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New ACFN Report
Examines Common Traits Among Successful Programs
Entitled Successful Grassroots Health and Wellness Programs: Exploring Common Traits, the report provides guidance for local leaders who aspire to launch, endorse or enhance health and wellness initiatives in their communities, and for parents who are considering involving their children and families. “ACFN's goal is to highlight grassroots efforts to build a healthier America,” said ACFN chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A. Through our TRIUMPH series, we found important shared characteristics among local programs that are taking the concept of sustainable solutions to obesity, turning it into action and generating real results. We are committed to sharing knowledge, so we captured those characteristics in this report to serve as a resource and guide for others.” The six highlighted characteristics are:
The report also contains specific recommendations to community leaders interested in enhancing or launching a health and wellness initiative, and critical questions for parents to ask when considering involving their children. ACFN hosted TRIUMPH events in Little Rock, AR (March 15); Austin, TX (May 4); Philadelphia, PA (June 24); Baltimore, MD (June 28); Chicago, IL (August 2); Albuquerque, NM (Sept. 27); and Oklahoma City, OK (Nov. 16). Each event consisted of a facilitated panel discussion by local nutrition and fitness experts, government officials and large local employers; presentations by the leaders of innovative local programs; and a question and answer session. The events were co-sponsored by the National Association for Health and Fitness. Throughout 2006, ACFN will continue to work with the local programs ACFN engaged through TRIUMPH and follow their ongoing activities and successes. In addition, the lessons from TRIUMPH are the basis for two primary focus areas for ACFN in 2006: an initiative in partnership with the American Dietetic Association to help African-American and Hispanic children, and an initiative with appropriate federal government agencies to provide local health and wellness programs with guidance on the measurement of outcomes. ACFN also is building a broad-based initiative for 2007 and beyond to build healthier schools. “ACFN believes all sectors must be involved in creating a healthier America, including our founder – the food and beverage industry – along with other private employers, government, nonprofits and charitable organizations, schools and families themselves,” said Dr. Finn. “The grassroots programs discussed in these pages illustrate what can happen in a community when all stakeholders work together toward sustainable change.” Click here to read the full report. To view a video summary of the TRIUMPH Series, click
here. |
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Leading Experts
Offer Perspectives on TRIUMPH Series ACFN's newly released report on the 2005 TRIUMPH series of events, Successful Grassroots Health and Wellness Programs, includes perspectives from leading fitness and nutrition experts as well as local and state government officials. They offered thoughts on their experiences regarding the TRIUMPH series and the grassroots programs it highlighted. Below is a sampling of what they said.
Kate Coler, deputy undersecretary, United States
Department of Agriculture Terry Cline, Oklahoma Secretary of Health Jim Hill, Ph.D., director, University of Colorado,
Health Sciences Center, Center for Human Nutrition; member, ACFN Advisory
Board Barbara Brandt, chair, American Dietetic Association
Foundation
Al Barrocas, M.D., member, ACFN Advisory Board Click here to read more detailed excerpts. Click here to download TRIUMPH report, Celebrating Grassroots Health and Wellness Programs. |
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ACFN Holiday Tips Make News As part of a commitment to teaching Americans that healthy living and having fun are not mutually exclusive, news stories generated by three simple ACFN tips for enjoying the holidays reached more than two million people in cities across the country. The tips urged consumers to make the enjoyment more about taste than quantity, to get the family moving and, most importantly, to have fun while doing both. Among the highlights:
“I think the holidays are a great time to practice behaviors that we should be doing all year round. It is about moderation. It is about enjoying foods that you like. It's not about deprivation,” said Dr. Finn on WBNS-10TV in Columbus. Click here to listen to the interview on Washington, D.C.’s WTOP Federal News Radio, 1050 AM. Click here to listen to the interview on Columbus Perspective, Columbus, OH.
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Three Tips
for Staying Healthy Through the Holidays Whether it be gatherings of extended family, the first snowfall or a glass of champagne on New Year’s Eve, the holiday season should be a season of enjoyment—not of restriction. And it’s possible to enjoy all the holiday season has to offer without saying goodbye to health-oriented behavior. So keep these three tips in mind for a healthier, happier holiday season—for both you and your children. 1. Make enjoyment more about taste than quantity.
