Nutrition Update | Eat Smart, Move More…NC

October 2006

News from the PAN Branch

Dr. Leah Devlin Named 2006 ASTHO McCormack Award Honoree

Dr. Leah Devlin, Director of the North Carolina Division of Public Health and North Carolina State Health Director, was awarded the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) highest and most prestigious award, the McCormack Award during the Awards Luncheon at the ASTHO Annual Meeting held in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Devlin was recognized for many of her wonderful attributes and specifically for her leadership and integrity.

ASTHO is the national nonprofit organization representing the state and territorial public health agencies of the United States, the U.S. Territories, and the District of Columbia. ASTHO’s members, the chief health officials of these jurisdictions, are dedicated to formulating and influencing sound public health policy, and to assuring excellence in state-based public health practice.

The McCormack Award was established in 1950 to honor the late Arthur T. McCormack, a Kentucky State Health Official. This award is presented each year to a current, or former public health official who has served in public health for at least ten years, has served as a state health official for at least five years, has demonstrated excellence, and has made a significant contribution to the knowledge and practice of the field

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Devlin on this prestigious recognition!

Eat Smart, Move More…North Carolina Holiday Challenge

The PAN Branch and local partners are gearing up for an Eat Smart, Move More…North Carolina Holiday Challenge. The Challenge will be presented to North Carolina consumers during a 7-week campaign that will run Nov. 13 - Dec 31 (the week before Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve), with the goal being that North Carolinians maintain their current weight during the upcoming holiday season. Local health departments and other partners are invited to implement the campaign in their worksites, and to work with local businesses and organizations to implement the campaign in their local communities. Here are a few details:

Locals can partner with an interested organization, such as health care provider, community-based organization, and/or a media outlet.

The idea is that local “events” will kick off the campaign, inviting consumers to join in the Challenge.

Participants can enroll in the challenge at an event or on the Eat Smart, Move More…North Carolina web site (incentives for signing up and giving email address)

Campaign Components may include these items and more:

Weekly electronic newsletter, each focused on a different theme or concept. Following are some potential ideas for the themes:

Stress and relationship to eating - coping strategies
Strategies for eating healthy when entertaining or being entertained (healthy beverage choices, etc.)
Seasonal fruits and veggies
Healthy recipes for leftover Thanksgiving turkey
Cooking tips, recipes, healthy substitutions for baking
Healthy gift ideas
How to set achievable resolutions
Reader tips - section of e-letter
Highlight an individual story each issue

Web-based discussion board with Ask the Expert feature

Weekly newspaper article

Food diary, weight log, physical activity log or some other physical activity planning tool

Next month’s update will include more detailed information for how to get involved. Contact Bithiah Lafontant, Healthy Weight Communications Specialist, for more information at Bithiah.lafontant@ncmail.net to get involved or call 919-707-5223.

Local School Wellness Policy

The NC Division of Public Health, the Department of Public Instruction, the NC PTA and the NC School Boards Association, among others, are partnering to create a “buzz” around Local School Wellness Policy. A multi-disciplinary advisory team has met to map out a framework for a social marketing intervention targeting school board members, PTA members and School Health Advisory Council chairs with messaging and resources to help keep school wellness a priority for schools as they implement and evaluate their new school wellness policies. For more information, contact Cameron Graham at 919-707-5231 or email her at Cameron.Graham@ncmail.net

New PAN Branch Interns

The PAN Branch is pleased to announce that three new interns are completing course-work requirements for graduate school and are working with various PAN Branch staff:

Shawnese King will be working on the Local Physical Activity and Nutrition Coalition (LPAN) program. She will assess the training and technical assistance needs of local coalitions and assist in the development of an LPAN toolkit. Additionally, Shawnese will be drafting partnership guidelines for the State and local programs and researching potential funding sources for the Program. Shawnese has 8 years of experience as an elementary school teacher and is currently working on her Master of Public Health degree through Walden University.

Katherine Andrew and Sarah Gonzalez are completing their Master of Public Health degrees through UNC-CH and they will work as a team on several priority projects including researching and redrafting the Soft Drinks and Portion Size papers for School age children.
They will also be assisting in the re-branding of the 5 a day campaign (i.e. Fruits and Veggies More Matters) for NC and assisting in launching the new campaign next year. They will also be working on several Success Stories. Katherine attended the University of Virginia from 1998-2002, where she majored in Cognitive Science with an emphasis on Neuroscience. Sarah graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 2004 with a BSPH in Nutrition, and completed her Dietetic Internship at Meredith College the following year.

We are excited that all three ladies are with us to both learn and provide additional support to several of our Branch programs.

