September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, a block of time set aside to highlight both the need for positive eating and fitness habits and the risk associated with obesity in America's youth.
According to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 11.6 percent of Maryland children and adolescents were obese as of 2010. In Baltimore County, the issue is just as severe, with the rate of childhood obesity recorded at 11.8 percent as of 2010.
Dr. Gregory Branch, director of Baltimore County Health and Human Services, said he recognizes the severity of childhood obesity.
"It is a matter of life and death for our children and for our adults of tomorrow," he said. "We know that obesity, there's a very strong link to diabetes and to heart disease and those are some of the leading causes of death in Americans today."
He said that he sees the importance of a month of awareness for the issue, not just nationwide, but in Baltimore County specifically.
"I would say that clearly we have [a problem]," he said. "Twelve percent of our county's children are obese, and that's according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene … clearly we have a[n] obesity concern and problem within Baltimore County and we have an obesity epidemic within our country."
To help combat the problem of obesity in the county, the Baltimore County Health Coalition worked in conjunction with the Department of Recreation and Parks and the Office of Information Technology to create the Trail Finder application, a feature on the county's website that allows people to locate parks and trails in their areas. The goal of the application, which was unveiled last month, is to provide residents with the means to stay active while exploring nature in their communities.
"We introduced a new Trail Finder application because Baltimore County has more than 80 parks, and this application helps people find trails and paths that are family friendly locations where they can walk in Baltimore County, and this obviously will help to foster the relationship within the family and also have the family exercise together," he said.
The Baltimore County School System is also working to encourage health and fitness in its students. As part of new federal requirements set forth by the USDA as a result of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, schools now offer meals with more healthy choices, including serving only low fat or fat free milk. They have also reduced the amount of saturated fat, trans fat and sodium in foods being served.
"[As per the new requirements], we have to ensure that students are offered both fruit and vegetables every day of the week, a fruit and/or vegetable at every meal; that all of our grain items are whole grain rich," said Karen Levenstein, food service director in the BCPS Office of Food and Nutrition Services.
In addition, meals are tailored to fit the caloric requirements of the age group being served.
"The calories are limited to the age of the children being served — the age and grade," Levenstein said. "For example, we've got the three grade levels, we've got kindergarten to five, we've got middle school, grades 6 to 8, and then high school is grade 9 to 12, so those calories, and … the proper portion size, go hand in hand with the age and the grades of our youngsters. It means that the calorie levels for those meals, we cannot exceed the calorie levels for the age and the grades that are regulated, so we plan meals that are within those guidelines."
Levenstein said the goal of the healthier food options is not just to provide nutritious meals to students, but to equip them with the means to make better dietary choices outside of school.
"What we would like to see is by our continuing to follow the rules and regulations set forth by the USDA, then we are able to continue to offer these good choices on our menu … so if [students] ate school breakfast and school lunch and ate those things and were satisfied and liked them, then hopefully that would translate into eating when they're not in a controlled environment, when they're outside of school, that they could draw on their experience," she said. "For example, if a youngster tried fresh spinach at school — and we have that on the menu — I would be pleased to know that they ate fresh spinach on their own when they're not at school when they're out…"
She also said the dietary changes have already made a positive impact on students.
"Our youngsters are definitely getting a better choice of food items on our menus and they continue to make good choices based on what we offer, so it has been a positive," she said.
In addition to dietary changes, schools across the county have also placed greater priority on physical fitness.
Michelle Proser, supervisor of physical education for BCPS grades pre-k through 12, said she thinks school officials are seeing a "need for increased physical activity."
"Several of our schools this year have increased phys-ed time, at the elementary school [level] from once a week for 50 minutes to twice a week for 50 minutes and a lot of our middle and high schools have it at least every other day if not every day," she said.
This increase is in addition to the usual programs and activities being run, such as the "Fitnessgram," which assesses students' current fitness levels and helps them generate goals based upon their results, and the "Activitygram," which allows them to track their fitness activities. The Fitnessgram and Activitygram are used in conjunction with one another to promote healthy lifestyle choices among students.
"Fitnessgram, it's a nationally recognized program, and what we do is the students participate in a series of tests and from that they get a personalized printout of what their scores are based on what they call a healthy fitness zone," she said. "It's like a statistical report. It's done every year. It's a requirement. Students get the printout and they take it home and they start creating their own personal fitness planning and so it gives them awareness of their health and it also helps them develop lifelong goals for fitness. It's part of the physical education program. Most school systems across the nation do it, but Baltimore County, it's a huge part of our program … so they can develop lifetime personal fitness goals … the Activitygram is a technology based program; they have different activities and they can track what they do as their personal activities."
Levenstein and Proser agree that the two concepts — nutrition and fitness — work best in combating childhood obesity and fostering healthier habits among youth when implemented together.
"I think they go hand in hand," Proser said. "It's important when we talk about the mind-body connection: we know that healthier students perform better in school, and it's not just fitness level, it's also nutrition and proper diet, as well as exercise."
Beyond the school environment, Proser said families can use activities to promote healthier lifestyles in the home.
"Just provide [children] with opportunities for activity," she said. "Provide them with activities and allow them to explore through movement."
Branch agreed that, with increased priority placed on healthy habits at home, positive change can be made.
"I think we should encourage families to make small changes within their families, like keeping fresh fruit and healthier snacks within reach, going on family walks after dinner, walking the dog, maybe biking to the library and exploring the parks near their homes," he said. "I think in addition to that they can plan for healthier meals, meaning they can serve more vegetables, fruits and whole grains. And I think when we start to eat better and exercise more, I think we can start to combat obesity and all of the other ramifications … and diseases that come from obesity."
Reach Staff Writer Elaina Clarke at 410-857-3316 or elaina.clarke@communitytimes.com.
