Can Schools Help Kids Eat Healthy?
Can schools help kids eat healthy and stay active? A new study just released provides some good news and some bad news. Five elementary schools in Philadelphia Pennsylvania participated in a two-year experiment conducted by Temple University.
The 1,349 students involved in the experiment were in grades four to six. At the beginning of the program, 40 percent of the students were overweight.
The schools replaced soda with juice. They banned all candy and limited snacks. When kids made good food choices, they were rewarded with tickets they could use to purchase bikes, jump ropes and other athletic equipment. Students were also encouraged to go to fitness centers during recess.
The schools did not stop there. Teachers taught nutrition lessons and there were meetings held with parents to talk about healthy eating habits and fitness activities. Students were also weighed regularly in the nurse’s office.
So what happened after two years? The good news is that half as many students got fat in the five experimental schools as compared to the schools that were not in the experiment. Also, in the experimental schools the overall number of overweight students decreased by 15 percent. At the other schools the number of overweight students increased.
The bad news is that even after all of the work that was done in the five schools, 7 percent of the students still became overweight during the two year experiment.
The researchers said that they learned that programs in schools need to start at an early age and that physical activity is just as important as healthy eating habits.
They suggested that the programs should also include stores around the schools that sell food to children. They learned during the research that the average student spent $2.00 a day on snacks and that the snacks included about 600 calories.
Source: Education Week
BLOG QUESTION
Do you think your school should make any changes in the food that is served, the activities that are part of physical education and recess or the health curriculum that teaches you about nutrition and fitness?
The 1,349 students involved in the experiment were in grades four to six. At the beginning of the program, 40 percent of the students were overweight.
The schools replaced soda with juice. They banned all candy and limited snacks. When kids made good food choices, they were rewarded with tickets they could use to purchase bikes, jump ropes and other athletic equipment. Students were also encouraged to go to fitness centers during recess.
The schools did not stop there. Teachers taught nutrition lessons and there were meetings held with parents to talk about healthy eating habits and fitness activities. Students were also weighed regularly in the nurse’s office.
So what happened after two years? The good news is that half as many students got fat in the five experimental schools as compared to the schools that were not in the experiment. Also, in the experimental schools the overall number of overweight students decreased by 15 percent. At the other schools the number of overweight students increased.
The bad news is that even after all of the work that was done in the five schools, 7 percent of the students still became overweight during the two year experiment.
The researchers said that they learned that programs in schools need to start at an early age and that physical activity is just as important as healthy eating habits.
They suggested that the programs should also include stores around the schools that sell food to children. They learned during the research that the average student spent $2.00 a day on snacks and that the snacks included about 600 calories.
Source: Education Week
BLOG QUESTION
Do you think your school should make any changes in the food that is served, the activities that are part of physical education and recess or the health curriculum that teaches you about nutrition and fitness?
1 Comments:
I think our schools should remember the importance of recess, and have at least 40 minutes of P.E. twice a week. If we offer lunches, they should include less white flour and fat.
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