Healthy Kids Healthy Futures Coalition

Welcome to Healthy Kids Healthy Futures

What kind of future will your child have? Due to the alarming rise of childhood obesity rates, today’s children may be the first generation of Americans whose life expectancy will be shorter than that of their parents. Childhood obesity has doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 20 years. It increases the chance your child will develop…
• Type 2 Diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Symptoms of early heart disease

The best way to have a healthy weight is prevention. Be sure your family practices healthy habits from the beginning. Provide healthy food choices and opportunities to move and have fun.

       

ChooseMYPlate.gov

      

The website features practical information and and tips to help Americans build healthier diets. It features selected messages to help consumer focus on key behaviors. Selected messages include:

1. 1.  Enjoy your food, but eat less.
2. 2.  Avoid oversized portions.
3. 3.  Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
4. 4.  Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk.
        (Children under two need to drink whole milk)
5. 5.  Enjoy your food, but eat less.
6. 6.  Avoid oversized portions.
7. 7.  Make at least half your grains whole grains.
8. 8. Compare sodium in foods like soup, bread, and frozen
       meals and choose foods with lower numbers.
9. 9. Drink water instead of sugary drinks.
10.   
11. For more tips on how to make healthy nutrition choices for your family, please visit http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan/eat-right/index.htm.
12.   

13.                           

    One-stop-shop for insights and advice about early childhood nutrition and physical activity.  www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org.   

      
          

Obesity in Children

Today's children are at high risk for developing many chronic diseases later in life due to obesity and lack of physical activity. These conditions include heart disease, high cholesterol and diabetes. Unfortunately, childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions. Over the last three decades, the number of children that are classified as overweight has almost tripled. Children, ages 2 to 18, spend an average of four hours a day watching television, playing video games or using a computer. Seventeen percent of American children are watching television more than five hours each day. These youth are 8.3 times more likely to be overweight than children who watch television for two hours or less.

     

Helping Your Overweight Child

Healthy eating and physical activity habits are key to your child’s well-being. Eating too much and exercising too little may lead to overweight and related health problems that may follow children into their adult years. You can take an active role to help your child—and your whole family—learn healthy eating and physical activity habits that last a lifetime. Click here for resources to help your overweight child grow into a healthy weight from the Weight Control Information Network.

      

AAP Report Finds Kids Need Water, Milk, Juice – Not Sports Drinks

A recent American Academy of Pediatrics report finds that kids don't need energy and sports drinks — and that some of these products contain substances that could be harmful to children. The AAP recommends that youth consume water, low-fat and fat-free milk and juice.  

                            

Kids Eat Free

Kids Eat Free in Macomb County at http://www.macombcountykidseatfree.com/
      

USDA Sets Guidelines for Healthier School Meals

Beginning July 1, 2012, school meals are headed for a healthy change. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released new meal requirements that will raise standards for the first time in more than fifteen years and improve the health and nutrition of the nearly 32 million kids that participate in school meal programs every school day.
         

Meal programs will have to reduce sodium, saturated fat and trans fat, and fruits and vegetables will have to be made available every day. Not only will the meal plans have more nutritious food choices, schools will offer fat-free and low fat milk only and provide child-appropriate portion sizes to help them maintain a healthy weight. Before the new rules, a standard elementary school lunch menu might have consisted of a hot dog with a bun, canned pears, carrots and celery with ranch dressing, and chocolate milk. A healthier meal under the new standards might include whole-wheat spaghetti with meat sauce, green beans, broccoli, low-fat ranch dip, kiwi halves and low-fat milk.

          

The USDA built the new guidelines around recommendations from a panel of experts convened by the Institute of Medicine. The standards were also updated with key changes from the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the Federal government's benchmark for nutrition. The healthier meal requirements are also a key component of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act signed into law by President Obama. The new USDA guidelines:

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• Ensure students are offered both fruits and vegetables every day of the week
• Substantially increase offerings of whole grain-rich foods

• Offer only fat-free or low-fat milk varieties

• Increase the focus on reducing the amounts of saturated fat, trans fats and sodium

• Limit portion sizes based on the age of children being served to ensure proper calories