Did you know that in the US, heart disease is our #1 cause of death?

The conditions that lead to heart disease, like high blood pressure and cholesterol, diabetes, and being overweight or obese, don't just happen overnight. They can be the result of years of unhealthy decisions.

 

February is Heart Month. And since it's also the month of love (Valentine's Day), it's the perfect time to show our kids just how much we love them by helping them learn to make good decisions NOW that will influence their health LATER. And I bet we could learn a thing or two ourselves! For starters, try these tips from the Alliance for a Healthier Generation:

 

5 Key Steps to Healthier Living

*Be physically active for 60 minutes each day

*Drink primarily water, 1 percent or fat free milk, and 100 percent juice with no added sugars

*Eat fruits and vegetables with EVERY meal

*Cut back on screen time and limit it to 1-2 hours a day

*Get at least 9 hours of sleep every night

 

Also, as you and the kids are out and about in February, look for our Love Your Heart billboard series around the county. We are partnering with the local American Heart Association office to raise awareness of heart disease and to encourage our community to make heart healthy choices.

  

Source: Guilford County Department of Public Health

Peeler Open School Celebrated Salad Day on October 24th

  

Peeler Open School for the Performing Arts, a popular magnet elementary school in Greensboro, hosted Salad Day, an event set to coincide with Food Day, a national celebration of eating food that is good for us and good for society.

  

Each class and grade level at Peeler has a garden on campus. On Salad Day they all came together to provide ingredients for the entire school in a "stone soup" style. It was a school-wide seed to table experience and is part of Peeler's Healthy Hearts initiative for healthy lifestyles. The students plant, harvest, and prepare the food and then serve it in the cafeteria during lunch.

 

As part of the day's activities, Vern Switzer spoke with the students and read from his books. Mr. Switzer is an African American farmer who sells his produce regularly at the Greensboro Curb Farmers Market. Vern was an amazing storyteller and had a great time reading to the students, answering their questions, and talking with them about his love of farming.

 

"Food Day is a nationwide celebration and a movement for healthy, affordable, and sustainable food." Taking place every October 24th, Food Day seeks "to address issues as varied as health and nutrition, hunger, agricultural policy, animal welfare, and farm worker justice." Peeler is proud to have participated in this event in support of Food Day and of its ongoing promotion of healthy eating.

 

"Our salad day was a wonderful success and I measure success by the number of children that asked for more salad!"--Angie Roberson, PTA President at Peeler Open School for the Performing Arts

  

  

Resources from the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences provide great ways for you to identify local foods and learn to appreciate them.

  

North Carolina Farm Fresh is a directory of pick-your-own farms, roadside farm markets, and farmers markets throughout North Carolina. It is designed to help the consumer find the freshest locally grown fruits, vegetables, Christmas trees, ornamental plants, flowers, and herbs.  

 

Agriculture can be a lot of fun! This is the place for kids of all ages to play around with agriculture.

 

With such a wide variety of fruits and vegetable available during the year, you can use this availability chart to keep up with the best times to purchase and feature NC produce.

 

  

Garden grant: Supporting classrooms and their communities

NC Farm Bureau "Ag in the Classroom" has launched a new grant program for schools: Going Local. One of the focus areas is school gardens. Grants are available to teachers for up to $500. The application and contact information for Michelle Reedy, Ag in the Classroom Director, is here. The deadline is April 15th.

 

For personalized assistance with your school garden contact Cynthia Nielsen, School Garden Network Coordinator, NC Cooperative Extension, Guilford County at (336) 299-1680.

Please also visit the School Garden website,  blog,  or Facebook page.

 

 

 

 

  

Some Kids Abusing Common Baking Ingredients

Trends such as swallowing dry cinnamon, stuffing marshmallows can cause choking emergencies; read more.

Source: HealthDay, Medline Plus

 

 

 

Kids Rock Nutrition Video

Cooking with your kids can be both educational and fun. If your kids participate in making nutritious family meals, they may get inspired to eat healthier. Watch this Kids Rock Nutrition video with your kids and try the recipes from the video, or download the Children's Favorites cookbook and have your kids look through it for a recipe they would like to make.

Source: Kids.gov

If you are a parent of a current or rising sixth grader, you have likely heard that the vaccination to prevent tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis, also known as Tdap, is a requirement for school attendance. But did you also know that getting the Tdap booster is a good idea for adults?

 

Kids get DTaP (same vaccine components of Tdap but a different formulation when they are age 6 and younger, then get the Tdap booster in sixth grade but persons age 19 and over should get a booster dose of Td (tetanus and diptheria only) every 10 years and 1 booster dose of Tdap.

 

Actually, any adult (especially women who may become pregnant and adults 65 and older who expect to have contact with a baby younger than 12 months of age, and healthcare workers) should get a Tdap booster. Why? Adults can come in contact with these diseases and can pass them on to others, especially unvaccinated children and persons with weakened immune systems. Pertussis, whooping cough as it is commonly known, has been on the rise nationally and in our community over the past few years.

 

If you don't know your Tdap vaccination status, ask your doctor. Call us for an appointment for this booster vaccine, whether it is for you or your kid!

Lynne C. Beck, BS, RHEd,  Media Relations Manager and Community Health Educator, Guilford County Department of Public Health

Call (336) 641-6667 for more information.

  

2013 NC Child Hunger Leaders Conference

Wednesday, February 20, 2013 8 am-6 pm at HillSong Church in Chapel Hill, NC.

Thanks to the support of the nonprofit Share Our Strength, there is no registration fee.

 

The conference will focus on the following topics:

*Alternative breakfast programs at school

*Free summer meals for kids

*Afterschool nutrition and Kids Café

*Weekend nutrition and backpack programs

*Building community, community advocacy, and outreach

*Gardening for Healthy Choices

*For NC school districts' child nutrition staff--During the conference, the state agencies will provide on-site training for summer meals programs.

 

Questions? Contact Tamara Baker, Program Manager, No Kid Hungry NC at (919) 933-7650.

 

 

PTA Take Your Family to School Week

February 18-22, 2013

National PTA's Take Your Family to School Week encourages PTAs and educators to provide families with opportunities to engage in their child's learning and overall well-being in the school environment. Funded by the AXA Foundation, Take Your Family to School Week's theme is Safety at Home and at Play.

Through a collaboration with school leaders and Safe Kids Worldwide Coalitions, PTAs will educate families of students in grades pre-K through 5 about the most dangerous safety risks in the home and at play. Hands-on educational activities will encourage families to work together toward achieving safer behaviors.

Contact your local PTA to get involved in this year's Take Your Family to School Week.

Source: PTA.org

  

  

Sincerely,