Anita Holmes Named DPH Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Branch Head

Please join the PAN Branch in welcoming Anita Holmes to our fellow sister branch, the Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Branch. Anita took the helm as Branch Head on September 28, 2006. She brings a plethora of skills, attributes and experience to the position in the area of community, organizational partnerships, research, supervision and administrative oversight. Many of you may know Anita through her work as the Executive Director of the Center for Health and Healing at the General Baptist State Convention. She holds a Juris Doctorate in Law and an MPH in Health Education and Comprehensive Health Planning.

Programs, Projects and Initiatives

2006-2007 Eat Smart, Move More…NC Community Grants Winners

Eighteen projects to create community opportunities for increased physical activity and healthy eating are being funded through special grants to local health departments. The Eat Smart, Move More…North Carolina Community Grants totaling $300,000 come from the N.C. Division of Public Health (through CDC and state funds) in support of the Eat Smart, Move More…North Carolina initiative.

Those selected to receive these awards are Alexander County, Appalachian District, Buncombe County, Caldwell County, Chatham County, Davie County, Graham County, Guilford County, Henderson County, Hertford County, Iredell County, Martin-Tyrrell-Washington District, New Hanover County, Orange County, Person County, Rockingham County, Rutherford-Polk-McDowell District and Wake County.

Forty-two applications were reviewed through a competitive RFA process and the top ranking projects identified for funding. Grant requests totaled more than two and a half times the amount of available funding. Grants will be implemented between October, 2006 and May, 2007.

Congratulations to our 06/07 grant winners and thank you to all the health departments and districts that submitted applications.

Detailed information about each winner can be found at the funding page on the Eat Smart, Move More…NC website

Success Stories

NC Organizations Creating Eat Smart Policies

Since the release of the Eat Smart North Carolina: Guidelines for Healthy Foods and Beverages at Meetings, Gatherings and Events in August 2006, many organizations have begun to use the document to craft their own policies for the organizations they work with or on behalf of.

The PAN Branch is interested in keeping a list of organizations that have created their own Eat Smart Policies. If you are one of these organizations, please send an e-mail to nc5aday@ncmail.net and identify your name, the name of the organization who has adopted a Eat Smart policy, the date the policy was adopted, and an electronic version of the policy (if available). You can download a pdf version of this document on the Eat Smart, Move More…NC website (scroll down about halfway).

USDA Awards $1 Million to the NC Department of Public Instruction; Special Program will Promote Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Schools

August 30, 2006 - Students in selected North Carolina public schools will benefit from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program during School Year 2006-2007. This program targeted at increasing the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables is made possible by a $1 million grant from the USDA.

This is the third consecutive year North Carolina has been awarded the opportunity to participate in the USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program. Funds will be distributed among 25 selected NC elementary schools to purchase and serve a wide variety of free fresh fruits and vegetables to all students in participating schools. Schools are providing fruit baskets inside the classroom, kiosks in the hallways, and other innovative approaches to give students the opportunity to grab a fresh fruit or vegetable snack throughout the school day. Participation in this program also creates a healthier
school environment.

State Superintendent June Atkinson said this grant plays an important role in the state’s continuing efforts to build on superior schools. “It’s important for students to learn healthy eating habits at a young age. This program will help with these efforts and ensure that our earliest learners master one of the skills that will benefit them for a lifetime,” Atkinson said.

Schools participating in the program also will make nutrition education a priority so students will learn the importance of fresh fruits and vegetables in a healthy diet. This program creates an optimum environment for students to develop healthful snack habits because it uses all of their senses ‚Äì sound, sight, touch, smell, and most important, taste.

The NCDPI’s Child Nutrition Services Section is partnering with the NC Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, and the NC Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Public Health, to implement the program in the following elementary schools for School Year 2006-2007:

Hertford Grammar School, Perquimans County Schools;
Perquimans Central School, Perquimans County Schools;
Tyrrell Elementary, Tyrrell County Schools;
Oaks Road Elementary, Craven County Schools;
Edwin A. Alderman Elementary, New Hanover County Schools;
Johnson Primary School, Camp Lejeune Dependents Schools;
Tarawa Terrace II Elementary, Camp Lejeune Dependents Schools;
Rich Square-Creecy Elementary, Northampton County Schools;
Squire Elementary, Northampton County Schools;
Bladen Lakes Primary School, Bladen County Schools;
Whiteville Primary School, Whiteville City Schools;
Boone Trail Elementary, Harnett County Schools;
Candor Elementary, Montgomery County Schools;
Long Branch Elementary, Public Schools of Robeson County;
Southmont Elementary, Randolph County Schools;
Draper Elementary, Rockingham County Schools;
Battleground Elementary, Lincoln County Schools;
North Rowan Elementary, Rowan-Salisbury Schools;
Overton Elementary, Rowan-Salisbury Schools;
East Albemarle Elementary, Stanly County Schools;
Freedom Trail Elementary, Avery County Schools;
Newland Elementary, Avery County Schools;
Hall Fletcher Elementary, Asheville City Schools;
Andrews Elementary, Cherokee County Schools; and
Bruce Drysdale Elementary, Henderson County Schools.

