Where is your state listed?

[Guest guest]

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Sept. 14, 2006) ? As Kentucky kids head back to school this

fall, parents may be happy to know that their kids will be offered healthier

food choices in school cafeterias. In fact, in a recent study conducted by the

Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a non-profit consumer

organization that focuses on issues relating to food and the food industry,

Kentucky ranked #1 on the State School Foods Report Card (pdf file)

http://cspinet.org/new/pdf/school_foods_report_card.pdf with a grade of A-.

Twelve states received a grade of B, 15 states received a C or D and 23 states

received a failing grade.

The CSPI rated wellness policies for all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Each policy was graded based on five key considerations:

a.. Beverage nutrition standards;

b.. Food nutrition standards;

c.. Grade level(s) to which policies apply;

d.. Time during the school day to which policies apply;

e.. Location(s) on campus to which policies apply.

The CSPI awarded Kentucky schools a grade of A- for setting reasonable standards

for portion sizes, saturated fat, sugars and sodium for foods. Kentucky received

an A- rather than an A because of its weak beverage portion size standards, lack

of limits on trans fat, and an a 'la carte loophole allowing any item that is a

part of a reimbursable meal to be sold separately.

Kentucky's good grade may be due in large part to Senate Bill 172, passed by

Kentucky's General Assembly in 2005, which takes strident measures to overcome

the state's childhood obesity epidemic.

McElwain, director of child nutrition for the Kentucky Department of

Education, explains that Senate Bill 172 sets nutrition and physical activity

requirements in Kentucky schools regarding what food can be sold, when it can be

sold and establishes guidelines for vending machines and the sale of soft

drinks.

" The most significant part of the legislation requires an annual assessment of

the nutrition and physical activity program, " McElwain said. " We have provided

the tools and the format for schools to do those assessments even though they

are not required to use them. "

State Sen. Alice Kerr, primary sponsor of Kentucky Senate Bill 172, took on the

issue of school nutrition when she became concerned over what her sons were

being fed in their public high schools. " They were being given so many

carbohydrates, " Kerr said. " That's what we give cattle to fatten them up. We

shouldn't be feeding our children like this. "

Additionally, Kerr stipulated allowing 30 minutes of physical activity a day,

modifying the types of drinks sold from vending machines and limiting the number

of times fast food vendors are allowed to sell food in schools. " My sons could

eat pizza every day if they wanted to, " she said. " Now, fast food vendors can

only serve in public schools one day a week. "

School districts within the state have typically had wellness plans, but with

the soaring rates of childhood obesity and obesity related chronic illnesses

like diabetes, heart disease and asthma, school districts are now required to

have a written wellness plan in place thanks to legislative measures like

Kentucky's Senate Bill 172.

Coker, director of food services for Fayette County Schools, says the

wellness plan is a plan to help teach children a better lifestyle incorporating

nutrition, physical activity and physical education. Although Kentucky's

nutrition program received high marks from the independent study conducted by

the Center for Science in the Public Interest, childhood obesity remains a major

concern with seemingly no end in sight. Coker points out that since only 16

percent of a child's daily intake of calories comes from school, lifestyle is

partly to blame.

" We are now realizing as our lifestyle becomes more sedentary, as we are eating

out more and having more options to different types of foods, that our children

aren't as active as they used to be and they may or may not be eating more or

eating more foods that aren't healthy for them, " she said.

Kentucky schools are stepping up to play a major role in educating children

about healthy eating, but parents must be engaged in order to have any impact,

according to , professor of medicine and clinical nutrition at the

University of Kentucky College of Medicine.

" Parent's don't recognize that children are overweight, " said.

" Parents don't want skinny children. They think they've done a good job when

their children are robust. We must recognize that children over the 85

percentile are at significant risk for overweight. "

Check Nutrition at:

Nutrition.teach-nology.com

Ortiz, RD

nrord@...

If you want breakfast in bed, sleep in the kitchen.