Federal guidelines for youth wellness are unsatisfying, and unsatisfied

While the debate about the causes and effects of childhood obesity rages on, even the smallest efforts to improve the physical and nutritional education of our children are falling short. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recently reviewed the status of local wellness policies in 6 school districts. None of the districts had entirely implemented their local wellness policies during the past 5 school years of the policies' mandated existence.

"schools in their district provided few nutrition education or physical activity opportunities even though the premise... was that nutrition education and greater physical activity can help combat childhood obesity."

In 2004, the Child Nutrition and Women Infants and Children (WIC) Reauthorization Act included a mandate for the creation of "local wellness policies" (LWP) in each school district by the 2006-2007 school year. In short, these well-intentioned policies are designed to address the increasing childhood obesity epidemic by creating nutrition education and physical activity guidelines. Here are the basic requirements of the LWP:

• Establish goals for nutrition education and physical activity at the discretion of the local educational agency.



• Modify in-school food choices with the intention of promoting health and reducing childhood obesity.
  



• Be consistent with the Child Nutrition Act (42 U.S.C. 1779; subsections (a) and (b) of section 10) and the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1758, 1766(a); section 9(f)(1) and 17(a)).



• Establish a plan for monitoring the implementation of the LWP and designate persons responsible for operations associated with meeting the policy guildelines.
  



• Include staff, school board members. parents, and community members in the development of the LWP.

For starters, this mandate does little more than establish an anti-childhood obesity think tank in each school district; and the results of a CDC study to be published in the August 2011 issue of the Journal of School Health confirm just that.

Let's start at the beginning: The federal mandate is inherently weak beacuse it does not require that the LWP be created with the inclusion of nutrition or physical activity experts. The policies rely on the best judgement of the education agency. This is an example of the unhealthy and obese leading the unhealthy and obese. If the average person knew how to effectively prevent and/or correct obesity, how would we explain the steady increase in obesity in the United States? If nutrition education and physical activity guidelines are only now being implemented in our schools, how can we expect the older generations to know that information and develop an educational plan without expert input? The CDC does offer sample LWP's developed by select states, and resources on their website. It is unclear whether expert input was contributed to those.

Now let's fast forward 5 years: In the published study, of the 6 school districts with complete and satisfactory LWP's (a condition of their inclusion in the study) that were reviewed, none had fully implemented their LWP's during the 5 school years of the LWP existence. In fact, the report states that "schools in their district provided few nutrition education or physcial activity opportunities for students even though the premise... was that nutrition education and greater physical activity can help combat childhood obesity."

The study does not say how many school districts were inelligible for review because their LWP was incomplete, insufficient, or non-existent.

Multiple studies have shown the importance of nutrition in a child's ability to focus, learn and have regular attendance. So here's what each of us can do:

• Contact your local school district to review your child's LWP. Demand expert input and immediate implementation.
  



• Stop relying on the government to know what's best for your child. Educate yourself on good nutrition. Take it upon yourself to educate your children (see some links below).
  



• Consider packing lunches until the school-provided food choices are nutritionally sound.
  



• Encourage physcial activity at home - even as a family.
  
  

Other links:

"Schools Face New Mandate on 'Wellness' "

Super Kids Nutrition

Family Education: Learning Good Nutrition

Fuel Up to Play 60