May 12--The Niagara Falls School District is now on the front lines in the battle against childhood obesity.
Along with math, science and history, students are now being tested on how fit they are. And they're being graded, too.
Parents of students at Gaskill and LaSalle preparatory schools have been receiving fitness report cards this semester listing their child's body mass index, which indicates if he or she is overweight, and a pacer score, which indicates how physically fit they are.
But these grades aren't meant to fail or pass students.
"We're not trying to make anyone feel bad about being overweight," said Susan Ross, director of the 21st Century after school program. "What we're trying to say is, 'This is where you're at and if you're interested in getting into that healthy range, here are some suggestions.'"
Being sent home along with the report card is a packet of information on healthy nutrition and exercise practices, but changes are happening inside the school, too.
Starting in September, the district's food offerings have taken a big shift. Instead of whole milk, students may drink 1-percent milk. Baked chips are replacing fried ones. And doughnuts are out while granola bars are in.
"We're trying to get low-fat content in the meals we serve," said John Tattersall, director of student services. "We have control while they're in school, so we're trying to promote that and change the menu to reflect that."
The changes are happening slowly though. The district has to get the children on board with looking at food differently.
"One part of it has to be with limiting the choices they can make within in school," said Richard Carella, principal at LaSalle Prep, "and we have to sort of take on that parental role and just offer healthy choices. One of the things we realize is we have to make that change slowly -- we can't go from pizza to tofu overnight."
Gaskill seventh-grader Maria Fabiano has noticed more fresh fruit being offered and she approves, she said. Some of her peers aren't as enthusiastic about the changes though.
"Some of the kids do want (the bad stuff) but some of them don't," she said. "It's a half-and-half situation. You know how some of the kids are."
The nutrition and fitness programs, which are funded through state grants, were piloted in the Falls prep schools and will be rolled out next year to the Lockport, North Tonawanda and Newfane school districts. In addition to fitness report cards and healthier lunch menus, lessons on staying active are being added to health courses and after school programs.
School districts have become a more pertinent part in the fight against obesity because of the authority they have in changing children's attitudes toward food and exercise, said Jimmy Rowe of HANCI who helped implement the programs in the Falls.
"If you look at the time a child spends at school in duration of the day," Rowe said, "you see schools are a significant partner in the paradigm that's necessary to prevent overweight and obese children."
And schools have to start now -- the evidence is overwhelming, said Patricia Pastore, a family medicine practitioner at the University at Buffalo who helped design the fitness report card.
Niagara County has one of the highest heart attack and stroke incidence rates in the state. And diseases more commonly associated with older adults, like sleep apnea, type-2 diabetes and hypertension are growing among children because of increasing childhood obesity rates, she said.
"It takes the whole community to address this issue," Pastore said, "and we need to do it because it's getting worse."
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