July 2010: Make The Move Toward Healthy Food
More than 23 million Americans, including 6.5 million children, live in low-income urban and rural neighborhoods that are more than a mile from a supermarket. These communities, where access to affordable, quality, and nutritious foods is limited, are known as food deserts. Lack of access to proper nutrition is only one of the many reasons why children are not eating the recommended levels of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Let's Move — a nationwide campaign to tackle the challenge of childhood obesity – encourages adults to get involved and make a commitment to help youth have access to healthy food and to make smart food choices. Visit the Let's Move website to learn more, and read the Let's Move blog to stay up-to-date on related happenings and progress.
Video: Eliminating Food Deserts in America (Philadelphia, PA)
You can play a vital role in providing youth with opportunities to get healthy, affordable food. What you can do:
- Pick fresh produce from a local farm to donate at food banks
- Share your gardening knowledge with food bank clients and children
- Create a community garden
- Conduct summer feeding program outreach
- Take local decision makers on a tour of neighborhood stores to show how few fruits and vegetables are being sold
Need resources to help you get started? Read stories of service about healthy foods to get motivated, and use the following materials to gather other ideas, information, and activities:
Access to Healthy, Affordable Food
- Locate the food deserts and other community level food indicators
- Make healthy changes for your neighborhood
- Explore community and school-based food access programs
- Increase farmers markets, farm stands, mobile carts, and other fresh farm produce retail venues
Healthy Eating
- See calorie requirements by gender, age, and activity level
- Find out about BMI, and access a child and teen BMI calculator
- Learn about nutrition and the health of young people
- Help preschoolers develop good eating habits
- Get tips to help children maintain a healthy weight
Activities and Games for Kids
- Express Your Health! Activity Book for Kids
- The Power of Choice: Great Taste! Cool Moves!
- Eat Smart. Play Hard.
- Team Up at Home: Team Nutrition Activity Book
- Smallstep Kids
Join the Let's Move movement, and along with thousands of other people across the county in service, you can provide access to healthy affordable food and create a healthier generation of kids by nourishing young bodies.
MORE RESOURCES
Effective Practices
- Buying nutritional food on a limited budget
- Distributing perishable foods to low-income families
- Teaching nutrition and life skills to adults with low incomes
- Partnering with a bakery to provide breakfast to low-income schools
- Developing community gardening spaces for low-income families
Bibliographic Records
- Health, Safety, and Nutrition for the Young Child
- Kids' Multicultural Cookbook: Food and Fun Around the World
- Healthy Snacks
Related Websites
- Healthy Meals Resource System
- Team Nutrition
- Share Our Strength
- Feeding America
- Helping Kids Fight Obesity: Best Online Info Sources
- VISTA Viewfinder: Nutrition and Food Security (Click “Enter Campus as guest” button)