December 2007

News from the PAN Branch

Save the Date

The Move More Scholars Institute is being planned for May 6-9, 2008. The Move More Scholars Institute (MMSI) is an intensive four day training course for community-based physical activity professionals in North Carolina. Scholars learn how to promote and support physical activity in their communities by using evidence based strategies to create polices, practices, and environmental changes. The course is taught through educational sessions led by nationally recognized faculty, formal and informal interactions with faculty and other scholars, and small group projects.

The MMSI supports the Eat Smart, Move More…North Carolina initiative through a curriculum focused on developing policies, practices and environments across the state to promote and support physical activity.

Programs, Projects, Initiatives

“Students Succeed with School Meals: The Healthy, Low-cost Choice” Educational Video

Earlier this year, the Division of Public Health conducted parent, teacher, principal, and child nutrition staff focus groups to understand more about nutrition in the school environment. The data was used to create a comprehensive tool kit for Child Nutrition Directors across the state that includes Powerpoint presentations, a variety of fact sheets, and sample articles and menus. The tool kit was designed to be used with parents, teachers, and principals to promote school meals, to educate them about how school meals help students succeed, and to clear up some “myth-information.”

Although the tool kit was already distributed to all NC Child Nutrition Directors this past October, HPDP has been working closely with the Division of Public Health to create the last piece of this tool kit: an educational video that promotes healthy school meals and describes how Child Nutrition Programs operate. With funding from the Department of Public Instruction, a team of HPDP staff has traveled across the state to film footage of healthy school meals being prepared, discussed, and eaten! The video will include commentary from Child Nutrition Directors and Managers, the state PTA president, a principal, a superintendent, and several students. The video will be short, positive and entertaining, and is designed to reach a wide audience.

“Students Succeed with School Meals: The Healthy, Low-cost Choice!” is scheduled for release and distribution in early 2008. To access tool kit components, go to this site.

Wrapping Up Adolescent Obesity Initiative –North Carolina Academy of Family Physicians

The NCAFP is wrapping up their Adolescent Obesity Initiative, in hopes to sustain the project they have developed a physician “how-to” guide from lessons learned. The guide is now complete and 1,000 copies have been printed. These are available at the Academy office and will be distributed at their Winter Meeting in Asheville to all attending physicians. The guide is also available online for download on the NCAFP website. The guide encompasses all four years of the project including successes, barriers and how physicians can start the project in their own county.

Another sustainability effort is an online CME program for physicians. Mott Blair, MD, and Carolyn Dunn, PhD completed the recording for Child and Adolescent Obesity Advances, an online CME program that will be available for 2 years and for 1.5 CME credits. They will give this same presentation at the Winter Family Physician’s Weekend in Asheville. The talk provides valuable information regarding the importance of screening all patients for obesity and promoting physical activity and healthy eating. This will be promoted through a mass mailing to 8,000 physicians in North Carolina and some surrounding states.

For more information go to: www.ncafp.com/home/programs/aoi.

News from the UNC-CH Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention: Wake to Wellness

In July 2007, 15 elementary schools in the Wake County Public Schools System were awarded funds by the John Rex Endowment to implement nutrition and fitness programs in their schools through the Wake to Wellness grants program. Between 2007 and 2010, the John Rex Endowment will grant almost $450,000 to these schools to help them meet the nutrition and fitness requirements of federal, state, and local wellness policies.

Schools have already begun their programs and are making great progress! Students are walking on newly paved tracks, participating in comprehensive wellness programs, learning about nutrition in classrooms, workshops, and after-school events, being more active during the school day, and participating in after-hours fitness classes.

There are almost 10,000 elementary students who are currently benefiting from the Wake to Wellness program, and some schools have planned programs that target staff members as well.

UNC’s Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention (HPDP) has partnered with the John Rex Endowment to develop this program and is providing technical assistance to Wake to Wellness schools. HPDP is also monitoring the progress of programs and conducting an overall evaluation of the impact of the programs. A second round of Wake to Wellness (2008-2011) is currently being planned, and should be announced in early 2008. . Click on the links below to read a summary of each school’s proposed activities.