2. Get the family moving.
3. Have fun. The holiday season is all about fun, so create fun for your family. Enjoy wonderful holiday treats together, but make the enjoyment about great taste rather than great quantity. And even the simplest, easiest activities can keep the family moving during the season, a holiday investment in your family for healthy living year round. |
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Top Oklahoma
Health Official Says "Never Too Late" to Improve One's
Health At an ACFN TRIUMPH event in Oklahoma City on November 16, Oklahoma Secretary of Health Terry Cline urged people of the state, regardless of age or ability, to take charge of their own wellness. "Programs like the ones represented here today, throughout our city and state, will help you take the first step in your journey to a healthier lifestyle," he said. The Secretary of Health served as keynote for the half-day event, co-sponsored by ACFN and the National Association for Health and Fitness (NAHF), in which more than 100 community leaders and local health and wellness experts convened to celebrate the successes and examine the challenges of creative local programs working to fight obesity. This event was the seventh and final TRIUMPH event of 2005. The event was the subject of two articles in the The Oklahoman, the state's largest newspaper, as well as two separate news stories on the local CBS affiliate, KWTV-9. “It all starts at home … families spending more time together, sitting down for family dinners, cooking healthy meals, going for walks. It makes a difference if the entire family is involved together,” said Jennifer Eve, producer and host of “Together at the Table,” one of the local programs highlighted at the event. This segment airs each week on KWTV-9 during the Wednesday noon and Sunday morning newscasts.
Other programs highlighted conduct health and wellness education in Oklahoma’s at-risk populations. Oklahoma’s REACH 2010 Project represents eight Native American tribes/nations, one urban Indian health center and the Oklahoma State Department of Health, Chronic Disease Service. Collectively the program provides 75 various physical activity interventions each week by Native Americans to Native Americans and their families. Mary Massey-Douglas, tribal program consultant, told the audience, “We have participants across the state working to improve their health and getting physically active. From our data we have found a decrease in BMI among adults.” Currently, there are more than 5,000 participants enrolled statewide in the Oklahoma Native American REACH 2010 Project who have had baseline measurements taken. Panelist Ryan Brown, M.D., pediatrician at the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Diabetes Wellness Center, stressed the importance of educating children on healthy habits and choices. “ It is important for children to take baby steps when adapting to change in their daily routines. If you take everything away, like snacks and TV, or tell them no … they are more susceptible to resist change,” he said. Tinker Air Force Base is also making efforts to get Oklahomans moving with its Fit 4 Life program, which provides civilians the opportunity to join military colleagues in efforts to establish lifetime health and fitness habits. Fit 4 Life consists of trained fitness leaders leading group exercise, earning fitness incentive items and monthly health themes as part of a base-wide culture change. Karen Blackwell, chief of health promotions, said, "We are helping people to see the importance of physical fitness and its impact on increasing their productivity and the significance of their overall health and wellness. The program encourages civilians on Tinker to get involved in some type of physical activity. Our mission is to support the war-fighter and we can do that better by improving our health." Event panelists represented a variety of academic institutions and health care programs across Oklahoma, including Oklahoma State University, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Diabetes Wellness Center, Oklahoma Fit Kids Coalition and Oklahoma University. ACFN and NAHF are compiling a summary of observations from the TRIUMPH series, to be available in early 2006. For summaries of the previous TRIUMPH events, please click here.
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SPECIAL
FEATURE: During ACFN’s TRIUMPH events of 2005, co-sponsored by the National Association for Health and Fitness, leaders of state and local anti-obesity programs run by nonprofits, employers, schools and governments noted a key challenge they face: quantifying success. ACFN informally polled its 29-person advisory board on the subject, and they spoke out. Below is a sampling of what they said. Tom Baranowski, Ph.D., Professor of Pediatrics
and Leader of the Behavioral Nutrition Group, USDA-funded Children’s
Nutrition Research Center, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College
of Medicine Kristine Clark, Ph.D., R.D., Director of Sports
Nutrition and Assistant Professor of Nutrition, Center for Sports
Medicine, Penn State Mary M. Austin, M.A., R.D., C.D.E., Immediate
Past President, American Association of Diabetes Educators Jim Hill, Ph.D., Director, Health Sciences Center,
Center for Human Nutrition, University of Colorado, To read more detailed excerpts of the ACFN Advisory Board’s dialogue on the subject, click here. To view a list of the members of the ACFN Advisory Board and their bios, click here.
