The got milk campaign is taking time to reward Mom's for being the nutritional gatekeepers in their homes and for keeping kids healthy! Mom's are being dubbed the 72% solution, because it has been discovered that moms influence 72% of what kids eat and drink.

This campaign is being called Project Mom. Moms can be rewarded with a $100,000 paycheck, for keeping their kids healthy. The campaign notes, one small change like serving lowfa…

A new study on outdoor physical activity in preschool children identified some unexpected barriers. “It’s things we never expected, from flip flops, mulch near the playground, children who come to child care without a coat on chilly days, to teachers talking or texting on cell phones while they were supposed to be supervising the children,” according to Kristen Copeland, M.D., lead author of the study which was funded by the National Heart, L…

New legislation in Oklahoma has passed doubling the amount of class time devoted to physical activity includeing: physical education, exercise programs, fitness breaks, wellness and nutrition education for the state's youngest students. The bill calls for an increase from 60 minutes a week to 120 minutes a week. The requirement will apply to students in kindergarten through the fifth grade.The measure was approved by the Senate on Tuesday…

"TV Turnoff week promotes the idea that limiting screen time and boosting physical activity can lead to healthier living, sponsored in part by the Center for Screen Time Awareness (CSTA) and We Can!, a science-based national education program from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) makes the following recommendations for physical activity and tv watching time:
Limit TV viewing and video game playing …

Wilson & Hartwell, ages 7 & 9, are taking action in trying to reduce childhood obesity in their state. Mississippi is known for having some of the worst childhood obesity statistics in the country.

Their idea is simple. Give every elementary age child in the state a ball.

Research has shown that giving children consumable equipment will endorse moment and physical activity.

They started their mission in January and have already donated over…

Eat Smart. Play Hard materials are a great free resource from the USDA.

Eat Smart. Play Hard.TM provides practical tools to help you motivate children and their caregivers to eat healthy and be physically active. Messages and materials are fun and based on MyPyramid and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

What should kids and parents eat and do for good health? The answer is just a “click” away at USDA’s new Eat Smart. Play Hard.™ web pages for…

This article was copied in its entirety because it gives such a great perspective...
post submitted by Andrea Bossenmeyer

Of all the challenges to reversing our national obesity epidemic, the one that concerns me most is what I call the "distortion of normality." While constants in science (physical values or principles) are well known and don't change, life has far fewer "constants."

The constants we tend to adhere to most …

Lawmakers Want Kids In P.E. Class Despite Cash Problems
Sarasota Herald-Tribune Published: April 6, 2008

TALLAHASSEE - Florida lawmakers thought reintroducing physical education to the state's public schools was going to be no sweat. Turns out, it's an ongoing workout.


Wisconsin’s Model Academic Standards for Physical Education
for Physical Education and are designed to describe what students should know and ... preservice preparation and c…

At Peaceful Playgrounds we often receive phone calls asking for an instrument that schools and/or researchers can use to assess physical activity. We most often refer these folks to Thom McKenzie Ph.D. at San Diego State University (CA) and his SOPLAY Instrument which is a system for observing play and leisure activity in youth.

SOPLAY is a validated direct observation tool for assessing physical activity and associated environmental character…

Nickelodeon, Alliance for a Healthier Generation and American Heart Association have teamed together to create the Go Healthy Challenge.

You can learn about healthy snacks and pledge your reason for taking the challenge.

There are videos, nutrition information, and much more...All designed with kids in mind! Spread the word about this fun kids site.

According to 9 year old Sydnie the gym situation is working out just fine because: "the adults don't really bother us because we're doing our own thing and they're doing theirs."

Sydnie's mom has a different perspective: " bringing the kids to the gym with me is a way for me to show, not 'tell' them that I work out, too, to be healthy." She adds that "it's a nice combination for a busy parent …

Results of a new study to be released today in the April issue of Pediatrics will show that healthier food choices and removal of high calorie foods in school vending machines makes a difference. Additionally snacks were scaled back and they banished candy. researchers handed out raffle tickets for wise food choices and spent hours teaching kids, their parents and teachers about good nutrition.

It paid off. The number of kids of obese children…

Saucony has been keeping up on the research that notes that 4 out of 5 children will carry the weight from adolescence to adulthood, which results in health problems.

The Saucony Run For Good Grant is open to communities and non-profits that initiate and support running and fitness programs for kids.

By Andrea Bossenmeyer

A new report asked children what a healthy diet is, and they responded "One in which you do not gain weight." Rather than a diet that gives you all the nutrients, vitamins and minerals you need to grow and develop.

They also interviewed children as young as four. The research indicates that children can be strongly prejudiced against overweight people. Children had little sympathy for people who are overweight. The…

"The importantest thing I learned was to stay active and stuff," said Meagan Cancilla, 9, from Sansome School in Canada. "That's so I don't become lazy and sick." Like most 4th graders she spent her recess bouncing between a soccer game, tossing a Frisbee and playing tag. She said she's usually quite active, but realizes now she has to stay that way.

She's part of a study by Manitoba Institute of Child Healt…

Americans are invited to participate in the first-ever National President’s Challenge.

The six-week fitness program, which kicks off Thursday, the first day of spring, encourages everyone to be active at least 30 minutes a day, five days a week. And just in case you need 8 weeks to complete the 6 weeks, no problem they've allow for 2 extra weeks to complete the 6. (Who could ask for more?)

In any case, the goal is to help everyone from chi…

Stuart Brown created the National Institute for Play in 1996 after more than 20 years of psychiatric practice and research persuaded him of the dangerous long-term consequences of play deprivation.

According to Brown, "If you look at what produces learning and memory and well-being, play is as fundamental as any other aspect of life, including sleep and dreams.’’

Play (or lack of ) is the one thing that most educators, parents, and psychologi…

A RAND Corporation study says school playgrounds can be important tools in the fight against childhood obesity. However, many are locked and inaccessible to children on weekends – especially in poor and minority neighborhoods.

The study called the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls (TAAG) found that, on average, 66 percent of the schools were unlocked on weekends. But only 57 percent of schools were both unlocked and had accessible faciliti…

About 5 years ago I had the opportunity to visit numerous schools throughout different regions in China. An educational phenomena that has stuck with me and left a lasting impression was "morning exercise." In all schools in China, students arrive and then go outside to about 15 minutes of student lead exercises daily. Parks are filled with adults who go through a routine of morning and evening exercises as well.

I ran across the p…

At the Oxford Health Alliance Conference experts suggested that world governments should pay more attention to overcoming deadly factors such as poor diet, smoking and a lack of exercise and less time and money on terrorism.

Global terrorism was a real threat but posed far less risk than obesity, diabetes and smoking-related illnesses, prominent US professor of health law Lawrence Gostin said at the Oxford Health Alliance Summit here.

While w…