In January of 2009, the Healthy Out-of-School Time coalition was formed and by April of 2011 the group had adopted the healthy eating and physical activity quality standands (HEPAQS) for out-of-school time. In this article from Childhood Obesity, Wiecha et al. (2012) discuss the protocol used to develop the HEPAQS as well as the implications they may have on policy development. HEPAQS includes 11 standards for Healthy Out-of-School Time, that could serve as voluntary guidelines for out-of-school programs and curricula.The physical activity component of this document offers guidelines for: best practices;
staff training;
social support;
program support; and
environmental support. According to a recent study, although Latino children met screen time viewing recommendations, ...
The Cooper Institute and United Way Metropolitan Dallas have collaborated to form the Healthy Zone School Program. The Healthy Zone School Recognition Program encourages schools to implement policies and initiatives to help fight childhood obesity, in the Dallas area. In order to be a part of the program, schools must go through a competitive selection procedure. To be considered for the program a school must demonstrate that it: promotes healthy eating;
provides various opportunities for children to participate in physical activity;
provides physical education that lives up to the standards of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education; and
has established a School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC) that is comprised of various stakeholders. If a school lacks any ...
Competitions like the HEB Community Challenge prompt communities to make healthy lifestyle changes, and help raise awareness of childhood obesity. In 2012, a total of 38 mayors across Texas and several school officials recorded videos asking members of their community to participate in this state wide challenge. A total of 324 communities were enlisted in the challenge and 14,517 individuals were engaged in the effort to make their community a healthier one. At the end of the competition the winning cities of the challenge were San Antonio, Brownsville, and Pflugerville. This video showcases the top nine scoring communities in the H-E-B Community Challenge. One winner was selected from a small, medium, or large city. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4sdcm2qUsw Not only did the Healthy ...
Healthy Living Matters (HLM), a childhood obesity prevention collaborative, has committed to curbing obesity in the Houston/Harris County area by using policy action to make healthier changes in communities. Made up of a handful of local leaders and professionals, HLM engages youth as change-agents in their communities. After empowering the youth to assess current food access and built environment within their Houston/Harris County neighborhoods, they hope to educate at-risk communities on what can be done to make healthy living easier. HLM continuously monitors federal, state and local policy trends that impact childhood obesity. By year two, they hope to put out a Community Action Plan, which will serve as a roadmap for policy implementation. While HLM hopes to affect environmental ...
Houston Independent School District (HISD) in Texas is further addressing the growing issue of childhood obesity by creating a well rounded wellness policy. "The new Houston ISD wellness policy, currently being drafted by the School Health Advisory Council [SHAC], will directly address the use of food as a classroom reward (as well the equally distressing use of exercise as a punishment)." says Bettina Siegel, author of the blog The Lunch Tray The USDA has been increasing policies on school foods and competitive foods, by making nutrition standards for school meals in the past, and are currently creating standards for competitive foods in school snack lines. However schools or districts themselves must take the next steps in changing their policies on standards for fundraisers, ...
To reach families who need better access to healthy fruits and vegetables, sometimes you have to think outside of the box. What if schools became a place where families could pick up fresh food to bring home each week? A program in Houston thinks this idea is worth a shot. Brighter Bites is a new collaborative effort among the Houston Food Bank, Texas Children’s Hospital, KIPP schools and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. The program seeks to improve health by removing barriers to healthy eating. Second-and-third-grade children and their parents at KIPP Explore Academy in Houston’s East End are currently participating in Brighter Bites. The 16-week program includes 50 servings of a variety of produce sent home weekly with parents. The program also includes ...
According to a news article from The Reporter, health advocacy groups are working with state policy makers in Pennsylvania to develop legislation that would create a specific fund to support the construction of walking and bike trails. Groups like the Mission: Readiness organization---an organization of retired military leaders---are concerned that childhood obesity has become an issue of national security and have called on state lawmakers to develop a comprehensive transportation plan that would include active modes of transportation. The news story reports that legislators plan on proposing a whole sales tax on fuel sold to gas stations to support the development of trails. They are hoping that this tax would help raise between $2.5 billion and $2.8 billion a year for new ...
Georgia is no stranger to the connection between hunger and obesity. Many low-income residents live in areas that have no grocery store close by but boast a variety of fast food joints, and rates of childhood obesity in those areas are high. Following the lead of many states and cities nationwide, Georgia has created the Georgia Supermarket Access Task Force, led by The Food Trust and Voices for Georgia’s Children. The task force has been meeting with key stakeholders, such as grocers and those in public health and agriculture, to talk about ways to get stores with fresh, healthy produce back into these areas. Check out the task force's work here! One great success story in the area is the Veggie Truck Farmers' Market, a weekly produce truck that accepts nutrition assistance and ...
According to a news report, The Association for Childhood Education International estimates that 40% of US schools have reduced or eliminated recess and this number may be even higher among high-minority, underserved populations. Although, recess is a vital component of a child's development and physical activity time, students are not always provided with recess on a daily basis. Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Mercer) of New Jersey recently sponsored a bill that would guarantee children at least 20 minutes a day of recess time. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, children should be getting at least 60 minutes a day of physical activity. In this App.com op-ed, three individuals discuss their support for ...
