WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month

Dear Parents,

September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month.  Obesity in children has more than doubled and quadrupled in adolescents in the last 30 years.  In 2012, more than one in three children and adolescents were overweight or obese.  Obesity has immediate and long-term effects on health AND well-being.  One immediate effect for kids is being the recipient of bullying by their peers at school, especially if they are in middle school. When kids get bullied at school, they isolate themselves at home and at school.  They stop participating in after-school activities.  They complain about stomach aches more often than kids who are not overweight or obese and have higher rates of absenteeism.  Then their grades start dropping.  Then their self-esteem is affected.  

Driving to work every day, I pass a middle school and an elementary school.  I always notice the kids who walk to school because growing up, I walked to school.  I see many kids struggling to walk, walking slower than other kids who are not overweight.  I see kids wearing long pants and long sleeve shirts because they are trying to cover up their size, even though it is 90 degrees outside and other kids are wearing shorts and T-shirts to school.  I notice that the overweight and obese kids are walking slower than the rest of their classmates.  How can you not notice a child who is twice the size of other kids?  

What bothers me about my goal of raising awareness about the solutions to childhood obesity is that kids who are overweight or obese need better role models.  Take today, for example.  I happened to be at the local hospital and I observed that most of the health care workers were overweight or obese.  Outside the hospital, I observed health care workers smoking (instead of walking) on their break.  In the hospital cafeteria, I saw lots of highly processed, prepackaged foods, iceberg lettuce on the salad bar (yuck!) and a large display of sodas right by the cash register.  If most adults are eating foods high in added sugars and think nothing of drinking 3 sodas a day, then is it any wonder we have an obesity epidemic in this country?

If childhood obesity is such a big problem, then do we really care enough to do something about it?  If the health care workers at my local hospital are any indication, then I would say no.  If the number of overweight and obese teachers is an indication, then I would say no.  

I could go on and on, but you catch my drift.  If childhood obesity is such a big problem, then WE MUST BE THE SOLUTION.  It is up to us to lead by example.  It is up to us to teach kids how to read food labels and be nutrition detectives.  But if we are drinking three sodas a day and taking our work breaks to smoke instead of take a 10 minute walk, then what are we really teaching our children about good health habits?  

September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month.  Drink water, not soda.   Choose fruit instead of fruit juice.  Read food labels and don't buy food containing trans fats. Take a walk.  Make one change a week.  Be a better role model.  Choose to lead by example.  Dare to care.  Be the solution.

 NEXT WEEK:  Lessons from a box of Pop Tarts

In gratitude,
Nancy Heinrich
Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. 

PS-If your kids are age 13 and younger, then look for the details about our 4th Annual Poster Contest on the September 3rd issue of Wellness Wednesdays.   We are SO EXCITED about tapping the voice of America's children!  

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: The Navajo Nation, The Power to Heal Diabetes, and Growing Healthy Kids

"To provide diabetes prevention/intervention by promoting healthy lifestyle changes to reduce and prevent diabetes" 

       -- Mission Statement, Navajo Nation Special Diabetes Project

Here are six questions to think about:

1. Do you live in a food desert?  
2. Do you eat differently (translate:  worse) than your grandparents?  
3. Are you overweight?  
4. Do you (or a family member) have type 2 diabetes?  
5. Do you have limited access to fresh vegetables and fruits?  
6. Are you concerned about a child or youth in your family who is at an unhealthy weight? 

Many of the kids and families I get the opportunity to work with answer �yes� to most or all of these questions.   Now, we have the chance to touch the lives - and health - of many more children. 

In recognition of National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month this month, Growing Healthy Kids is honored to announce that we have been invited  to work with children and parents in the Navaho Nation.  Diabetes among Native American youth is an often-ignored epidemic of national significance, fueled by issues of limited access to healthy foods and increased access to foods high in sugar and processed foods.  

We know that diabetes can be controlled, reversed and prevented by embracing healthier ways of eating, most of which are defined by issues of access, and by being active.  However, if you live on a reservation where a food store selling fresh vegetables is a 200 mile drive, access to healthy foods is a barrier to improved glycemic control. 