For more information on the USDA Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, please contact the NCDPI Communications Division at 919-807-3450.

Featured Resources and Research

Healthy Schools Fundraising Toolkit
This toolkit includes ideas and resources on planning healthy school fundraisers. It is useful for PTA members, Booster Club parents and members, and anyone involved in school fundraising. Check out the toolkit for planning tips, ideas on how to use physical activity and non-food items, and a local healthy fundraising success story. The Toolkit is available for download in PDF format.

PowerPoint Presentation “Easy Ways to Use the Label for Healthy Eating” Available for Professionals Educating Consumers on Nutrition Labeling

By now you have likely heard about the New Dietary Guidelines and the new Food Guide Pyramid. The third element is the Food Label. The Food and Drug Administration’s goal is to teach label-building skills that affect the quality of consumer’s eating and food purchasing behavior. Below is a web link for a PowerPoint presentation developed by FDA for nutrition labeling titled “Easy Ways to Use the Label for Healthy Eating”. It includes very nice educator’s notes. The PowerPoint Presentation is available for download.

Wisconsin Nutrition and Physical Activity Worksite Resources

The Wisconsin Worksite Resource Toolkit has been posted on the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Service/Nutrition and Physical Activity Program’s website. It is a tool to assist worksites with implementing strategies that have been proven to be effective. The kit walks you through the process of developing a worksite wellness program. Go to this site.

What Works in Worksites has also been posted to their website. This is the second (schools was first) in a series of a two-page summary of evidence-based and promising strategies that focus on helping people eat healthier and be more active in the workplace. Go to this site.

For further information about these exciting resources, please contact:

Mary Pesik, RD, CD
Wisconsin Division of Public Health
Nutrition and Physical Activity Program Coordinator
1 West Wilson Street, Room 243
Madison, WI 53703
608-267-3694
Fax: 608-266-3125
pesikmj@dhfs.state.wi.us

National Food Safety Education Month

September was National Food Safety Education Month. You can find information on this year’s food safety theme at the this website. The overall menu of all the year’s food safety themes is found at this site. The links to past campaign materials are equally relevant throughout the year. Every month is Food Safety Month.

September’s target was not only to spread the food safety messages but also to create, share and spread opportunities for food safety education.

Let’s look for more opportunities to work together to promote food safety throughout North Carolina - each and every month.

Overweight in Early Childhood Increases Chances for Obesity at Age 12

Children who are overweight as toddlers or preschoolers are more likely to be overweight or obese in early adolescence, report researchers in a collaborative study by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and several academic institutions.

The researchers periodically collected height and weight measurements of a sample of children, beginning at age 2 and continuing until age 12. Their analysis, appearing in the September “Pediatrics”, provides some of the strongest evidence to date that overweight in early childhood increases the chances for overweight in later life.

“These findings underscore the need to maintain a healthy weight beginning in early childhood,” said Duane Alexander, M.D., the Director of NIH’s National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, which funded the study. “Contrary to popular belief, young children who are overweight or obese typically won’t lose the extra weight simply as a result of getting older.”

A large number of studies have found that obesity persists from childhood, through adolescence and into adulthood. Obese adolescents are likely to become overweight adults and, as such, at risk for the complications of obesity — cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and diabetes.

Most previous studies have collected height and weight information only from a few intervals in childhood and 1 or 2 intervals in later life. The strength of the current analysis is that it was conducted on data collected during frequent intervals over an extended period of time, from age 2 through age 12, explained the study’s principal investigator, Philip R. Nader, M.D., Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics at the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine. Dr. Nader added that the children who took part in the study were born in 1991, and so were growing up during the current trend of overweight and obesity in the general population.

The analysis was conducted on data collected as part of the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. For the study, researchers followed the development of more than 1000 children from across the United States, enrolled in the study at birth. Although the study sample was not nationally representative of the United States as a whole, the sample did include children from ethnically diverse and economically disadvantaged households. More than 80 percent of the children in the study grew up in two-parent families. For the most part, the study focused on gathering information relevant to children’s experiences in various child care arrangements. However, measurements of the children’s height and weight were collected when the children were ages 2, 3, 4 1/2, 7, 9, 11, and 12.

For the current analysis, the researchers calculated body mass index, or BMI, for children in the study. BMI is a standard measure calculated from an individual’s height and weight. Children were classified as overweight if their BMI was at or above the 85th percentile in comparison to national statistics for children their age.