Baileywick Road Elementary School
Baucom Elementary School
Cedar Fork Elementary School
Conn Active Learning and Technology Magnet Elementary School
Farmington Woods IB/PYP Magnet Elementary School
Fred A. Olds University Connections Magnet Elementary School
Lincoln Heights Magnet Elementary School
Middle Creek Elementary School
Morrisville Elementary School
Olive Chapel Elementary School
Penny Road Elementary School
Vance Elementary School
Washington Elementary GT Magnet School
Yates Mill Elementary School
Zebulon Elementary Gifted and Talented Magnet School

Below are some links to articles about the Wake to Wellness program. Last October, the assistant principal of one Wake to Wellness school (Cedar Fork Elementary) spoke about the program as a guest on “The State of Things,” which aired on WUNC’s National Public Radio! Go to this site to hear the show. The press release is available here.

Successful Students Eat Smart and Move More Provides Tools for Advocating for Local Wellness Policies

The N.C. Division of Public Health launched a program to help school administrators and parents advocate for the implementation of wellness policies in local schools.

Successful Students Eat Smart and Move More is a social marketing intervention intended to raise awareness and support of school wellness polices. The goal is to ensure that these policies are implemented, monitored and evaluated to ensure they are meeting the needs of the schools, staff and students.

Successful Students Eat Smart and Move More contain resources available to PTAs, school board members, principals and assistant principals, and parents who are interested in local wellness policies. An advocacy toolkit, informational brochure and a PowerPoint presentation are currently available at www.EatSmartMoveMoreNC.com. A community relations and media toolkit will be added at a later date.

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation Partners With the American Heart Association

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation is a partnership between the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation to fight one of our nation’s leading health threats - childhood obesity. The Alliance’s goals are to halt the nationwide increase in childhood obesity by 2010, reverse the trend by 2015, and inspire young people and their families to develop lifelong healthy habits. Without immediate intervention, this generation of children stands to be the first in history to have a shorter life span than that of its parents.

The Alliance provides a four-pronged approach that works with schools, children and families, the food and beverage industries, and healthcare professionals. Together these approaches will transform kids’ schools, homes, and communities into healthier places to learn and play. Through the Healthy Schools Program the Alliance is working to increase opportunities for students to exercise and play, putting healthy foods and beverages in vending machines and cafeterias, and providing resources for teachers and staff to become healthy role models.

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation is committed to working with industry leaders and corporations to help combat childhood obesity by influencing restaurants and snack companies to make healthier meals, drinks and snacks for kids.

Healthcare providers, insurers and other industry representatives play critical roles in promoting healthy lifestyles for children. While the healthcare community is concerned about childhood obesity most are not equipped to prevent, diagnose or treat the condition. Common barriers include lack of time, knowledge, and reimbursement for providing appropriate counseling along with the poor availability of effective interventions. The Alliance is working to overcome these barriers by collaborating with healthcare experts to facilitate better solutions for providers and the healthcare delivery system in addressing this epidemic.

Motivating kids to take charge of their health and to lead their own Go Healthy movement is perhaps the most important component of effecting change in their lives. The Alliance has teamed up with Nickeloden, Rachel Ray and other champions to create a fun and informative on-air, online and community-based movement. The Go Healthy Challenge is a “by kids, for kids” campaign that empowers young people to take the lead in making their lives, schools and communities healthier.

The goal of the Go Healthy Challenge is to engage at least 2 million kids to take the Go Healthy Pledge to eat better and exercise more. The American Heart Association has also introduced Hugo, the Challenge mascot, who makes healthy eating and getting active cool. Parents can also access tools and resources that will help them create a healthy environment for their kids whether at home, eating out or at school.

