March 18--Local health officials hope to reach first-graders with a new nutrition and exercise program that could start them on the path to better eating, according to Beth Cecil, one of the program's co-authors.
The program is a product of the obesity task force that originated with the Community Health Needs Assessment, a push to improve the health and well-being of Owensboro and Daviess County.
"We've offered (nutrition and exercise) programs to a lot of different organizations, and sometimes it's hard getting people to attend," said Cecil, a dietitian with the Owensboro Health HealthPark. "But first-graders are a captive audience in school.
"They're young and can be positively influenced, and they can influence their parents."
The program includes 12 lessons, about 20 minutes each, that first-grade teachers can incorporate into the day as they see fit, once every three to four weeks, Cecil said.
"One is called, 'Get Up and Exercise,' and another is, 'Eat Smart and Play Hard,' " said Amy Bouchard, physical education teacher at Meadow Lands Elementary School. "It talks about the food choices you make and exercise."
Cecil and others taught the Daviess County Public Schools PE teachers the program, and they plan to introduce it in gym class this year. Bouchard said the PE teachers can teach classroom teachers the program so that they could use it, too, if they so desire.
"We'd like to implement it schoolwide next year," Bouchard said.
The program also includes pre- and postprogram assessments, asking the students if they eat breakfast every day and three meals day, among others things.
"At the end of the year, we'll ask the same questions and see if anything has changed," Cecil said.
The program will include handouts students can take home so parents can take advantage of the program's ideas, too.
Owensboro Public Schools and the Owensboro Catholic Schools will also have access to the program, Cecil said.
Rich Suwanski, 691-7315, rsuwanski@messenger-inquirer.com
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