2011 At a time when America's waistlines and our national debt are both reaching record levels, we are spending billions of dollars every year on subsidies for the massive agribusinesses that grow genetically modified, pesticide-laden commodity products like corn that are ultimately turned into processed foods like Twinkies. Meanwhile, growers of fruits and vegetables are on their own. |
| Dec 19, 2011 |
Obesity Epidemic May Have Roots in 1950s Los Angeles Times, Shari Roan, 12/19/2011 A leading fitness and nutrition expert at Louisiana State University, [Melinda Sothern] has a theory that the tide of obesity that has swept the nation in the last two decades had its roots in what young mothers did, or didn't do, in the postwar, suburban-sprouting 1950s. If she's right — and evidence is stacking up on her side — reproductive-age women may become the central focus of efforts to reverse America's fat problem. The obesity epidemic has multiple causes, Sothern acknowledges. Food has changed in the last five decades. Americans have become much more sedentary. But she thinks that obesity rates soared just when they did — in the 1980s — because a generation of young women decades earlier smoked, spurned breast-feeding and restricted their weight during numerous, closely spaced pregnancies. |
| Dec 19, 2011 |
Fast-food Restaurants Contain at Least Some Healthful Items for Hungry Travelers Washington Post, Carolyn Butler, 12/19/2011 During a recent car trip to Florida with my kids, we were pressed for time and only made pit stops directly off the highway. This got me to wondering, as I look ahead to more long road trips this holiday season, whether it’s possible to eat healthfully if your main resource is fast-food establishments. The answer is yes, though it’s not always easy, says Baltimore dietitian Angela Ginn. |
| Dec 19, 2011 |
Schools Try to Curb Childhood Obesity Dalton Daily Citizen, Rachel Brown, 12/19/2011 Lined up in the cafeteria at Blue Ridge School, two dozen or so students attempt to imitate the high-energy movements of Zumba instructor Natalie Rogers. In another wing of the school, a group of second-graders gets a lesson in proper hand-washing techniques from students in newly formed health care classes at Morris Innovative High School. Such mini-stations —16 of them in all — were coordinated for Blue Ridge’s first school-wide health fair last week. The fair is just one example of many ways in which Georgia schools are working to place more emphasis on health and wellness programs since 37.7 percent of children between the ages of 10 and 17 in Georgia are considered obese, according to a 2009 study by several national organizations, including the Childhood Obesity Action Network. |
| Dec 19, 2011 |
Obesity Linked to Lower Paychecks HealthDay, 12/19/2011 Obese Americans have smaller paychecks than those who aren't overweight, and this difference is especially strong among women, a new study finds. The analysis of data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth revealed that in 2004, overall average annual incomes were $8,666 less for obese women and $4,772 less for obese men compared with normal weight workers. |
| Dec 19, 2011 |
For Black Girls, Lack of Exercise Heightens Obesity Risk NPR, Taunya English, 12/19/2011 About half of African-American women in the U.S. are obese, compared to 30 percent of white women. Black women not only carry more weight, but they start piling on extra pounds years before their white counterparts. So when does it begin, this excess and unhealthful weight? Research suggests the problem starts early, and it may have a lot to do with when girls give up regular exercise. Editor's Note: Shiriki Kumanyika, interviewed in this story, is the director of the African American Collaborative Obesity Research Network, a grantee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. |
| Dec 18, 2011 |
Making a Difference: Goochland Farmers Help Residents in 'Food Deserts' Richmond Times-Dispatch, Wesley Hester, 12/18/2011 Over the past two years, Dominic Barrett and Steve Miles have transformed a fertile piece of Goochland County soil into a source of produce, education and inspiration for low-income, inner-city families. |
| Dec 18, 2011 |
Fast-Food Outlet Stirs Concerns in a Mecca of Healthy Living New York Times, Jennifer Medina, 12/18/2011 Last week, when the City Council approved Loma Linda’s first McDonald’s restaurant, many residents bemoaned the decision, worrying that the officials were jeopardizing the city’s reputation as a paragon of healthy lifestyles. |
| Dec 17, 2011 |
'Fit for Kids' Grants Go to Food Bank Freezers, Batavia School Walking Routes Geneva Patch, 12/17/2011 Making Kane County Fit for Kids Funders Consortium announced the award of 11 grants going to local agencies and community groups in an effort to fight childhood obesity. The grants range from $1,200 to $10,000 and will help fund a variety of programs designed to promote active lifestyles and to increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables. |
| Dec 16, 2011 |
