Family Studies Research Projects Healthy Nutrition Samford University Elizabeth Henard Blaise Bowman

Issue

The issue of nutrition in schools expands over many areas. There is a strong presence of both obesity and malnutrition in Americas schools. At the beginning of 2013, it was recorded that 31.8% of American children are overweight, while 16.9% are obese (Avery, Johnson, Cousins & Hamilton, 2013). Overweight children have a high likelihood to become overweight adults, leading to numerous health problems and a shortened lifespan. However, this issue affects all children, as almost all children go to school outside the home. It is at the school where children consume of their daily calories (Masse, Perna, Agurs-Collins & Chirqui, 2013). Therefore, the school is a prime intervention spot to help children get on the path to better nutrition and lifestyle. No other place has more influence on a child during their most important growing time. However, its easier said than done. A recent study reported that 42% of schools did not offer any fresh fruits or vegetables in the school lunch on a daily basis Additionally, a mere 5% of the breads were made from real whole grains. Schools may compromise quality of the food they serve for cost. But for some children, the free meals they receive at school may be the only food they eat all day. Making sure that those meals are substantial and nutritious is essential. Schools have a unique opportunity to create an environment in which children eat healthy foods, engage in regular physical activity, and learn lifelong skills for healthy eating and active living (Story, Nanney & Schwartz, 2009).

Background Information

Literacy Review The issue of poor nutrition in schools does not just deal with obesity, but also the opposite, hunger. A Place at the Table is a documentary addressing the issue of hunger in America today. Being underweight and hungry is not the only sign of not having a good nutritional food intake, but also obesity is a sign of malnutrition. The film follows three different stories of how they are being affected by food insecurity. There is Barbie, a single mother living in Philadelphia, Rosie, a fifth grader living in Colorado, and a second grade teacher in Mississippi. These stories show the struggles of average Americans and the food crisis we are in. With a limited budget people are going to buy the cheapest calories they can find which are processed foods. Schools today even model this outlook. The average school lunch costs $2.68, but only about $0.68 is spent on the actual

food. The documentary poses an insightful solution for making healthy food affordable and available to everyone. The filmmakers show that it is not a one person solution, but depends on everyone. This is a growing issue in the United States and it must be stopped. The article A Generation in Jeopardy dives more into what the lasting negative effects of poor nutrition are. Much of what people are eating today contain chemicals and nothing nutritional. In order for children to grow and function properly they need all the necessary nutrients. From this article there are several sections on what exposure to these chemicals can cause and what consuming these toxic foods can do to a persons body. Diabetes, obesity, asthma, and even things like ADHD, Autism and birth defects can be due to the consumption of poor nutritional foods. It is not just about eating healthy foods, but also to be aware of the foods you are consuming and what is in them and what is being used to grow these foods. There is an ongoing issue with nutrition in schools partially due to gaps in school wellness policies that exist on a local and national level. Gaps exist in leadership among teacher and administrators and how they perceive wellness. Gaps also exist in access to healthy foods, resources and finances, physical education opportunities, parental engagement, and other components. An option given to help solve this issue is a school wellness nurse, as introduced in this study. For the school experimented with, a three year plan was put in place. The nurse came in the first year and built relationships with all members of the school and leaders of the community. She collected data on available local resources,

school and food environments, and assessed each students health and knowledge of wellness. The children learned about nutrition through various resources. Troy University nearby had its students come to put on fun workshops on dental hygiene, along with other things. Various health events were held throughout the year. The cafeteria workers were given Team Nutrition cookbooks. The first years outcomes were extremely positive. During the second year, a school wellness committee was established. Physical fitness became a large component of the program. More intramural teams were established, as well as a school garden. The third year consisted of maintaining these programs. There was an increase in outreach to the local community, the YMCA especially (Avery, Johnson, Cousins & Hamilton, 2013). The outcomes from the school wellness nurse were exceedingly positive, and these solutions are realistic to implement. The CDC provides its top ten components of a successful school wellness policy. It recommends that schools: have a coordinated school health program that addresses both nutrition and physical activity, appoint a coordinator and committee, assess the current policies and create goals for improvement, strengthen the nutrition and physical activity policies, offer a high quality health promotion program for the staff, offer high quality courses in physical education and health education, offer more opportunities for students in participate in physical activities, offer a quality meals program, and include other healthy and appealing choices outside the program for students to enjoy (Story, Nanney & Schwartz, 2009).

