A growing body of evidence is showing a clear connection between healthy lifestyle habits and student achievement. This probably falls in the “well, duh” category of research results, but the association has fueled nation wide and local efforts to establish healthy school environments for our kids.

For a variety of reasons, our schools evolved into a mirror of popular culture with fewer opportunities for physical activity and an overabundance of low-

nutrient stuff to eat and drink. Physical education and walking/biking to school dropped off, while vending machines, school stores, super-sized portions, fundraising with junk food and rewarding with candy picked up speed.

To combat these trends contributing to poor health in children, the Bush administration required all schools to institute wellness policies for fall 2006. Teams of parents, school staff and community members addressed food, nutrition education and physical activity issues. Their goal? To establish school environments that provide children with clear opportunities to practice good health habits. Parents, teachers, staff and all adults are invited to be involved in this effort. When kids are healthy and learn healthy habits, they are more likely to reach their academic potential and become healthy members of society.

What parents/adults can do to promote healthy schools

• Work with your school. Speak to your building principal and parent group about implementing school policies related to school celebrations and fundraisers.

• Speak up about the importance of physical education, daily physical activity and recess.

• Speak up about the importance of nutrition education and healthy food and beverage offerings. Advocate for healthy choices at all school functions and events and in classrooms.

• Form a walking or biking school bus. Volunteer to organize a group of adults to walk or bike students to and from school.

• Eat with the kids. Go in one day and join kids at lunch (check in at the office first). Eat what the kids eat or pack a healthy lunch. Find out what choices are available, and what they taste like. Do they have recess before or after lunch?

• Help make school dining facilities appealing to students. Take a look at the cafeteria. Is it a nice place to eat? Is there anything a parent group could do to perk things up?

• Meet with the food services staff to learn about their daily challenges in preparing healthy meals and their suggestions for improvements.

• Talk to students about the food at school. Listen to their opinions about the time they eat lunch, whether they are rushed, what the food is like and what they would like to see changed. It’s important to get their support.

• Be a good role model. A parent is a child’s first and best teacher. Eat breakfast, take time for physical activity, include healthy foods each day and get enough sleep. If your kids see you taking care of yourself, then they are more likely to grow up and do the same for themselves.

What teachers can do to promote wellness in the classroom

• Get moving! Find ways to get your kids moving in the classroom; support physical activity in your school.

• Have students keep their eye on social themes that contribute to unhealthy behaviors. Have them provide alternative solutions — what would they do differently?

• Include nutrition education throughout your curriculum. Partner with a local chef or start a healthy recipe contest. Create a healthy cookbook for kids. Include reading about gardening, food preparation and physical activity.

• Invite parents to eat lunch with their kids.

• Work with classrooms to set up a health fair at school. Invite parents and other adults.

• Add a healthy activity or fun fact each day. Take a 10-minute walk around the school, try a new fruit or vegetable, count the number of push-ups you can do in two minutes or have a student lead a stretch after lunch. Check out the CATCH (Coordinated Approach to Child Health) program from the University of Texas for a “facts-of-the-day nutrition calendar” that you can use in your classroom (www.sph.uth.tmc.edu/catch/curriculum_eat_smart.htm)

The school wellness movement mirrors what is going on at workplaces, because healthy adults are more productive, take fewer sick days and are less of a burden on the health care system. Let’s all take steps to establish healthy habits and a community environment that keeps us all well.

Carol Walsh is a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator who provides nutrition counseling at the Corvallis Clinic and Albany Family and Specialty Medicine.

THE RULES

Last summer Oregon legislation set minimum standards related to portion size and calories, sugar and fat content for foods and beverages sold to students in all Oregon schools. (If you want to read HB2650, here is a link: www.leg.state.or.us/07reg/measpdf/hb2600.dir/hb2650.intro.pdf). If you wonder what foods fit the criteria, you can access a calculator through the Corvallis Public Schools website: www.csd509j.net/district_information/departments_and_services/wellness/ Click on HB2650 Resources for Schools under ‘What’s New’