Teens Who See Calorie Info. Buy Fewer Sugary Drinks Washington Post, Jennifer LaRue Huget, 12/16/2011 Research published Thursday in the American Journal of Public Health shows that when teens -- in this study, black teens shopping in corner convenience stores in low-income areas in Baltimore -- see signs alerting them to the caloric impact of sugar-sweetened beverages (including soda, fruit juice, energy drinks and other sugary sips), some of them choose less-caloric options. Editor’s Note: This study was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through its national program Healthy Eating Research. |
| Dec 15, 2011 |
Lawmakers Want Cost-Benefit Analysis on Child Food Marketing Restrictions Washington Post, Dina ElBoghdady, 12/15/2011 A long-delayed Obama administration proposal that would restrict the types of foods and drinks that are marketed to children suffered another setback Thursday when Capitol Hill demanded a cost-benefit analysis. An inter-agency working group was supposed to finalize the proposal more than a year and a half ago. But strong push back from the food and beverage industry forced deeper deliberation of the initiative and several delays. |
| Dec 15, 2011 |
Obesity Rate Falls for New York Schoolchildren New York Times, Anemona Hartocollis, 12/15/2011 The number of obese New York City schoolchildren fell by 5.5 percent over five years, federal and city officials said Thursday, offering a glimmer of optimism about one of the country’s intractable health scourges. The decline, documented by annual fitness exams given to most of the city’s kindergarten through eighth-grade students, was the biggest reported by any large city… [health commissioner Thomas A.] Farley attributed the progress partly to the city’s aggressive advertising campaign against sugary sodas, which he said may have altered what parents were providing to their children. The city has also tried to add healthier options to school lunch menus, enacted strict rules on the calorie and sugar content of snacks and drinks in school vending machines, and even put limits on bake sales, a move that caused some grumbling. |
| Dec 15, 2011 |
More Local, Healthy Food Needed in Schools, State Panel Says St. Petersburg Times, Marlene Sokol, 12/15/2011 40 guests at [a state panel] included growers, suppliers, school nutrition officials and health educators. After feasting on a meal of mostly Florida ingredients — which Putnam insisted could be prepared for the cost of a school lunch (about $3) — they discussed obstacles to serving local and healthy food. |
| Dec 14, 2011 |
Montclair Schools Encourage Kids to Exercise Montclair Times, George Wirt, 12/14/2011 For… parents who have campaigned for healthier lunch choices in the Montclair School District's 11 schools, exercise is an important part of good nutrition. They fear that all the recent work done to improve school lunches by offering students low-fat foods along with fresh fruits and vegetables could be undone if youngsters maintain a sedentary lifestyle. It is one of the reasons why parents have joined with teachers at Bullock and other schools to get youngsters out in the playgrounds and play, run or just walk around. |
| Dec 13, 2011 |
Flint's Washington Elementary Gets $331,000 in Federal Cash to Fix Sidewalks, Make Walks Safer for Students Flint Journal, Ron Fonger, 12/13/2011 Walking to school is about to get easier around Flint's Washington Elementary School, one of 10 schools in Michigan to receive federal grants to pay for safety improvements. Washington will receive more than $331,000 to install sidewalks and crosswalks on Ohio, Missouri, Arlington, Franklin, and Vernon avenues, along with pedestrian countdown signals at Vernon Avenue and Davison Road, according to a news release from the state Department of Transportation. |
| Dec 13, 2011 |
Web Site to Promote Food Stamp Reform United Press International, 12/13/2011 The Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, in collaboration with the Harvard School of Public Health, announced www.SNAPtoHealth.org to help develop strategies to promote health and prevent obesity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as the Food Stamps Program. |
| Dec 12, 2011 |
Kane Groups Get Grants to Combat Obesity in Kids The Beacon-News, Matt Brennan, 12/12/2011 Eleven Kane County agencies and community groups will receive additional funding to battle childhood obesity and promote healthier lifestyles for children. The Healthy Living Council of Aurora, Northern Illinois Food Bank, the Elgin Harvest Market and the Batavia School District are among the recipients of the grants, issued by the Kane County Fit For Kids Funders Consortium. The grants range from $1,200 to $10,000. |
| Dec 12, 2011 |
Food Giants Fight Proposed Nutrition Guidelines San Francisco Chronicle, Carolyn Lochhead, 12/12/2011 An effort by four federal agencies to limit marketing of junk food to children has provoked a fight between the packaged food industry and public health groups as intense as the cigarette wars of the 1980s. The agency guidelines, ordered by Congress in 2009, are due this month after a 1 1/2-year delay. They will be scaled back after a ferocious lobbying campaign by food manufacturers who fear that Twinkies are fast becoming the next tobacco. |