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Society for
Nutrition Education Joins the ACFN Advisory Board The Society for Nutrition Education (SNE), an international organization of nutrition education and health promotion professionals in academia, government, service organizations and industry, has joined ACFN’s Advisory Board. Janice Dodds, Ed.D., R.D., a former chair of SNE’s Advisory Committee in Public Policy, will represent SNE in its new ACFN role. ACFN Chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., said, “ACFN is committed to promoting sustainable solutions to obesity, especially for children, by bringing together the nation’s leading thinkers and organizations in health and wellness. SNE is an ideal addition to our Advisory Board, and we welcome Dr. Dodds. Her expertise in child health will be invaluable as we work to curb childhood obesity in populations that need it most.“ Dr. Dodds is a nutrition educator with both practical and academic experience, with specific expertise working in maternal and child health. She is a professor in the Department of Nutrition and Maternal and Child Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she trains public health nutritionists and conducts community research on nutrition decision-making early in life. She is co-director of the Carolina Community Health Scholar Program and has served as director of the Bureau of Nutrition of New York State Health Department.
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Oklahoma Secretary
of Health to Keynote TRIUMPH Event Oklahoma Secretary of Health Terry Cline will keynote the final event in the ACFN TRIUMPH series in Oklahoma City on November 16. The National Association for Health and Fitness cosponsors TRIUMPH, which highlights outstanding local programs fighting obesity in communities across the country. Leaders from programs sponsored by governments, nonprofits, schools and employers will discuss their efforts to help Oklahomans lead healthier lives. In addition to secretary Cline’s keynote remarks, highlights are scheduled to include Together at the Table, a weekly program of Oklahoma City's CBS affiliate, which uses television to teach children how to make better eating choices, and the Kid's Memorial Marathon, a popular physical-activity program for children through Norman Regional Hospital. ACFN Advisory Board member Albert Barrocas, M.D., will facilitate a dialogue among the leaders of these and other local efforts. The event also will feature a brief panel discussion by nutrition and physical activity experts from the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Fit Kids Coalition, the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University. Facilitated by ACFN Chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., the panel will explore successes and challenges in Oklahoma’s efforts to curb the obesity trend. Those in the Oklahoma City vicinity can register now
by visiting http://www.acfn.org/e31/. |
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ACFN Announces
Initiative on Childhood Obesity in At-Risk Populations ACFN has announced a new initiative focusing on African-American and Hispanic children, populations shown to be particular risk of obesity. The new initiative will be the focus of the partnership between ACFN and the American Dietetic Association (ADA) Foundation beginning in 2006. The initiative will consist of a detailed analysis of existing data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other sources, to assess the need and greatest opportunities for impact among African-American and Hispanic children. Working with the ADA, ACFN will develop two separate authoritative guides for African-American and Hispanic community leaders on how to build and expand programs designed to help families adopt and maintain healthier lifestyles. Sharon Cox, M.S., R.D., C.D.E., a member of the ACFN Advisory Board member; the American Dietetic Association (ADA); and the National Organization of Blacks in Dietetics and Nutrition (NOBIDAN), a networking group affiliated with the ADA, said, “Cultural relevance is a critical new frontier in the battle against obesity. Today’s announcement signals the commitment of ACFN members, its advisory board and supporters to help dietitians, physical activity experts and other local leaders nationwide make a meaningful impact on obesity trend lines among the children who need it most.”