The researchers found that children who were overweight at least once from ages 2 to 4 ¬Ω were 5 times more likely to be overweight at age 12 when compared to children who were not overweight from ages 2 to 4¬Ω. The more times a child was overweight from ages 7 through 11, the greater the chances the child would be overweight at age 12 in comparison to children who were not overweight from ages 7 through 11. For example, a child who was overweight once during the elementary school years was 25 times more likely to be overweight at age 12 than was a child who was not overweight during the elementary school period. Similarly, when compared to children who were not overweight, children who were overweight twice during the elementary period were 159 times more likely to be overweight at 12, and children overweight 3 times during elementary school were 374 times more likely to be overweight at 12.

Dr. Nader said that the study results strongly suggest that parents concerned about their children’s weight should speak to their children’s pediatricians about helping their children establish more healthful diet and exercise patterns. Because pediatricians regularly measure their patients’ height and weight, Dr. Nader added, they are in an excellent position to proactively advise parents if they see signs of unhealthful weight gain.

“Pediatricians can be confident in counseling parents to begin to address the at-risk child’s eating and activity patterns rather than delaying in hopes that overweight and the patterns that support it will resolve themselves in due course,” the study authors wrote. “Identifying children at risk for adolescent obesity provides physicians with an opportunity for earlier intervention with the goal of limiting the progression of abnormal weight gain that result in the development of obesity-related morbidity.”

The researchers also reported some risk of overweight at age 12 for children who were not overweight during the preschool and elementary years but had still had relatively higher BMIs at those ages. For example, 4 1/2 year old children with BMIs between the 50th and 75th percentile were 4 times more likely to be overweight at age 12 than were children below the 50th percentile at age 4 1/2.

Children in these percentiles were within the range of normal weight, Dr. Nader noted, and so do not need a weight management regimen. Still, given the study findings that preschool and elementary age children with BMIs between the 50th and 75th percentile are at risk for overweight at age 12, it would be advisable for parents and physicians to observe children in this BMI range and to begin corrective action if the children’s weight edges upward.

The study authors also found that no children in the study who were below the 50th percentile at preschool or elementary school age were overweight at age 12.

Information about the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development is available at this site.

New Resources from FNS-USDA

Visit the “Take Action” Web Page USDA, Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has launched a new web page. The new page contains additional web resources to assist you in encouraging FNS program participants and staff to take actions to improve their health by making positive changes in key dietary and related behaviors.
Current resources address ways to:

promote fruits and vegetables, and
support and encourage breastfeeding.

These ideas can be used in all the FNS nutrition assistance programs, including the Food Stamp Program, WIC Program, Food Distribution programs, and the Child Nutrition Programs.

Take Action provides practical, simple, and easy tips showing that small steps can yield big results. Check out this web site for tips on how to:

Promote and Support Breastfeeding Across FNS Programs
Promote Fruits and Vegetables in Your Workplace and Community

After reviewing these web resources, take a moment and send FNS your comments using the Feedback Form on this web site.

New National Institutes of Health Web Site for Child Health and Human Development

Need information on reading disability? Want to know how much calcium is in a serving of broccoli? Trying to find out how to apply for a research grant to study spinal cord development in zebrafish? Check out this site.

The component of the National Institutes of Health that conducts and supports research on human development, medical rehabilitation, and the health of children, adults, families, and communities, launched its redesigned Web site. The new National Institute of Child Health and Human Development site provides easy access to information for patients, the general public, scientists, and the news media.

The NICHD’s new site has undergone major changes in content, navigational features, and design. One premier feature is an A to Z topics list, which offers information on health conditions, disorders, programs, and topics. Reflective of the NICHD’s mission, these topics span the gamut, from autism, to endometriosis, to gestational diabetes, to reading disabilities. The site also links to corresponding NICHD publications and materials.

Moreover, users will find links to clinical trials (research studies involving volunteers) and to the Institute’s public education campaigns: - “Back to Sleep” (reducing the risk of sudden infant death syndrome), - “Milk Matters” (the importance of getting enough calcium during the preteen and teen years), and - “Media Smart Youth” (teaches young people to evaluate media messages about nutrition and physical activity).

Scientific researchers coming to the NICHD Web site will find extensive information on the Institute’s research components and supported projects. Through a directory that is searchable by research specialty, researchers and potential grantees will now be able to find program staff and scientists who share their research interests. Scientists seeking financial support for their own research projects or training will be able to access information tailored for their level of familiarity with the federal funding process or to the current stage of their research career.

The redesigned Web site also provides members of the news media with convenient access to current and past news releases, science advances, as well as media resources, such as video and audio clips. In addition, the site also offers help to reporters seeking to arrange interviews with NICHD scientists and officials.

The redesigned site was unveiled at the Institute’s September 11, 2006, meeting of the NICHD’s National Advisory Child Health and Human Development Council. The NICHD sponsors research on development, before and after birth; maternal, child, and family health; reproductive biology and population issues; and medical rehabilitation. For more information, visit the Institute’s Web.