  


We are so looking forward about being able to empower, inspire, and educate children and families and look forward to each project in this new partnership.  We will set benchmarks for how we will define success.  We will share our story and our journey with you and invite you to come along the journey with us. 

America�s children deserve access to healthy foods.  ALL of our children.  If they live in a food desert, we have to create "food heavens".  We can teach our children that the way our grandparents ate and lived did not lead to obesity and diabetes.  We can all learn the benefits of being at a healthy weight.  We can - and must - grow foods using new growing methods like hydoponic and aeroponic to give families access to fresh, nutrient dense foods, wherever they live.  Whether children live in Vero Beach, Florida, inner city Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, or on the Navajo reservation in Tuba City, Arizona, ALL of America's children deserve access to healthy foods.  

Oops!  Never heard of Tuba City?   We will be there soon, as part of our work to improve the health - and lives - of America's children, one child at a time.  To learn more about the Navajo Nation Special Diabetes Project, click here.

One of my favorite parts of WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS is bringing you resources you can use � here is one we fell in love with while doing research for our new collaboration.  We know you will love it, too!  The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) is working to eliminate diabetes among Native Americans where health has been lost because diet has changed. The PCRM has created a beautiful resource full of delicious recipes and tips.  If you would like a copy of The Power to Heal Diabetes: Power Plate Resources and Recipes, please click here.    

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. 

PS -- If your kids are age 13 and younger, read about our 4th Annual Poster Contest in the September 3rd issue of WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS!  Deadline for having posters postmarked is October 16th!  

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: Poster Contest for Kids 2014

"Every child is an artist: The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up."  

                                                                                           -- Pablo Picasso

September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month.  This is why we have chosen this month to announce our national 4^th Annual Poster Contest for Growing Healthy Kids.  This year's theme is �My Favorite Family Foods�.   Our goal is to encourage kids to express their visions about healthy foods.  Parents, please use this theme to talk with your children about family food traditions, preparing favorite recipes as a family, or favorite foods to grow at home. 

Guidelines for the 4^th Annual Poster Contest for Growing Healthy Kids are below:

• �         The poster contest is open to all children in the U.S. who are 13 years old and younger on October 16, 2014. 
• �         Artwork must be no larger than 8-1/2� x 11�.  All media are accepted.  Chalk, charcoal and pastel entries should be sealed with a fixative spray to prevent smearing.  Combinations of media (crayons, colored pencils, chalk, pen, torn pieces of paper, pictures from magazines, markers, etc.) are acceptable.
• �         Only one entry per child. 
• �         On back of the poster please include:

o   Parent�s name, email, phone number, and address

o   Child�s name, age, and school name 

Deadline:  Posters must be received or postmarked by October 16, 2014. 

Mail posters to: Growing Healthy Kids, 762 S. US Hwy 1, #106, Vero Beach, FL. 32962. Winners will be notified by November 16, 2014. 

Each poster is judged on originality, artistic merit, and expression of the theme.  Participants agree to allow Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. to use their names and posters for educational, promotional, and publicity purposes.  Three posters will be selected by a panel of educators and artists and will be published on the Growing Healthy Kids website and in the next Growing Healthy Kids� book about good food and health.  When posters are published, only the child�s first initial, last name, city and state will be included.  No other information will be published or shared.  Certificates of Recognition will be sent to the three children whose posters are selected, along with a signed copy of NOURISH AND FLOURISH:  Kid-Tested and Approved Tips and Recipes to Prevent Diabetes.  All entries become property of Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.  

A mother and daughter at a Growing Healthy Kids program
held at Gifford Youth Activity Center in Vero Beach, Florida.

We have a generation of kids at risk for obesity-related diseases.  The board of directors and volunteers who are part of the Growing Healthy Kids movement feel strongly about unleashing the power of the youth voice to improve the health � and lives � of America�s children and their families to reverse, prevent and halt childhood obesity and obesity-related diseases.  We can learn from our children.  They can learn from us.  Kids are very observant about their world.  There are teachable moments all around us.  

