Parents and students power up for good health

  • By Sharon Haught
  • March 15, 2010
  • 548
                        
Two Melrose Elementary School parents are on a mission, one that will have a positive impact on the school community for years to come. With support from Dean Frank, Melrose principal, and school nurse Heidi Steiner, parents Beth Miller and Bernadette Paul are leading the charge to make students and parents alike aware of the importance of making healthy lifestyle choices and the positive impact those choices can have on their children’s health and performance in school. Miller and Paul attended the February meeting of the Wooster board of education to share the details of the comprehensive program in place at Melrose to encourage healthy eating habits and active lifestyles in the school community. According to Paul, statistics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control show that the number of overweight and obese children has been on the rise since 1996. “We know that childhood obesity is a medical concern and…that poor eating habits and a lack of physical activity are the root causes,” said Paul, noting that the evidence also suggests that “low achievement in school is associated with poor nutrition, physical inactivity and obesity.” Given the rising number of overweight and obese children “if we do not take action now they will continue to rise,” said Paul. The Melrose community decided to take action, putting in place a series of programs meant to buck the growing trend of inactive and overweight children. The origins of the program trace back to 2006 when Miller formed Melrose on the Move, a six week after school program based on the USDA’s The Power of Choice teen nutrition program that focused both on nutrition and physical activity. Paul joined the effort in 2008. Working closely with Frank, the pair chose the theme Take a Bite Out of Reading for the school’s Right to Read Week and used that as an opportunity to introduce the broader school community to their initiatives. Their latest effort revolves around a Power Up Moves and Food mini-grant the pair applied for and received from the Ohio Department of Education. “It’s a great benefit to have this program because it will teach parents as well as the students of our community,” said Miller. Included in the program is the Power Up Moves and Food Parent Academy that “is designed to help inform parents and caregivers of the importance of the meals program,” said Miller. “This is also designed to show what important role models that parents are to their children and vice versa,” said Miller, adding that children in the program often educate their parents on the benefits of nutritional eating and an active lifestyle. “Along with this program we will inform the parents about healthy eating, healthy meals and nutritional content based on the USDA’s food pyramid system and about the importance of physical activity for their children and ways to encourage physical activity,” Miller noted. Teaching parents and children alike how they can be active without incurring additional expenses for items like gym memberships is also part of the program. Miller said that as part of the Power Up Moves and Food program the school will collaborate with both Health Point and OARDC. After the two-hour Parent Academy workshop, “we will have Health Point assist our parents and give more nutrition and health and wellness classes to help them set goals and meet these goals over the next few months,” said Miller. In addition, OARDC will talk to parents about how to create a family garden and the benefits of a family garden in terms of nutrition.


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