Log on to www.healthiergeneration.org or call the American Heart Association at 919-463-8309 to learn more about the Alliance and how you can become a champion in the fight against childhood obesity. Kids can also visit www.igohugo.com, a special site just for kids that features games, videos, and fun ways to get involved in creating a healthier generation.

Featured Resources and Research

New Student Tally and Parent Survey from NC for SRTS

The National Center for Safe Routes to School has updated its student tally and parent survey data collection forms, and these will be publicly available starting on Monday, November 5. These new evaluation tools use a “scannable” format, which will allow for the National Center for SRTS to process the forms for schools and communities and send back a report to SRTS organizers with the findings.

Schools and communities participating in SRTS programs are encouraged to use these evaluation tools, so that consistent statistics can be developed regarding the effects of the SRTS program on changing behavior and attitudes.
For more information go to this site. (From Safe Routes to School E-News: November 2007)

Exercise Builds Strong Brains, Too

Kids who play hard every day may be making their brains, as well as their bodies, stronger. A new study reports that children who play vigorously for 20 to 40 minutes a day may be better able to organize schoolwork, do class projects and learn mathematics. “Children who are not active may be at a disadvantage academically,” says Catherine Davis, an associate professor of pediatrics at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta. She presented the research last week at the annual meeting of the Obesity Society, a group of weight-loss professionals. For more information go to this site.
(From [Enewsletter] NCPPA News, November 6, 2007)

ACSM and AMA Launch “Exercise Is Medicine” Program Calls for Physicians to Prescribe Exercise to Patients

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

A recent survey conducted of the public by ACSM found that nearly two-thirds of patients (65%) would be more interested in exercising to stay healthy if advised by their doctor and given additional resources. Four out of 10 physicians (41%) talk to their patients about the importance of exercise, but don’t always offer suggestions on the best ways to be physically active. Patients (25%) look to their doctor first for advice on exercise and physical activity. They turn next to fitness and health Web sites (24%).

The goal of the Exercise is Medicine(tm), 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.

A new web site contains educational materials and toolkits for physicians to use in their practices. The site also includes information for 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.

Physical inactivity is a fast-growing public health problem in this country and contributes to a variety of chronic diseases and health complications, including obesity, coronary artery disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, depression and anxiety, arthritis and osteoporosis. In addition to improving a patient’s overall health, increasing physical activity has proven effective in the treatment and prevention of chronic disease.

“We already advise against smoking; recommending exercise should be no different,” said Robert E. Sallis, M.D., ACSM president. “Physicians can support the program by prescribing exercise and offering patients basic educational materials. Exercise can have tremendous health benefits for patients.”

“More than half of Americans don’t get nearly enough exercise and would be astounded to see how much difference a brisk 30-minute walk a few times a week makes in their overall health,” said Ronald M. Davis, M.D., AMA president. “We encourage physicians to talk to their patients about the importance of exercise and to work with them to establish programs they can start today and continue throughout their lives.” For more information about this program, go to the new web site.
(From [Enewsletter] NCPPA News, November 6, 2007)

Active Living Resource- Getting Youth Involved in Planning

This fact sheet provides information on how to involve youth in community planning and decision-making using their unique perspective on active living. Also provided are examples and resources for community planning with children.
For more information, download this PDF
.
(From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, November 15th, 2007)

School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) 2006
SHPPS 2006 is the most comprehensive study of school health policies and programs ever conducted in the United States.

SHPPS is conducted periodically to monitor the extent to which school health policies and practices are addressing the leading causes of death, illness, and social problems among young people and adults. For 2006 report summary, download this PDF. (From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, November 15th, 2007)

I Can Do It, You Can Do It

The US Office on Disability has initiated the nationwide program I Can Do It, You Can Do It. It is a mentoring program to increase physical fitness among youth with disabilities. The program pairs an adult mentor interested in physical fitness and health and a child with a disability. The pair works together in an initial six week program of planned increased physical activity and education about good nutritional choices. For more information go to this site. (From [Enewsletter] NCPPA News, November 6, 2007)

