September brings not only the hope for cooler weather but a chance to eat more fruits and vegetables as we celebrate Fruits and Veggies-More Matters Month. The latest Dietary Guidelines and the nutrition recommendations from ChooseMyPlate are specific in how many fruits and vegetables each of us should eat each day, but most of us [...]
The food we eat affects many aspects of our lives. There's a direct link between poor nutrition and many of the leading causes of death in America such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes. Healthy eating is important at every age. Most of us don't eat enough fruits, vegetables or whole grains, but we [...]
March 1 was the kickoff of the new Arizona Farmers’ Market Nutrition season for women and children who participate in the AZ Women, Infants and Children program. WIC participants are beginning to receive their Farmers’ Market checks to spend for fresh, locally grown, fruits and vegetables at farmers’ markets. WIC moms and their kids receive [...]
Nearly 32 million U.S. kids get meals at school every day- and the meals are based on new nutrition standards from the USDA. Kids attending the schools that participate in the program will have more vegetables and fruits, less fat and salt, and more whole grains. Portion sizes will better meet the needs of growing children. [...]
Join me and challenge yourself this holiday season. Give yourselves the most important holiday gift, the gift of health. Visit North Carolina’s Eat Smart, Move More website to get started today! Not only will you be provided with easy and fun ways to stay on top of the seasons’ calories, but you can also join the Eat [...]
On October 24, 2012—and on the days and weeks before and after—thousands of Americans will gather in schools, college campuses, farmers markets, city halls, and state capitals to talk about what's right and wrong with our diets and whole food system and how to fix them. Food Day unites people from all walks of life—parents, teachers, [...]
Congrats to our Women Infant & Children’s program who did some research and implemented some simple policy changes that reduced the consumption of 7 Billion calories annually in AZ. How? After we did a little research, we came up with a way to change our WIC policy... convincing people to replace whole milk with 1% or fat free milk (for [...]
The USDA released a new final rule that will set new nutrition standards for the federal child nutrition programs that serve millions of children across the country every day. The new rule fleshes out the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. It’ll increase how many fruits, vegetables, and whole grains that are in school lunches [...]
Last year we received funding from CDC to implement the Communities Putting Prevention to Work, which aims to achieve broad reaching, highly impactful, and sustainable change to reduce chronic disease burden associated with obesity and tobacco. This week CDC notified us that Arizona is a “high performing” state. What does this mean? CDC will soon be [...]
You probably think I sound like a broken record because I’m always writing about obesity… but it really is the dominant public health issue of our time. Last week, the CDC released its latest Vital Signs report called "State-Specific Obesity Prevalence Among Adults – United States, 2009,"… which finds that nine states had an obesity [...]
