Physical Activity Update | Eat Smart, Move More…NC

The Move More Scholars Institute (MMSI) is being held from May 6-9, 2008. The course will be held at the Trinity Center in Pine Knoll Shores, NC. The MMSI trains local professionals to use both national and North Carolina specific resources to plan, implement and evaluate community based physical activity interventions.

All Health Promotion Coordinators, Physical Activity and Nutrition (LPAN) Coordinators, Healthy Carolinian Coordinators, School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC) representatives and any other community-based physical activity professionals are encouraged to apply. A community-based professional is a professional in North Carolina who partners with other organizations to create policies, practices and environments that promote and support physical activity.

Participants are selected through a competitive application process. Up to twenty-five applicants will be selected to attend the MMSI. There is a $100 registration fee for those who are accepted into the course. Applications are due by 5 p.m. February 1, 2008. To receive a course application, send an email to Lori.Schneider@ncmail.net. You can read more about the MMSI at http://www.cdc.gov/PCD/issues/2007/jul/06_0157.htm.

Programs, Projects and Initiatives

Active for Life Campaign: Promoting Physical Activity Among Those 50+

AARP’s Active for Life (AFL) campaign focused on getting sedentary midlife and older adults to engage in moderate physical activity for at least 30 minutes a day, at least five days a week AFL tested the effectiveness of this physical activity directive by conducting targeted physical activity campaigns in two cities-Madison, Wisconsin and Richmond, Virginia.
The local campaigns in each city employed a range of interventions to educate residents about physical activity, provide information about local physical activity programs, and advocate for environmental changes that would make it easier for the 50+ population in each city to walk and bike. A collection of these guides are available for download here: www.aarp.org/communitywidecampaigns
(From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, December 13th, 2007).

ACSM & AMA’s Exercise is Medicine

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American Medical Association (AMA) have launched a new breakthrough initiative, Exercise is Medicine, designed to encourage America’s patients to incorporate physical activity and exercise into their daily routine. Exercise is Medicine calls on doctors to prescribe exercise to their patients.

The goal of the Exercise is Medicine program is to encourage physicians to record physical activity as a vital sign during patient visits. Able patients will be advised to participate in at least 30 minutes of physical activity and 10 minutes of stretching and light muscle training five days a week.

The innovative Exercise is Medicine website contains educational materials and toolkits for physicians, patients, the media, and policymakers, as well as a listing of initial supporting organizations. Educational models will be developed for use in medical schools so students can learn the importance of prescribing exercise to patients early in their careers.

For more information go to:
http://www.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT01MzAwMzUmcD0xJnU9Nz
M4MDY2MzgmbGk9MTk3ODE3Nw/index.html.

The Reference Guide of Physical Activity Programs for Older Adults: A Resource for Planning Interventions

This resource provides information on 17 physical activity programs that could be used with older adults having healthy to frail functional status. All of the programs contain physical activity components that might achieve important benefits for all older adults with diabetes. A limited number of the programs were designed specifically for those with diabetes or pre-diabetes.

This guide is intended to be a tool that your organization can use to help choose the right physical activity program for the population you serve. To that end, this guide includes program elements such as demographic characteristics of the population that programs were designed to serve, program and participant costs, number and type of paid or volunteer staff required, any research conducted evaluating program efficacy or effectiveness, among others.

To download the guide, go to:
www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/pdf/RefGuideofActivity.pdf (From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, December 13th, 2007).

Success Stories

2007 Eat Smart, Move More…Maintain, don’t gain! Holiday Challenge Wrap-Up

The 2007 Maintain, don’t gain! Holiday Challenge was a huge success. Eighty-four percent of participants reported maintaining their weight. Of those who did not maintain, 69 percent reported losing weight.

Over 3500 people from across the state, country and the world participated. Ninety-seven of the 100 North Carolina counties were represented. Participants from 24 other states, and 3 other countries also took part in the Challenge. The counties with the most participation were Wake, Orange, Durham, Pitt, and Forsyth.