Schools Making Improvements in Promoting the Health of Children

According to the School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) 2006 – released mid-October by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – U.S. schools are making gains in creating healthier learning environments for children. SHPPS is the most comprehensive study of health policies and programs in schools, conducted every six years to assess school health policies nationwide and programs at the state, district, school and classroom levels. Major findings for 2006 (in comparison with data from 2000) include:

• School districts prohibiting schools from offering junk foods in vending machines increased from 4% to 30%;
• Schools selling water in vending machines or school stores increased from 30% to 46%;
• School districts that required elementary schools to provide students with regularly scheduled recess increased from 46% to 57%; and
• Schools that offered salads a la carte increased from 53% to 73%.

However, the 2006 SHPPS report illustrates areas of improvement to meet the nutrition and physical activity needs of young people nationwide:

• More than 75% of high schools sell soda or fruit drinks that are not 100 percent juice, and 61% sell salty snacks not low in fat through vending machines or school stores;
• Only 4% of elementary schools, 8% of middle schools, and 2% of high schools provide daily physical education (slightly more offer physical education 3 days a week).

Overall, 22% of schools did not require students to take any physical education.

For more information and highlights from the SHPPS 2006 study, visit this site. (From November 2007 Connections)

Safe Routes to School: 2007 State of the States Report

The 2007 State of the States Report on Safe Routes to School provides an update on the implementation of the federal SRTS program in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The report includes a description of the health, safety and community concerns that the SRTS program helps address, an outline of the enabling legislation, an overview of the progress made in all the states, early success stories, observations and available resources.

Available at this link from the Safe Routes to School Partnership: A network of more than 300 organizations and professional groups working to set goals, share best practices, secure funding and inform agencies that implement Safe Routes to School programs. For more information, see: www.saferoutespartnership.org
(From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, November 15th, 2007)

Legislation

No updates at this time.

Grants

NEW! 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. See this link for more information. (From [Enewsletter] NCPPA News, November 6, 2007)

Fit Community Designations and Grants Promoting Healthy Lifestyles

Available to NC Towns and Counties
Applications due: February 1st, 2008
Fit Together, a partnership of the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund (HWTF) and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC), released a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a third phase of its Fit Community designation and grants program.

Fit Together, the overweight/obesity prevention campaign of HWTF and BCBSNC, awarded the second phase of grants and designations in May 2007. Eight NC Communities including Cary, Edenton, Salisbury, and Mecklenburg County received designations. This program rewards municipalities and counties for supporting healthy eating, physical activity, and tobacco-free living through policy, promotions and community infrastructure. Although the designations are a part of the partnership with BCBSNC, funding for the grants is provided solely by HWTF.

North Carolina municipalities, counties, and lead agencies that represent municipal or county partnerships and meet specified eligibility criteria outlined in the RFP are eligible to apply for the designation. Eight two-year grants of up to $30,000 annually will be awarded to applicants that demonstrate need, proven capacity, and opportunity for positive change in addressing physical activity and/or healthy eating in North Carolina. HWTF is committed to selecting designees that represent a broad geographic range, diversity of needs, and range of strategies used to address those needs.

There is no fee to apply for the Fit Community designation or grant. For more information about the Fit Community program, or to download a Fit Community application, applications will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. on February 1st, 2008. For more information download this PDF.

Training and Professional Development

ACSM 12th Annual ACSM Health and Fitness Summit
March 24-27, 2008
Long Beach, California
Experts from ACSM and NASM deliver four days of dynamic sessions for health and fitness, strength training, and nutrition professionals. Learn with other experts in over 100, highly - motivational sessions and demonstrations in nine distinct tracks from worksite health promotion to special populations. The Health and Fitness Summit takes place at the Hyatt Regency Long Beach and Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center

Visit www.acsm.org/summit for more information or contact (317)637-9200 X 108. (From CDC’s and NSPAPPH Physical Activity One-Way Listserv, November 15th, 2007)