Progress in Preventing Childhood Obesity: How Do We Measure Up?

This report, released on September 13, 2006, examines the progress made by obesity prevention initiatives in the United States over the past two years. The report builds on the IOM’s 2005 report, Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance, a congressionally mandated study that provided a blueprint to guide concerted actions for many stakeholders‚Äîincluding government, industry, media, communities, schools, and families‚Äîto collectively respond to the growing obesity epidemic in children and youth.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation requested in 2005 that the IOM convene an expert committee to examine the nation’s progress in addressing obesity in children and youth. Progress in Preventing Childhood Obesity: How Do We Measure Up? presents the committee’s conclusions and recommendations. It emphasizes a call to action for key stakeholders and sectors to lead and commit to childhood obesity prevention, evaluate all policies and programs, monitor their progress, and widely disseminate promising practices.

Information on how to order this publication can be found on the National Academies Press website. You can also order reports over the phone by calling the Press at 1-800-624-6242.

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Releases New Chartbook on Overweight and Physical Activity Among Children

A new HRSA publication, “Overweight and Physical Activity Among Children: A Portrait of States and the Nation, 2005,” reports on the prevalence of overweight and levels of physical activity among children and their families at the national and state levels using data from the 2005 National Survey of Children’s Health.

The report includes information for each state, easy-to-follow bar graphs as well as breakdown analyses by ethnic and racial group. You can view or download the report in pdf format.

The Data Resource Center also features an easy-to-use interactive data query that allows users to search, view and compare NSCH results at state, regional and national levels, stratified by selected demographic characteristics including age, race, household income, insurance type, and special health care needs status. Visit the website.

New Weight Management Research to Practice Materials on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages

The CDC Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity (DNPA) is pleased to announce the new Weight Management Research to Practice brief: Does Drinking Beverages with Added Sugar Increase the Risk of Overweight? Research to Practice Series No 3. and the companion lay piece: Rethink Your Drink: How to Reduce Sugar-Sweetened Beverages to Help Manage Your Weight.

Both documents are available for download at the CDC DNPA website.

DNPA also has print-ready files available for anyone who is interested in doing a professional printing of the Weight Management Research to Practice materials. For more information, and to obtain a CD-rom with the print files, contact Kristen Sullivan at kpr3@cdc.gov.

The Weight Management Research to Practice Series is designed to summarize the science on a weight management topic for health professionals and the lay audience. An overview of the science is compiled into a summary document appropriate for public health professionals, including implications for practice. In addition, some installments in the series will be accompanied by a tool geared toward a lay audience, which can be used by health professionals in practice.

Dietary Reference Intakes: The Essential Guide to Nutrient Requirements

Responding to the expansion of scientific knowledge about the roles of nutrients in human health, the Institute of Medicine, in partnership with Health Canada, has updated what used to be known as Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) and renamed their new approach to these guidelines Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs).

Since 1998, the Institute of Medicine has issued eight exhaustive volumes of DRIs that offer quantitative estimates of nutrient intakes to be used for planning and assessing diets applicable to healthy individuals in the United States and Canada.

All eight volumes are summarized in this reference volume, Dietary Reference Intakes: The Essential Reference for Dietary Planning and Assessment.

Organized by nutrient for ready use, this reference volume reviews the function of each nutrient in the human body, food sources, usual dietary intakes, and effects of deficiencies and excessive intakes. For each nutrient of food component, information includes:

Estimated average requirement and its standard deviation by age and gender.
Recommended dietary allowance, based on the estimated average requirement and deviation.
Adequate intake level, where a recommended dietary allowance cannot be based on an estimated average requirement.
Tolerable upper intake levels above which risk of toxicity would increase. Along with dietary reference values for the intakes of nutrients by Americans and Canadians, this book presents recommendations for health maintenance and the reduction of chronic disease risk.

Also included is a Summary Table of Dietary Reference Intakes, an updated practical summary of the recommendations. In addition, Dietary Reference Intakes: The Essential Reference for Dietary Planning and Assessment provides:

Guiding principles for nutrition labeling and fortification
Applications in dietary planning
The proposed definition of dietary fiber
A risk assessment model for establishing upper intake levels for nutrients
The proposed definition and plan for review of dietary antioxidants and related compounds

Creating Healthy States: Building Healthier Nutrition Programs
The NGA (National Governor’s Association) Center for Best Practices is the nation’s only dedicated consulting firm for governors and their key policy staff. The Center’s mission is to develop and implement innovative solutions to public policy challenges. The Center has posted an Executive Summary of Creating Healthy States: Building Healthier Nutrition Programs on its website. Rates of overweight and obesity have reached epidemic levels in the United States, and no single approach will turn them around. However, the Food Stamp Program (FSP) and Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), which provide broad coverage of high-risk groups, afford potentially effective ways to promote healthier lifestyles that can decrease the prevalence of obesity.