Featured Resources and Research

MMWR: Prevalence of Regular Physical Activity Among Adults — United States, 2001 and 2005

Volume 56, No. 46
November 23, 2007
To examine changes in the prevalence of physical activity from 2001 to 2005, CDC analyzed data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). This report summarizes the results of that analysis, which indicated that, from 2001 to 2005, the prevalence of regular physical activity increased 8.6% among women overall (from 43.0% to 46.7%) and 3.5% among men (from 48.0% to 49.7%). This does not include occupational-related physical activity.

Additional note on disparities: White men and women had a substantially higher prevalence of regular physical activity in both 2001 and 2005 compared to the other racial/ethnic groups.
However, these disparities were narrowed slightly in 2005 as a result of increases in activity among African Americans, Hispanic women, and women of other minority races.

See the full report at:
www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5646a1.htm?s_cid=mm5646a1_e (From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, December 13th, 2007)

CDC’s Community Health Resources Web site

This site navigates you to CDC’s best resources to plan, implement and evaluate community health initiatives. Site visitors can search or browse the Community Health Resources database for links to hundreds of useful tools, guides, handbooks, fact sheets and other information.

The Community Health Resources Web site is a collaboration of many CDC divisions and programs, including the Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity and the Division of Adult and Community Health (DACH). We invite you to visit the site www.cdc.gov/communityhealthresources , and to use it in your daily work. (From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, December 13th, 2007)

BIKESAFE: Case Studies

More than 50 case studies are provided in this resource! Each case study includes a description of the problem that was addressed, relevant background information, a description of the implemented solution, and any quantitative results from evaluation studies or qualitative assessments and contact information for the project. www.bicyclinginfo.org/bikesafe/case_studies.cfm
(From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, December 13th, 2007)

Legislation

There are no updates at this time.

Grants

General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids Grants

Deadline for Applications: January 15, 2008
The goal of the General Mills Champions for Healthy Kids grants is to encourage communities in the United States to improve the eating and physical activity patterns of young people, ages 2-18. Grants will be awarded to nonprofit organizations and agencies working with communities that demonstrate the greatest need and likelihood of sustainable impact on young people’s nutrition and activity levels through innovative programs.

The General Mills Foundation will award 50 grants, $10,000 each, to not-for-profit organizations with innovative programs that help youth develop both good nutrition and fitness habits. Organizations must be non-profit or not-for-profit organizations and have 501(c),(3) or 509(a) status. Local organizations that work with youth are encouraged to apply because their programs are more likely to be sustainable. These may include park districts, health departments, government agencies, Native American tribes, municipal organizations, churches, schools, YMCA’s, Boys & Girls clubs, and so on. The proposal must have at least one nutrition objective and at least one physical activity objective. www.generalmills.com/corporate/commitment/cbg_grant_complete.aspx
([Enewsletter] NCPPA News 12/17/08)

Training and Professional Development

Pro Walk/Pro Bike 2008 – Transforming Communities: Beyond Sustainability

September 3-5, 2008
Seattle, Washington
A Call for Proposals- due by February 1st, 2008
Several types of presentations will be welcomed for the 2008 conference, including 20-minute presentations grouped with other speakers; panel presentation on a single topic with 2-3 presenters and a moderator; poster presentations; and guided discussions and workshops.

See the following webpage for more details:
www.bikewalk.org/2008conference/submissions.html
(From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, December 13th, 2007)

Certificate of Training in Adult Weight Management Program

The Commission on Dietetic Registration will be offering Certificate of
Training programs in Adult and Childhood and Adolescent Weight
Management as noted below:

Certificate of Training in Adult Weight Management:

March 13-15, 2008 - St. Pete’s Beach, Florida
May 16-18, 2008 - Dover, Delaware
June 26-28, 2008 - Bellevue, Washington
September 18-20, 2008 - San Francisco, California

For registration and to view the certificate requirements, timeline, registration deadlines and agenda, go to:
www.cdrnet.org/wtmgmt/CertificateOfTraining.htm

Certificate of Training in Childhood and Adolescent Weight Management:

April 10-12, 2008 - Evanston, Illinois (near Chicago)
May 18-20, 2008 - Dover, Delaware
June 5-7, 2008 - Austin, Texas
September 4-6, 2008 - Cincinnati, Ohio

For registration information and to view the certificate requirements, timeline, registration deadlines and agenda, go to:
www.cdrnet.org/wtmgmt/childhood.htm