Foundations and Current Issues of Early Childhood Education/Chapter 8/8.3

Should Schools Play a Role in Early Childhood Health?

Krystal Militich

The Problem

In 2002 the Center for Disease and Control reported that 16.9% of boys and 14.7% of girls are overweight (www.CDC.gov). Schools play an important role in children’s lives and can do more than any other institution to promote lifetime health. School nurses confront issues around children who are overweight on a daily basis. The Surgeon General released a “call to action” encouraging schools to join a nationwide effort to prevent overweight children. "Communities can help when it comes to health promotion and disease prevention," said former Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher, “When school lunchrooms or workplace cafeterias don't offer healthy and appealing food choices, that is a community responsibility.” (Healthlink)

What Schools Can Do

· Schools can provide a quality nutrition education and physical education program that helps students develop the knowledge, attitudes, skills and behaviors to adopt, maintain, and enjoy healthy eating habits and a physical lifestyle. · The state can ensure that school meal programs meet the nutritional standards according to the food pyramid. · They can remove any and all junk food and beverages from the building and school events (i.e. vending machines and school stores that may sell them) · Ensure that an adequate amount of time is provided for students to eat school meals. The Center for Disease and Control have published guidelines that identify school policies and practices most likely to be effective in promoting lifelong physical activity and healthy eating (Dietz, et al., 2004):

· 1-Address physical activity and nutrition through a Coordinated School Health Program (CSHP) approach. This approach focuses (1) health education; (2) physical education; (3) health services; (4) nutrition services; (5) counseling, psychological, and social services; (6) healthy school environment; (7) health promotion for staff; and (8) family and community involvement.

· 2-Designate a school health coordinator and maintain an active school health council. The coordinator is in charge of managing and coordinating all school health policies, programs, activities, and resources.

· 3-Assess the school’s health policies and programs and develop a plan for improvement. The school health council can use CDC’s School Health Index: A Self-Assessment and Planning Guide to identify strengths and weaknesses of current health policies and practices.

· 4-Strengthen the school’s nutrition and physical activity policies. For example, a 2003 Arkansas law requires that elementary schools stop selling food or soft drinks in vending machines to students. A Connecticut law passed in 2004 requires school boards to offer K-5 students a period of physical exercise each day.

· 5-Implement a high-quality health promotion program for school staff. It gives the staff the skills and motivation they need to become powerful role models for good health.

· 6-Implement a high-quality course of study in health education. To address obesity, health education curricula should emphasize the importance of implementing strategies to increase healthy eating and physical activity.

· 7-Implement a high-quality course of study in physical education. It should emphasize knowledge and skills for a lifetime of physical activity, meet the needs of all students, keep students active for most of the physical education class time, teach self-management as well as movement skills, and is an enjoyable experience for students.

· 8-Increase opportunities for students to engage in physical activity. Include recess periods for unstructured play, after-school programs, intramural sports programs, and physical activity clubs.

· 9-Implement a quality school meals program. Provide students with enough time and a safe, clean, and pleasant are in which to eat.

· 10-Ensure that students have appealing, healthy choices in foods and beverages offered outside of the school meals program.

Sidebar: All children are naturally at their “skinniest” when they are between 4 and 6 years old (Lumeng, 2005).

Integrated Approach

Teachers can integrate nutrition education into core curriculum areas, including math, science, language arts and social science. The integrated approach allows teachers to teach students about percentages while showing them how to use the Nutrition Facts labels on foods to make wise food choices. They can create a garden project where the children plant and eat the fruits and vegetables they grow.

Studies

In 2002, 16 percent of 6-19-year-olds were overweight (see Figure 1, Dietz). Nearly one in three children are overweight or at risk for becoming overweight. Being overweight is now the most common health problem facing U.S. children (Strauss & Pollack, 2001). There is substantial evidence that obesity in childhood lays the groundwork for adult cardiovascular disease. Evidence suggests that even children as young as 2 years learn food preferences from their peer group (Lumeng, 2005). Only 2% of children meet all the recommendations of the Food Guide Pyramid, 16% do not meet any recommendations (Muñoz, Krebs-Smith, Ballard-Barbash, & Cleveland, 1997). For out five children don’t consume the minimum recommended amount of five fruits and vegetables daily (Munoz, et al., 1997).