Governors have considerable opportunity to curb the health problems caused by excess weight through innovative changes in FSP and WIC coupled with other initiatives with the target populations. Financial and physical access to nutritious foods, in addition to education and guidance on healthy nutrition and lifestyle choices should be core components of increasing the health impact of FSP and WIC. To a large extent, state actions thus far have focused primarily on physical or geographical access, including the following types of innovations:

Pennsylvania launched a Fresh Food Financing Initiative to increase the number of supermarkets and grocery stores in the state’s underserved communities.
In New York, Food Change created the Harlem Community Supported Agriculture Project to give low-income families consistent access to healthful foods produced by farmers upstate.
California organizes farmers’ markets in low income areas through the Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program. The program promotes demand by providing FMNP checks to its WIC recipients, also increasing financial access.

To read the Executive Summary in its entirety, go to the NGA Center for Best Practice’s website.

For more information contact: Joyal Mulheron in the Health Division.

National Conference of State Legislatures Published Reports

Here are brief descriptions and links to NCSL (National Conference of State Legislatures) Bookstore’s recently published reports that are available to assist state policymakers with obesity prevention:

“Childhood Obesity: Legislative Policy Approaches and the Evidence Base to Date”

American children are growing fatter, putting them at risk for serious health conditions. This report outlines a variety of legislative policy approaches that are under consideration to facilitate opportunities for a healthier diet and more exercise, beginning in childhood. Visit this site for more information.

“The Legislative Role in Healthy Community Design”

This report analyzes state legislation considered during the 2004 and 2005 sessions‚Äîand the first half of the 2006 session‚Äîthat encourages physical activity and access to healthy food through changes in the built environment, land use planning and zoning, as obesity prevention options. Visit this site for more information.

Food Stamp Nutrition Education System Report

This report, recently released by USDA presents a comprehensive and systematic national description of food stamp nutrition education operations in fiscal year (FY) 2004. It also provides a comparison of those operations to the standards of excellence for nutrition education developed as the Food Stamp Nutrition Education Guiding Principles, released by FNS in September 2005.

For more information go to this site.

2005 SMART BRFSS Data and Prevalence Tables Now Available

The CDC’s Behavioral Surveillance Branch in the Division of Adult and Community Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Coordinating Center for Health Promotion, is pleased to announce the release of the 2005 SMART BRFSS data and prevalence tables.

SMART BRFSS (Selected Metropolitan/Micropolitan Area Risk Trends from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System) began with the analysis of data from the 2002 BRFSS. It now includes data from 2002 through 2005, with prevalence estimates for over 170 metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas (MMSAs), as well as many counties within those areas.

There are 29 additional MMSAs with data available for 2005, including San Diego, California; Flint, Michigan; Atlantic City, New Jersey; Buffalo, New York; Scranton, Pennsylvania; and Spartanburg, South Carolina. As with the past data, the Web site includes both the data sets and the prevalence tables for MMSAs and counties, as well as pre-set Quick View charts which compare county, MMSA, and state data for seven select risk factors in an easy-to-print PDF format.

The SMART BRFSS data and prevalence tables are located at this site.

For more information, please contact Lina Balluz, Sc.D., M.P.H. at 770-488-2466 or lib7@cdc.gov.

Legislation

No update this month.

Grants/Awards

2006-07 Eat Smart Move More NC Grant Recipients Announced
See Programs, Projects and Initiatives section

USDA Awards $1 Million to the NC Department of Public Instruction; Special Program will Promote Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Schools (See Success Stories section).

Grants Available to Promote Healthy School Communities

ASCD Announces Application for Grant Award Program
The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) will award 10 grants of $10,000 each to help schools and communities work together to create a healthy school environment. The selected schools will demonstrate the capacity for best practice in leadership and instruction, support comprehensive health programs, and create strong collaborations with other community institutions.

The grant program is part of ASCD’s worldwide effort to promote the integration of health and learning and the benefits of school-community partnerships. Grantees will assess the health-related aspects of the learning environment and use the results for school improvement and community engagement. They will participate in a study to identify the key indicators of success. School communities will receive technical assistance and become part of a Healthy School Communities network.

“ASCD is committed to supporting systemic healthy school reform. We are determined to assemble rigorous evidence that will enable us to track our progress and share resources, information, models, and key learnings that will significantly improve the future of children’s health and learning worldwide,” said Gene Carter, ASCD’s Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer.

Healthy School Communities sites will be selected in November 2006. The pilot grant is open to K‚Äì12 public and independent school communities in the United States and its territories, including Department of Defense Schools; Canada; the Caribbean; and the Asia Pacific region.

