Nutrition Bytes

It is no secret that overweight children grow up to be overweight adults who have increased risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and hypertension. Within the last few decades, children and adolescents have assumed more sedentary lifestyles and poor dietary habits, both of which contribute to the problem of obesity. School-based intervention is the most efficient and successful way to intervene by promoting and encouraging healthy eating habits, ideas and attitudes toward food and its preparation and increased levels of physical activity. Multi-faceted programs that employ a number of different strategies including modified school lunch programs, physical education, classroom-based curricula and family education elements are most likely to succeed if they are introduced to students at a young age and continue through high school. This must be the first step in creating and sustaining a society that supports healthy behavior.