Studies have shown that having dinner together as a family is one of the most important ways you can teach your children how to stay at a healthy weight.  Planning meals together, shopping together, cooking together, taking care of a kitchen herb garden, and enjoying food together as a family�these tasks are about so much more than food! So enjoy talking about this year�s theme and start creating some family food traditions of your own.  Most of all, have fun!

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc. 

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: Depression, Diabetes, and Childhood Obesity

�No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.�

                                                                              --Robin Williams, 1951-2014

When I started the Growing Healthy Kids organization, I had an idea about preventing a new epidemic of disease, depression, and early deaths among children due to diabetes.  I saw the childhood obesity epidemic and the alarming increases of children at unhealthy weights.  With one in three children in the U.S., overweight and obese, I knew that many of these children will develop type 2 diabetes, also referred to as �adult-onset diabetes�.  Having seen what happens to adults who are ignorant about the effect of drinking sugar filled sweet teas or sodas every day on their nervous systems (resulting in amputations of toes and feet) or their heart (4 times higher risk of having a heart attack or stroke) or their sexual health (increased incidence of impotence), I also knew that diabetes is a preventable disease.  Having worked with thousands of older adults with diabetes and having experienced firsthand how life-changing improved health literacy can be, I decided to use my ideas and my words to address parents and children and the childhood obesity epidemic in my own community and through my words, the rest of the country. 

Symptoms of diabetes include:

• Frequent urination
• Excessive thirst
• Unexplained weight loss
• Extreme hunger
• Sudden vision changes
• Tingling or numbness in hands or feet
• Feeling very tired much of the time
• Very dry skin
• Sores that are slow to heal
• More infections than usual

Once someone develops diabetes, they can have problems that can affect:

• Mood (diabetes doubles the risk of depression as a result of high, uncontrolled blood sugar)
• Vision
• Kidneys
• Cardiovascular (increased risk of heart attack and stroke)
• Nervous system (nerve damage causes peripheral neuropathy)
• Feet
• Digestion
• Oral health
• Sexual health

One of the biggest (and preventable) risk factors for developing diabetes is: 

• obesity

We can improve the health and lives of America�s children.  September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month.  In conjunction with this observance, I will be making two major announcements next week and we are counting on you to help us get out the word! 

Together, we can tap into the voice, words, and ideas of America�s children. 

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.

To learn more facts about diabetes from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, click here.

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: Thank a Farmer, Feed a Child

�Weight sits like a spider at the center of an intricate, tangled web of health and disease.  Three related aspects of weight � how much you weigh in relation to your height, your waist size, and how much weight you gain after your early twenties � strongly influence your chances of having or dying from a heart attack, stroke, or other type of cardiovascular disease; of developing high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabetes; of being diagnosed with postmenopausal breast cancer or cancer of the endometrium, colon, or kidney; of having arthritis; of being infertile; of developing gallstones; of snoring or suffering from sleep apnea; or of developing adult-onset asthma.�

                                              --Walter C. Willett, M.D., from Eat, Drink and Be Healthy

When I was a kid, I always looked forward to the trip to visit my grandparents and their farm in Indiana.  When we woke up in the mornings, my grandfather would have already been up for hours milking the cows.  Days were filled with helping (or at least we thought we were helping) plow the fields or taking tractor rides around the farm�s back roads.  Afternoons I would help my grandmother with a task in the kitchen to help get supper on the table.  Evenings my brothers and I chased lightning bugs around the front yard while my mother and grandparents rocked on the porch swings and my grandfather relaxed, smoking his pipe.

Thinking about those wonderful summers on the farm with my family reminds me about how important my grandfather�s job was.  He was a farmer.  He grew corn and soybeans and provided a safe home for his dairy cows.  He respected the land by growing his cash crops and then letting the soil rest and replenish by planting alfalfa.  He always planted a big vegetable garden for my grandmother out behind the farmhouse.  The tomatoes and beans we ate in the summertime were bursting with flavor in every bite, unlike the hothouse-raised tomatoes you often see in stores today.  Enjoying the flavor of fresh-picked vegetables lovingly prepared by my grandmother was the essence of childhood memories on the farm.  We ate the food that had been grown by my grandfather and prepared by my grandmother;  when it was gone we went outside to play.  Every day, we seemed to eat just the right amount of food and enjoyed lots of physical exercise and fresh air.  