Arkansas

In 2004 Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas decided to send home obesity report cards to warn parents of overweight kid’s health risks (DeMillo, 2007). Since Arkansas adopted its school-based anti-obesity program, California, Florida and Pennsylvania have launched similar efforts. However, some lawmakers say that telling parents their children weigh too much could hurt children’s self-esteem. Some also question whether it’s the role of schools to monitor student’s weight. Dr. Karen Young of Arkansas Children’s Hospital says that fat children have self-esteem problems regardless of what anyone says (DeMillo, 2007). Last year, a study showed that the percentage of Arkansas children who were overweight or at risk of becoming overweight was 37.5 percent, down from 38.1 percent in 2004.

Conclusion

The obesity epidemic is one of the greatest public health challenges of this century. Without help from our schools, we are not likely to reverse this epidemic. Some schools have taken a stand against this fight and intend to do everything possible to prevent their students from becoming obese.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What was the total percentage of boys and girls who were overweight in 2002?

a. 14.7%

b. 38.1%

c. 31.6%

d. 16.9%

2. Which was the first school to enact the obesity report cards?

a. Arkansas

b. California

c. Pennsylvania

d. Virginia

3. What percentage of children meet all the recommendations of the Food Guide Pyramid?

a. 16%

b. 2%

c. 5%

d. 23%

4. Between the years of 1971 and 1974, what percent of 6-11 year olds were overweight?

a. >5%

b. <5%

c. >10%

d. <10%

5. What is the greatest epidemic of this century?

a. smoking

b. alcoholism

c. obesity

d. watching too much television

Essay Question

You have been an early childhood teacher for five years, and recently you have noticed a dramatic increase in your overweight students. You’ve noticed that only half of them come from obese parents. What, if any, changes do you think you can make in your class to stop this trend?

Work Cited

Ballard-Barbash, R., Cleveland, L., Krebs-Smith, S., & Munoz, K. (1997). Food Intakes of US Children and Adolescents Compared with Recommendations. Pediatrics, 100, 323-329.

DeMillo, A. Ark. May Drop Schoolchildren Weigh-Ins. (2007, February 5). Newsday [New York]. Retrieved February 7, 2007, from www.Newsday.com

Dietz, W., Lee, S., McKenna, M., & Weschler, H. (2004). The Role of Schools in Preventing Childhood Obesity. The State Education Standard. Retrieved March 9, 2007 from http://www.drugfree.org/Files/Role%20of%20Schools%20in%20Preventing%20Childhood%20Obesity

Healthlink Medical College of Wisconsin. Surgeon General Asks Communities to Address Obesity. (2002). Retrieved on March 5, 2007 from http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/1012427400.html

Lumeng, J. (2005). What Can We Do To Prevent Childhood Obesity? Zero To Three, 13-19.

National Center for Health Statistics. NCHS Data on Child Heatlh. Retrieved on March 5, 2007 from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/factsheets/childhlth.pdf

Pollack, H., & Strauss, R. (2001). Epidemic Increase in Childhood Overweight, 1986-1998. Journal of the American Medical Association, 286, 2845-48.

Multiple Choice Answers

1.C 2.A 3.B 4.B 5.C

Essay Answer

If I noticed an increase in my overweight students I would try to do everything possible to reverse the trend. I would send weekly letters home telling the parents what their children are doing to be healthy. I would send a list home of foods that the children can and can’t bring to class for snack and lunch. I’m aware that some parents will be offended by this, but in order to ensure that all the kids eat healthy it has to be done. Our class would plant vegetables and fruits in our garden, and they would eat them for as snacks. My students would be active all day, whether it’s in play or learning. I would try to incorporate body moving in every activity. Research has shown that the brain remembers more when every part is being utilized.