Grant applications are available online and are due November 15, 2006. For more information about the application process, contact Theresa Lewallen, director, at 1-703-575-5622 or healthyschoolcommunities@ascd.org.

Training and Professional Development

5th Annual North Carolina Conference on Aging

“Boomers Turning 60‚ÄîImplications For All of Us”
October 25-27, 2006
Sheraton Imperial Hotel & Convention Center
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina

The North Carolina Conference on Aging is a collaborative effort to develop a professional conference to provide educational and networking opportunities for anyone interested in long-term care, vital aging, family issues, work and retirement, leadership, and professional development. Realizing the diverse nature of this task, we have made a deliberate effort to include local, regional and state-level service providers, educators, students, consumers, volunteers, clients, caregivers, policymakers, and administrators.

Approximately 77 million babies were born in the United States during the boom years of 1946 to 1964. This year the oldest in this group will turn 60 and can expect to live to 83. Many will continue well into their 90s. These baby boomers will have the opportunity to redefine the meaning and purpose of their older years. As some of the demands of work and family that have commanded their attention in mid-life recede, boomers will have the potential to become a social resource of unprecedented proportions by actively participating in the life of their communities. This conference is intended to serve as a forum for information exchange among persons from the academic, governmental and service provider communities.

Both the 2006 North Carolina Conference on Aging Preprogram/Registration booklet, as well as the 2006 Sponsor, Exhibitor and Advertiser Package are now available online.

If you would like a hard copy and haven’t received one, you can request one by emailing ioa@unc.edu with your complete mailing address, or calling (919) 966-9444.

The Registration booklet contains the conference schedule and a listing of events, as well as a description of all plenary sessions, the registration form, and information on lodging and area attractions. If you are interested in attending this year’s conference, be sure to send in your registration form and make your hotel reservation as soon as possible, as we expect space to fill quickly.

The Sponsor, Exhibitor and Advertiser Package contains information about opportunities to showcase your organization, materials and services, as well as the 2006 Application Form. If you are interested in reserving space at the conference, don’t delay - do it today - as space is available on a “first come, first serve” basis, and during each of our past Conferences, the exhibit hall has completely sold out. Please be sure to reserve your hotel room at the same time (see the Preprogram/Registration booklet for details) as we expect space to fill quickly.

For more information contact:
Diane Wurzinger
UNC Institute on Aging
720 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Suite 200
Campus Box #1030
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-1030
Phone: 919-843-2647
Fax: 919-966-0510
Email: diane_wurzinger@unc.edu

Free Professional Continuing Education Credits

The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion is offering free continuing professional credits for dietitians and dietetic technicians for reviewing certain MyPyramid materials on their Web site. See this site for more information.

Nutrition and Physical Activity Teleconferences

Every month, the CDC Division of Nutrition & Physical Activity (DNPA) sponsors a monthly teleconference on a variety of topics, but mostly dealing with nutrition &/or physical activity. The calls are scheduled the 2nd Thursday of each month from 1:30-2:30 p.m. The next call will be held on October 12, 2006. The topic will be the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity’s Weight Management Research to Practice Series presented by Beth Carlton Tohill, PhD, MSPH, Epidemiologist, Chronic Disease Nutrition Program, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Anyone who would like the handouts or participate in future calls please send an email to NC5ADAY@ncmail.net.

National 5 A Day Teleconferences

Each month, the National 5 A Day Partnership sponsors calls geared toward each State 5 a Day Coordinator. The calls are scheduled the first Tuesday of the month from 1:00 -2:30 p.m. Included below is the tentative schedule for the remainder of 2006.

November 7th
Strategic Thinking
TBA

December 5th
National Council of Fruit and Vegetable Nutrition Coordinators—annual update

If you are interested in possibly participating in the calls or receive the handouts, please send an email to nc5aday@ncmail.net.

Commission of Dietetic Registration Trainings

The Commission on Dietetic Registration will be offering certificate of training programs for Registered Dietitians (RD’s) in adult and childhood and adolescent weight management as noted below:

Certificate of Training in Adult Weight Management October 26-28, 2006 - Kansas City, Missouri; December 7-9, 2006 - Plantation, Florida. To obtain a registration form and to view the certificate requirements, timeline, registration deadlines and agenda, go to this site.

Certificate of Training in Childhood and Adolescent Weight Management - October 28-30, 2006 - Kansas City, Missouri. To obtain a registration form and to view the certificate requirements, timeline, registration deadlines and agenda, got to this site.

