Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/the-farm-to-preschool-model/5021066/
In a world obsessed with convenience, healthy food choices aren’t necessarily the ones people reach for first, but early education providers can help children and their families make smarter, healthier choices. To get there, most providers need to fundamentally change their organizational culture.Research from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control paint a troubling picture for children in the United States ages 2 to 5: nearly 25% are overweight or obese, with African American and Hispanic children disproportionately affected. The American Academy of Pediatrics associates a range of childhood health risks with being significantly overweight. According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, one place where the problem of childhood obesity can be confronted head on is in the preschool setting, where 74% of children ages 3 to 6 spend part of their day.
One innovative child care organization recognized the problem of childhood obesity in its own centers several years ago, well before it was receiving the degree of attention it is getting now. Their idea wasn’t all that complicated: serve the children fresh produce sourced from local farmers. Putting that idea into practice proved challenging on several fronts, but the effort has paid off:
• The children love the healthy foods they ...