| Dec 10, 2011 |
Healthy Vending Machines Come to Area Lafourche Daily Comet, Cara Bayles, 12/10/2011 A vending-machine company that sells fruits and vegetables instead of cookies and chips is currently installing devices in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes. |
| Dec 10, 2011 |
Schools Building More Physical Activity into Programs Dover-New Philadelphia Times Reporter, Jon Baker, 12/10/2011 Tuscarawas Central Catholic Elementary is just one of several schools in Tuscarawas County that are instituting new programs to combat the growing problem of childhood obesity and physically inactive lifestyles. |
| Dec 9, 2011 |
Nemours Expands Childhood Obesity Prevention Initiative Orlando Business Journal, 12/09/2011 The Winter Park Health Foundation has approved a $50,000 grant for Nemours Children’s Hospital to launch a child care obesity prevention initiative in Eatonville, Maitland and Winter Park. The goal is to help child care providers teach pre-schoolers about nutritious eating and how to be physically active in order to establish healthy habits for the rest of their lives. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
Pasadena's 'Food Desert' Island Pasadena Sun, Adolfo Flores, 12/08/2011 Gripping plastic bags filled with milk, eggs and a two-liter bottle of orange soda, Itzel Hernandez made her way down Orange Grove Avenue one recent evening, keeping a brisk pace and wearing a gray hoodie to keep away the fall chill. Hernandez, 18, said she expected her trip home from Latino Market to take 25 minutes. The convenience store is the closest market to Hernandez’s home… Hernandez’s shopping trip is common among Northwest Pasadena residents, many of whom do not have cars and do not live close to supermarkets but are close to fast-food restaurants and convenience stores. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
Nutrition at Fore in Pittsburgh Food Bank Offerings Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Rachel Weaver, 12/08/2011 The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank's Produce to People program… distributes free fresh fruits and vegetables to eligible Western Pennsylvanians in need. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
Must Take Steps to Solve Food-Desert Crisis in Oakland [Opinion] Oakland Tribune, Maurissa M. Wells, 12/08/2011 Picture yourself in the Bay Area, working two low-paying jobs. You need to buy groceries for yourself and your children. You have no car. The nearest grocery store is three to four miles from your home. You walk two blocks to the liquor store or fast-food restaurant and buy a ready-made meal. There are no fresh vegetables available, so there are little or no vegetables in this meal. In fact, according to a 2008 study, "nutritious choices have all but dried up in some communities across America," and fast-food restaurants and liquor stores rule the land previously dominated by healthful food. This dilemma is known as living in a food desert, and it is a public-health issue. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
New Grants to Combat Childhood Obesity in Kane County St. Charles Republican, Elizabeth Stoever, 12/08/2011 Northern Illinois Food Bank and the Downtown Elgin Harvest Market are among 11 organizations in Kane County that will receive grant funding to combat childhood obesity. For the second time this year, grants ranging from $1,200 to $10,000 will be provided by the Making Kane County Fit for Kids Funders Consortium. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
What Really Works to Prevent Obesity in Kids? Boston Globe, Deborah Kotz, 12/08/2011 Australian researchers reviewed 55 studies mostly targeting children ages 6 to 12 and found that overall, obesity prevention programs led to less excess body fat but that some programs were far more effective than others… Some broad strategies that appeared to have the most impact [included] a school curriculum that includes healthy eating, physical activity, and body image discussions; increased time for gym, and movement activities built into English, science, or math classes; improved nutrition in school lunches emphasizing less saturated fat and calories and more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains; creating an environment that makes it easy for kids to choose healthful foods and be active throughout the day; support for teachers and other staff trying to implement new strategies; and support for parents trying to encourage their kids to eat more nutritiously and spend less time staring at computers, TV, and other screens. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
Can Fast-Food Toy Bans Really Help Kids Eat Better? Time "Healthland", Alice Park, 12/08/2011 In 2010, a California county became the first in the nation to ban toys from fast-food children's meals that were high in calories, salt, fat and sugar, with the idea being that eliminating the toys would make the meals less enticing to kids. And researchers say that the ordinance seems to be having an effect — at least on the way the fast-food chains advertise their goods. Editor's Note: This study was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through its national program Healthy Eating Research. |
| Dec 8, 2011 |
In Overweight Kids, Heart Risks Can Start as Young as 3, University Of Miami Study Says Miami Herald, Fred Tasker, 12/08/2011 When children are overweight, heart health risk factors such as dangerous cholesterol levels and artery inflammation can start as early as age 3, according to a University of Miami study published in this week’s medical journal Obesity. |
| Dec 7, 2011 |
Progress From Portland on Improving Kids’ Healthy Behaviors Wall Street Journal, Betsy McKay, 12/07/2011 While many cities and towns have programs and events to attack childhood obesity, few really know whether they’re making a difference. One program that has been tracking its impact reports new signs of progress [is] Portland, Maine, which has rallied schools and other sites in the state to get more families to adopt its daily 5-2-1-0 message: every day, eat at least five servings of fruit and vegetables, get two hours or less of screen time, get at least one hour of exercise and consume zero sugary drinks. New data from an independent telephone survey of about 800 parents in the greater Portland area show some steady improvements in healthy behavior. |
| Dec 7, 2011 |
Denver Task Force Addresses Fresh-Food Deserts Denver Post, Karen Auge, 12/07/2011 From Barnum to North Park Hill, Denver is dotted with neighborhoods where grocery stores are all but nonexistent and fresh fruits and vegetables are as rare as snow in the Sahara. On Tuesday, city leaders heard ideas for encouraging healthy food to grow in those food deserts. |
| Dec 7, 2011 |
Phenix City Elementary Schools Celebrate Awards Given by USDA Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Larry Gierer, 12/07/2011 Six Phenix City public elementary schools were honored by the United States Department of Agriculture at a special celebration Tuesday in the Central Activity Center. All were applauded for their performance in the HealthierUS School Challenge sponsored by the USDA. The program is a voluntary initiative begun in 2004 which recognizes excellence in nutrition and physical activity. |
| Dec 7, 2011 |
Med Center Cafeteria Gets Top Rating for Healthy Food Sacramento Bee, Darrell Smith, 12/07/2011 Try to find a healthy entree at the state's children's hospitals and you might have better luck at the neighborhood drive-thru. Just 7 percent of entrees sold in hospital cafeterias statewide are classified as "healthy" in a new study by UCLA and the Rand Corp. Researchers said their findings are troubling, given the ongoing epidemic of childhood obesity. |
| Dec 6, 2011 |
Grant Will Help Area Schools Fight Childhood Obesity Petoskey News, 12/06/2011 The Health Department of Northwest Michigan is one of five local health departments awarded a grant from the Michigan Department of Community Health to develop Safe Routes to School action plans in partnership with local schools. Boyne City elementary and middle school, along with Gaylord intermediate and middle school, and Pellston elementary and middle school, are all participating in the program, designed to encourage and enable school children, including children with disabilities, to walk and bicycle to and from school when distance is reasonable and routes are safe. |
| Dec 6, 2011 |
Dollar General Tackles 'Food Deserts' The Tennessean, Bobby Allyn, 12/06/2011 As Dollar General posted yet another strong quarterly profit on Monday, the discount retailer said it soon will turn its attention to targeting food deserts — areas not served by supermarkets or nearby grocers — in a bid to fill voids in many communities. |
| Dec 6, 2011 |
Some Children’s Cereals Packed with Sugar, Study Finds Washington Post, Dina ElBoghdady, 12/06/2011 At least three popular children’s cereals are packed with more sugar in a one-cup serving than a Hostess Twinkie, and an additional 44 are loaded with more sugar in a cup than three Chips Ahoy cookies, according to a study released Tuesday by the Environmental Working Group. |
| Dec 6, 2011 |
Richmond to Vote on Soda Tax Contra Costa Times, Hannah Dreier, 12/06/2011 Richmond voters will get a chance to weigh in on a penny-per-ounce soda tax next year. The City Council directed staffers Tuesday to prepare a measure for the November 2012 ballot that would impose a sales tax on "sweetened beverages." |
| Dec 6, 2011 |
Most Doctors Don't Tell Parents Kids Are Overweight HealthDay, 12/06/2011 Less than one-quarter of American parents with an overweight child remember ever being told by a health care professional that this was the case, a new study says. "Parents might be more motivated to follow healthy eating and activity advice if they knew their children were overweight, but very few parents of overweight children say they have ever heard that from their doctor," lead author Dr. Eliana Perrin, an associate professor in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine and a pediatrician at North Carolina Children's Hospital, said in a university news release. |
| Dec 5, 2011 |
Youth Sports Are Just the First Step Minneapolis Star Tribune, Sheila Mulrooney Eldred, 12/05/2011 For two years, [researcher Toben] Nelson has been working on the Healthy Youth Sports Study. One finding in the continuing study is that almost half of kids 12 to 17 who are overweight participate in sports. Youths who engage in sports eat more fast food and sports drinks, adding up to more calories than their non-participating peers. Three out of four kids participate in some sort of organized sport, according to Nelson. "Lots of attention in obesity prevention has focused on school, preschool and after-school programs," said Nelson, who previously worked with the Harvard Prevention Research Center on a project to help the YMCA improve nutrition and physical activity in after-school programs. "It seemed to me that youth sport was the next major area to focus, since kids spent lots of time in those settings." |
| Dec 5, 2011 |
Recess and PE Policies Mean More Activity for Kids Reuters, Genevra Pittman, 12/05/2011 According to a new nationwide survey of elementary school principals, kids are more likely to get the recommended amount of recess and physical education if they live in states or districts with policies that call for more of those types of activity. However, more than half of states and districts didn't require regular PE classes, and few made daily recess mandatory or even suggested it. And schools that did meet national recommendations for either recess or PE tended to skimp on the other -- suggesting that policy makers need to recognize the value of both activities for physical health and learning, researchers said. Editor’s Note: This study was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through its national research program Bridging the Gap. |
| Dec 5, 2011 |
Obesity Epidemic Hits South L.A. Harder Than Most Intersections South LA, Eddie North-Hager, 12/05/2011 From 1980 to 2004, the percentage of young people who were obese tripled nationwide, rising to 18 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Here in Los Angeles County, officials report more than half the adult population is now overweight. And while obesity is a problem for Americans in all walks of life, it’s worse when you don’t live near a park, when access to public transportation is limited, when sidewalks are broken and streetlights are few. "We have to recognize that where we live affects our health," says Anthony Crump, a policy analyst for Community Health Council, a group that aims to eliminate health disparities in South Los Angeles. |
| Dec 4, 2011 |
Hungry, Needy Kids Swell Lunch Lines Minneapolis Star Tribune, Kelly Smith, 12/04/2011 More Minnesota students are signing on for free or reduced-price meals, as middle-class families coping with cutbacks and foreclosures are becoming first-time users of the subsidized National School Lunch Program. Reflecting a surge seen nationally, nearly 33,000 Minnesota kids have joined the program in the past two years. |
| Dec 4, 2011 |
Putting Good Food Where it's Needed; Goal is to Improve Access to Fresh Produce The Times Herald, John C. Sherwood, 12/04/2011 Not everyone living the Battle Creek area enjoys quick and easy access to healthy, affordable food -- and a coalition of concerned activists is taking that challenge seriously. The effort has broad ramifications for encouraging healthy lifestyle choices across the region, said Paul Makoski, environmental health manager for the Calhoun County Health Department. |
| Dec 4, 2011 |
How the Food Industry Eats Your Kid’s Lunch [Opinion] New York Times, Lucky Komisar, 12/04/2011 Each day, 32 million children in the United States get lunch at schools that participate in the National School Lunch Program, which uses agricultural surplus to feed children. About 21 million of these students eat free or reduced-price meals, a number that has surged since the recession. The program, which also provides breakfast, costs $13.3 billion a year. Sadly, it is being mismanaged and exploited. |
| Dec 4, 2011 |
Colon Cancer Prognosis Worse for the Obese, Type 2 Diabetics HealthDay, Serena Gordon, 12/04/2011 People who have been diagnosed with colon cancer have a poorer prognosis if they're obese or have type 2 diabetes, new research suggests. Two new studies that looked at the impact that body-mass index (BMI) and a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes had on survival rates after a colon cancer diagnosis found that both factors influence whether or not someone survives colorectal cancer. In addition, both studies found that deaths from any cause, including heart disease, were also increased in those who were obese or had type 2 diabetes. |
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