Next time you buy vegetables, think about who grew them and how they got to your store and your table.  Better yet, visit your local farmers market and buy vegetables directly from the farmer who grew them.  The shorter the distance vegetables have to travel to get to your family�s dinner table, the better for your health. Support your local farmers.  Give them your respect.  When we have access to foods grown without chemicals, we have a better chance of not triggering cancer and staying at a healthy weight.  Kids deserve good foods.  Thank you to all the farmers working to grow good food! Thanks, Grandpa, for teaching me about respect.  

Here is an easy recipe that we have been working on in the Growing Healthy Kids Test Kitchen.  My grandfather would have loved it!  You can substitute yellow cornmeal if you cannot find blue cornmeal.  Blue corn is higher in nutritional value and has a nutty taste.  Kids love to make these and they make a great addition to a healthy school lunchbox! 

GROWING HEALTHY KIDS:  Our Recipe Collection

Blue Corn Cakes

In a medium mixing bowl, combine:

• �        � cup blue cornmeal
• �        � cup flour (I like to use oat flour)
• �        1 Tablespoon baking powder
• �        1 teaspoon salt

In a small saucepan, saut� for a few minutes over low heat:

• �        3 Tablespoons butter
• �        Corn kernels, cut off 1 ear of fresh corn (or use 1/2 can of corn, drained)

Pour corn mixture into dry mixture. 

Add:

• �        2/3  cup unsweetened almond milk (or a little more if needed)

Whisk together until batter is smooth.  Let rest for a few minutes.  Add more milk if needed.  

Ladle � cup batter onto griddle coated with just a little grapeseed oil.  Cook until sides of cakes bubble gently and cakes are light golden brown, about 2 minutes. 

Gently turn them over with a spatula and cook for another 2 minutes or until golden brown. 

Serving suggestions:  Top with chopped tomatoes, fresh cilantro and fat-free sour cream OR saut�ed red peppers and Vidalia onions.

Makes 8 griddle cakes. Enjoy! 

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: School Lunch Tips for Parents

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS:  School Lunch Tips for Parents

"Higher sugar, fat, and salt make you want to eat more," a high-level food industry executive told me.  I had already read this in the scientific literature and heard it in conversations with neuroscientists and psychologists.  Now an insider was saying the same thing.  My source was a leading food consultant, a Henry Ford of mass-produced food who had agreed to part the curtain for me, at least a bit, to reveal how his industry operates.  To protect his business, he did not want to be identified."

-- David A. Kessler, M.D., The End of Overeating (Dr. Kessler served as commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration under presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton and is a pediatrician.)

It�s August and the kids are heading back to school.  During my talks in the southeast U.S. on how to prevent and reduce childhood obesity, I speak with lots of parents concerned about the quality of what their kids are (or are not) eating at school.  One suggestion I give parents of elementary age kids is to eat lunch with your kids (or breakfast if they eat it at school).  With all the changes in the school lunch program, a lot of schools have not figured out that kids don�t like changes and if you change something you better let the kids test it first or the food all goes into the garbage can next to the cafeteria door.  I liken it to �The Rule of Law� that says government needs to tell you well in advance of a change and not just spring it on you. 

Here are four back-to-school lunch tips for parents:

1.  If your child buys lunch at school or is on the free and reduced meal program, then schedule to eat lunch at least once a month (and at least twice a month during the first month that school is in session) with your child, selecting your lunch from the same choices your child has in the school cafeteria.

2.   Let your child pick out a new lunchbox that uses minicontainers.  These are great for including small portions of several healthy veggies, fruits, and proteins so that the foods don�t touch each other (kid rule number 1).  I was in Target last weekend and saw a cool Rubbermaid product for under $10 that included an icepack.  Pack a bottle of water instead of a drink with added sugar. 