Participation is limited. Please reserve you place on or before the registration deadline. Past certificate programs have been filled to capacity several days prior to the registration deadline. CDR strongly recommends that flight arrangements and hotel reservations not be finalized until written registration confirmation is received. The registration fee is $345. Registration includes the home study module, 2 1/2 day onsite workshop and post-test. The adult weight management program is approved for 28 CPE units, and the childhood and adolescent program is approved for 27 CPE units - Level II. Program participants must pass the pre-test to attend the on-site program. All program participants will receive continuing professional education units; however, only those who pass the post-test will receive the certificate. Participants will only be given one opportunity to take the post-test. To register for a certificate of training program by phone, please call CDR at 1/800-877-1600, x 5500.

Getting to the Basics: The Business of Weight Management Programs.

The obesity epidemic is threatening the health and wellbeing of millions of Americans. Are you prepared to help reverse the trend?

National Prevention Summit:
Prevention, Preparedness, and Promotion
October 26 and 27, 2006
Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill
Washington, D.C.

Building on last year’s 3rd National Prevention Summit, the upcoming 2006 National Prevention Summit will focus on disease prevention, health preparedness, and health promotion and will feature innovative programs that are making a difference in communities across the country to build a HealthierUS. These programs are focused on healthy lifestyle choices eating a nutritious diet, being physically active, making healthy choices, and getting preventive screenings to help prevent major health threats and burdens such as obesity, diabetes, asthma, cancer, heart disease, and stroke. One special emphasis this year will be the prevention of childhood overweight and obesity. Another emphasis will be preparing for public health emergencies, such as avian influenza.

To register for the National Prevention Summit, please go to this site.

2007 National Health Education Conference & SOPHE’s 2007 Midyear Scientific Conference

“The Changing Face of Health Education and Health Promotion”
June 7-9, 2007
Seattle, Washington

Call for Abstract Submissions:
You are invited to be part of a premier national health education and health promotion conference cosponsored by the Directors of Health Promotion and Education (DHPE), Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Proposals are encouraged for concurrent sessions, pre or post-conference workshops, or poster presentations at the 2007 National Health Education Conference & SOPHE’s 2007 Midyear Scientific Conference, June 7-9, 2007, in Seattle, WA. Abstracts may be submitted online at This site. The submission deadline for abstracts is Friday, October 20, 2006

The conference theme, “Changing Face of Health Education and Health Promotion” speaks to breaking down sub-categories within the profession such as infectious vs. chronic, global health vs. domestic health that serve as barriers to progress. This conference will encourage re-conceptualizing health education and health promotion programs, research and practice to cross over professional boundaries and seek an integrated approach to solving health education challenges. Abstract proposals from all professionals and public health partners involved in health education, health promotion, health communication, community health, and behavioral research are encouraged to respond to this invitation.

Abstract proposals are solicited for sessions that are interactive (e.g. facilitated dialogue, exploration of new ideas, group exercises) as well scientific presentations that promote audience discussion (e.g. research, case study, lessons learned, focus on process or results). Abstract submissions provide opportunities to engage persons at all levels of health education, health promotion, and health communication. Conference participants can explore integrated approaches to public health by viewing and sharing innovative cross cutting themes, effective research, programs and practice.

Visit www.sophe.org to submit an online abstract proposal and choose from the following conference theme areas:

Translation of Research and Linkages to Practice

Submissions are sought that address the application of behavioral research to state, local and federal levels. Submission that address translating publication and journal content to public health education practice; bridging those who produce scientific and scholarly literature to those that affect change in communities; how to apply behavioral and social science research to bring local and national change; and how to bridge research to the programmatic level.

Global Health Education and Promotion

Submissions are sought that address the application of global health issues to domestic public health challenges and the opportunities to learn and dialogue in the areas of developing health systems to meet the public health challenges, cultural cultural competence, health education‚Äôs connection to chronic and infectious diseases, environmental health issues and public policy implications.

Institutionalization for Health Education Programs - Beyond Funding

Submissions are sought that address survival of effective health education programs in the face of budget cuts and shifting priorities at the federal, state and community levels. Attention to the role of marketing public health programs and expanding partnerships are encouraged, as well as to addressing the rising appeal of private funding to include foundations and the corporate giving pool, with particular emphasis on the ethical issues and challenges of private funding. Submissions that also address worksite health education and health promotion programs that translate into community programs are encouraged.

Health Disparities: The Research to Practice Continuum

Submissions are sought that address translation of research to practice in health disparities as it applies to global health, evaluation, ethics of health disparity research, institutionalization of programs, ethical challenges, and practice scenarios where change has been affected, as well as the policy implication. Submissions that address cost-benefit analysis of health disparity research and programs are especially encouraged.

For more information contact one of the following co-chairs:
Sandra Bulmer, PhD, SOPHE Abstract co-Chair
Bulmers1@southernct.edu

Bobby Rasulnia, PhD(c), MPA, MPH, CHES, DHPE Abstracts co-Chair
Bba9@cdc.gov

Sonya Geathers, MPH, CDC Abstracts co-Chair
Shg0@cdc.gov.