There are laws that have been enacted to help schools provide more nutritious lunches. The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 requires that all schools create a wellness policy. It includes guidelines for nutrition for children and goals for nutrition education. The free lunch program was designed in 1946 to help the poverty-stricken families suffering from the effects of World War II. What originally was designed to help a few people now feeds more than 30 million children. This is where money can become an issue, and is an example of where quality is compromised for cost (Story, Nanney & Schwartz, 2009). However, it is easier to intervene in the lower level schools than secondary schools, where competitive food is circulated more. This is a huge obstacle - competitive food. Examples are granola bars, soda, salty snacks, junk food, etc. - food that the school does not provide in the meal plan, but is still present in childrens lives. Therefore, parent education is just as important. Educating parents on proper nutrition for children will help stop circulating unhealthy competitive food, as hopefully parents will send their children to school with more nourishing options (Story, Nanney & Schwartz, 2009). Discussion of Resources McElwain Christian Academy is a private school associated with McElwain Baptist Church. There are grades ranging from Kindergarten to 4th Grade with 33 students total in the whole school. The school lunches are provided by the Child Development Center at McElwain Baptist Church. Their lunch menu is based off of nutritional value and if the students enjoy the meals. The head of the lunch

department takes recommendations and ideas from parents, teachers, and the director. The possibilities for increased nutritional awareness is endless at McElwain. The small size of the school makes it more easy to include healthier foods into the diets of the students. Looking at the resources McElwain has the opportunities to expand their nutrition can include fresh fruits and vegetables at every lunch period, letting the students interact in the kitchen, a small garden, and even an interactive menu. There are many resources out there for McElwain to use. Developing teacher-parent relationships are very important and at McElwain we have seen these relationships. Educating students about healthy eating should not be done just at the school, but at home also. What better way to do that then to start having these practices implicated at home as well as school. Childcare resources does not provide any resources on nutrition in schools. However, the information collected on this project could be sent to them to implement a nutrition program. It would affect all their clients that are child care providers. In addition, a program could be set up for parents. They have a parent education program that includes nutrition, but they do not have one solely for nutrition for children. A resource found was the School Nutrition Association. Their website is http://www.schoolnutrition.org/ResourceCenter.aspx. They have a large resource center including fast facts, trends reports, participation reports, running your nutrition program, how to prepare school meals, etc. It is a bright and colorful

website, and very user-friendly. It has resources for staff, teachers, parents, and students. This would be especially be useful for schools trying to implement a better nutrition program. USDAs My Plate website provided the basic information about what your lunch plate should look like. This is the popular resource that has provided a colorful representation of what children should be intaking daily. Healthy eating on a budget and meal planning were the main areas pertinent to schools. For kids, there are sections on each food group that gives examples and pictures. Action Plan Looking at one of the menus provided we were able to see the limited options for healthy eating. There were many times a fruit or vegetable on the menu for a meal, but there were rarely both. Each meal should include a fruit and vegetable. The food should be fresh and reliable. A stewed apples option probably comes from a can and is heavily coated in syrup. A better option would be fresh apple slices with a tablespoon of peanut butter and dash of cinnamon. McElwain has the land outside to provide a garden for the schools kitchen. Because of the connection with the Church and CDC, this could really become a community effort. A garden is a great learning tool. Students can help choose what to plant, spend time outside preparing the garden, maintain through the year, learn about the environment necessary to help plants grow, and then enjoy their products in the kitchen. Because of the schools small size, having each class help out in the kitchen wouldnt be out of the question. Once a week or

month, students could have the opportunity to help the cooks in the kitchen by chopping, stirring, forming dough, etc. To make nutrition fun, students can make it personalized. Students can help create the menu by choosing from a list of entrees, fruits, vegetables, sides, and desserts. Their dream menus will be submitted to the kitchen and possibly used. This will give the kitchen input of what the students love. Additionally, on a students birthday, their favorite fruit or vegetable could be featured in the menu. A student cookbook can be created. Themed meals such as breakfast day, Italian day, Alabama produce day, are another fun option. Teaching kids about all different types of fruits and vegetables, and what can be done with them in a healthy manner, all contribute to a better lifestyle.

Resources http://www.choosemyplate.gov http://www.schoolnutrition.org/ResourceCenter.aspx http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/frss/publications/96852/index.asp?sectionid=3 on nutrition taught in schools