3.  Create your own family test kitchen where your child can design his or her own lunchable staple such as a whole grain roll-up sandwich or a whole grain pasta salad.  Both can be made and packed the night before for an out-the-door-in-a-hurry school lunch. 

4.  Check the sugar content on the milk sold at your school�s cafeteria and steer your kids to lower sugar products.  In the school district where I live, most of the kids choose the chocolate and strawberry milks which have a whooping 7 teaspoons of added sugar (28 grams) per serving!  This is more sugar than kids under the age of 9 should have in an entire day!  Low fat white milk is a much smarter choice than the sugar-filled strawberry or chocolate milk served in schools.

I would love to hear from you about what works for getting your kids to eat more whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruits for lunch.  Send me an email at growinghealthykidsnow@gmail.com! 

Remember to keep a big bowl of fresh fruit and veggies on the table so the kids can grab a healthy snack on their way into the house after school!    

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.

PS - Moms and Dads, check out this site I found in last week's Relish magazine about a dad who prepares easy-to-make, everyday food for his wife and three sons.  Click here. 

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS: 5 Foods to Avoid

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS:   5 Foods to Avoid

       "A century ago, food chemists discovered that they could solidify a polyunsaturated vegetable oil by heating it in the presence of hydrogen and finely ground particles of nickel metal.  During the process, called partial hydrogenation, hydrogen latches on to some - but not all - of the double-bonded carbons, changing them into single bonds.  At the same time, some of the remaining double bonds twist into a new straightened shape, which gives the fat new chemical and physical properties.

       "Why did anyone bother figuring this out?  It's easier to ship and store solidified vegetable oils than liquid oils.  Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil can be used in place of butter or lard (solid animal fats) in baking.  And a lesser degree of hydrogenation yields a still-liquid oil that doesn't become rancid as quickly as unprocessed vegetable oils.  Without this process we wouldn't have had margarine or vegetable shortenings such as Crisco.  We also would have less heart disease."  

--- Walter C. Willett, M.D., from Eat, Drink and Be Healthy (co-developed with The Harvard School of Public Health) 

How do we bring healthy foods into the lives of all of America�s children?  When I first started honing in on trans fats (what I call �the evil empire fat�), it became very clear to me that I wanted no part of trans fats in my food.  With many of my aunts and uncles on my father�s side of the family having lived and died with cardiovascular diseases, heart attacks, hardening of the arteries, high cholesterol, and strokes, my Heinrich cousins and I have all been motivated to learn how to reverse the trend of heart disease in our generation. 

When trans fats first started rearing their ugly heads in our food supply, I started reading labels looking to see which manufacturers were sneaking them in under the (legal) radar.  I learned to scan the ingredients section for any ingredient that included the words �partially hydrogenated� which is code for trans fat.  Very sneaky!

What are trans fats?  They are good fats that are changed by a chemical process from a liquid (good) fat to a solid (bad) fat.  They become �hydrogenated� or solidified.  The process of hydrogenation adds hydrogen to good fats to increase shelf life and flavor stability. Trans fats also do 4 very bad things that make us sick:

• they raise our LDL (bad) cholesterol
• lower our HDL (good) cholesterol
• raise our trigylerides (another bad fat like LDL cholesterol) and
• promote inflammation (a very bad thing which lights the fire of many disease processes in the body)

                     

Watch out for these five foods that are made with trans fats:

1. Ready-to-eat frostings
2. Cookies, cakes, frozen pies
3. Stick margarines
4. Refrigerated dough products like cinnamon rolls and biscuits
5. Coffee creamers

Follow one of the rules for Growing Healthy Kids:  READ FOOD LABELS TO IDENTIFY TRANS FATS AND CHOOSE FOODS WITHOUT TRANS FATS ("partially hydrogenated"). 

The fact is that the Food and Drug Administration has finally decided that there is no safe level of trans fats.  I could have told them that a long time ago! 

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids