Action for Healthy Kids announces new grants available till August 31, 2014 for those seeking assistance in providing healthy breakfasts for student: Through partners CSX Transportation, Kellogg Company, Kellogg’s Company Fund, and the Walmart Foundation, Action for Healthy Kids is pleased to release its School Grants for Healthy Kids opportunities for the 2014-2015 school year. Around 1,000 schools will be awarded funds ranging from $500 to $5,000 to support school breakfast and physical activity programs. Funded schools will also receive expertise and people power to help implement a successful project that leads to sustainable change. Award amounts will be based on building enrollment, project type, potential impact, and a school’s ability to mobilize parents and ...
Programs that make it easier for low-income families to buy fresh, healthy foods at farmers' markets are catching on across the country, and many Latino families are benefiting. In Washington, D.C., a new program introduced by the District’s Department of Health in partnership with farmers' markets across the city provides low-income city residents with two $5 checks a week at certified District farmers markets and some community distribution sites to spend on fruit and vegetables this summer. The D.C. Council allotted $135,000 for the purchase of food through the program, Produce Plus. The goal is to increase access to fresh produce for those who may struggle to afford it. Recipients of most food assistance programs, including SNAP and WIC, are eligible for Produce ...
Recently the New Mexico Student Nutrition Bureau went above and beyond the new standards set by the USDA's Smart Snacks regulations. The New Mexico standards will allow only nuts, seeds, yogurt, cheese and fresh fruit to be sold during the school day from vending machines in middle and high schools, with other snacks not available until 30 minutes after the school day ends. They are also updating their vending standards, encouraging elementary schools to have only water, low-fat/fat-free milk, or soy milk in their machines. Middle and High Schools have to meet strict size and calorie standards for 100% fruit juices, carbonated beverages, and flavored waters. Fundraisers are also addressed in New Mexico's new standards, allowing groups to do only one hour of fundraising during the ...
Bag the Junk brings a easy guide to being prepared for the new snack changes that start this 2014-15 school year. Good News – Healthier Rules for School Snack Food are Now in Place and We’ve Got the skinny on How They Can Work for You and Your Students! The USDA “Smart Snacks” rule applies to all foods sold for consumption at school that are not part of the national school breakfast and lunch programs (vending machines, a la carte items, school stores, fundraisers, etc.). Using the resources below can make changing your school’s food environment as easy as eating an apple. Top 5 Resources to help you prepare for new Smart Snacks rules: Find Smart Snacks guidelines HERE.
Find complete USDA Smart Snacks materials HERE.
To know whether a particular food ...
Leaders from across the US are bringing healthy change to their part of the country by joining the Let's Move Cities, Towns, and Counties (LMCTC) initiative. According to a National League of Cities (NLC) blog, since January 2014, in addition to over 1,800 communities who started making healthy changes, eleven LMCTC communities completed all the requirements necessary to earn gold medals in five different health categories. The eleven communities who have committed to growing healthy change include: Beaumont, TX - Councilmember Dr. Alan B. Coleman
Annapolis, MD – Mayor Michael Pantelides
Columbia, SC – City Council Member Tameika Isaac Devine
Columbus, OH – Mayor Michael B. Coleman
Fontana, CA – Mayor Acquanetta Warren
Knox County, TN – Mayor Tim ...
Kids in South Carolina and across the country are still not getting enough physical activity according to a July 2014 CDC report. In an article published by The Post and Courier, Dr. Daniel Bornstein, assistant professor of health, exercise and sport science at The Citadel, said the findings of this report should be a call to action for our nation's youth to start moving. The 2014 State Indicator Report on Physical Activity, which examined behavioral, environmental and policy indicators across the 50 states, found that in South Carolina (a state with a growing Latino population), nearly 20% of youth reported not being physically activity. States like Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Tennessee also presented high numbers of physical inactivity, with levels of ...
This report highlights how levels of physical activity differ by state. It also points out how states compare to each other in regards to environmental and policy strategies used to encourage physical activity. Things like: policy guidance on shared use agreements at the state level;
having access to parks, recreation centers, and sidewalks
living within 1/2 mile of a park;
increasing time spent doing moderate-vigorous physical activity;
requiring recess; and
getting kids to walk and bike to school are all recommended as ways to increase levels of physical activity. Access the full report ...
The Summer Nutrition Programs ensure that low-income children have access to healthy food throughout the summer. Most Summer Nutrition Programs occur in tandem with educational and enrichment programs that keep children learning, engaged, and safe during the summer months. The Summer Meals Act hopes to have a better integration of summer education and meals in programs that provide summer enrichment, as well as improve nutrition in rural, under-served, hard to reach areas throughout the US. You can find out more information on the legislation ...
Residents living in the diverse community of Lonsdale in Knoxville, Tennessee, now have a safe place to walk and play thanks to the Knox County Health Department and local community organizations. On July 26, 2014, partners including Lonsdale United For Change, a Latino Task Force of Lonsdale Volunteers, the Knox County Health Department and the Grace Baptist Church, hosted a celebratory event to inaugurate the new one-mile path, which connects Lonsdale Elementary, Lonsdale Park, Sam E. Hill School, and a few other nearby playgrounds. According to a November 2013, Knoxville Neighborhood Advisory news bulletin community members painted the new L-shaped path, in order to promote walking and better health in the community. The news bulletin says that walking feet along with a ...