Cecilia Pozo Fileti, M.S., R.D., F.A.D.A., another member of the ACFN Advisory Board, ADA, and head of Latinos and Hispanics in Dietetics and Nutrition (LAHIDAN), a networking group affiliated with the ADA, said, “ACFN and ADA are ideal partners to address a need that goes beyond putting great nutrition and physical activity resources into the hands of community leaders. We intend to show how to achieve collaboration in communities – the key to getting more families and children involved.” ACFN and the ADA will recruit other partners among respected organizations in the African- American and Hispanic communities and invite them to participate in both the development and dissemination of the guides. ACFN also is reaching out to organizations that have developed or are planning to develop resources for battling obesity among children in at-risk populations. As part of this effort, ACFN pledged a gift of $25,000 to the ADA Foundation. ACFN Chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., said, “Registered dietitians work every day with people undertaking the daunting task of changing their lifestyle to invest in the long-term health of themselves, and more importantly, their children. The ADA brings credibility and expertise to this initiative, as well as the ability to turn the guidance we produce into action through its vast network of members. We are grateful to embark together on this new endeavor.” ACFN officially launched the initiative and partnership on Oct. 24 at the ADA Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo (FNCE). During the event, ACFN sponsored a workshop on cultural competency by NOBIDAN and a business meeting of LAHIDAN. ACFN also distributed toolkits for African-American community leaders, co-sponsored by NOBIDAN, and Hispanic community leaders, co-sponsored by LAHIDAN. Those toolkits will serve as the foundation for the more detailed guides ACFN and ADA will develop and disseminate in this joint initiative. The current toolkits are available for download at http://www.acfn.org/b1/.
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ACFN to Focus
on At-Risk Populations at ADA Expo ACFN will collaborate with dietitians who serve African-American and Hispanic American communities at the 2005 American Dietetic Association (ADA) Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo - part of ACFN’s ongoing commitment to improving the availability of culturally relevant health and wellness resources for African-American and Hispanic children. Also on the topic of children’s health, ACFN Chair Sue Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., will moderate a panel discussion sponsored by the Harvard Medical School Division of Nutrition on the prevention of childhood obesity. The Harvard event will take place at the Expo on Oct. 25. ACFN Advisory Board member Cecilia Pozo Fileti, M.S.,
R.D., F.A.D.A., President of Latino Health Communications, a key counselor
to ACFN in its efforts within at-risk populations, explained the importance
of the ADA event. “Dietitians are on the front lines helping
people adopt and maintain healthier lifestyles,” she said. “And
we believe culturally relevant programs for African-American and Hispanic
children is an area for great impact. ACFN sees the ADA convention
as an excellent setting to advance the dialogue and build the collaboration
needed to achieve success within those populations.”
ACFN will sponsor a workshop on cultural competency by the National Organization of Blacks in Dietetics and Nutrition (NOBIDAN) and a business meeting of Latinos & Hispanics in Dietetics and Nutrition (LAHIDAN). ACFN also will distribute its toolkits for African-American and Hispanic American community leaders, which for the first time are co-sponsored by NOBIDAN and LAHIDAN. An ACFN booth on the Expo floor will display observations from the organization’s 2005 TRIUMPH events, which highlighted local programs fighting obesity in communities across the nation. Finally, ACFN will sponsor a dinner for the ADA Weight Management Dietetic Practice Group. To learn more about the FNCE event, visit www.eatright.org. |
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Local
Efforts for Seniors, Kids Take Center Stage in Albuquerque
The City of Albuquerque’s Senior Sports and Fitness program, which was highlighted at a local ACFN TRIUMPH event on Sept. 27, offers senior citizens physical education and recreation activities including cross-country and downhill skiing, coupled with nutrition education. Program manager Karen Baker told the audience of local fitness and nutrition professionals and government officials that the program “even organizes a snowball-throwing contest – anything fun and effective to get our clientele moving.” The program serves more than 14,000 senior citizens in the Albuquerque area, and the number of participants increases annually. It was just one of a number of innovative local government, non profit and private-sector efforts highlighted at ACFN’s sixth TRIUMPH event this year. Representing the New Mexico Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Health at the event, former NFL wide receiver Preston Dennard stressed the importance of partnerships and collaboration to make the state’s citizens healthier. “Beating the obesity trend requires every segment of society to work together to change our culture – to reorient our behaviors in such a way that fitness is a priority,” he said.
His comments were echoed by Phil Haberstro, executive director of the National Association for Health and Fitness, a co-sponsor for the event. “There is no magic bullet to address the complex health challenge facing our nation. But we must work together – public sectors, private sector and nonprofit sector – to develop comprehensive solutions to enable people to enjoy wellness across all stages of their lives. The programs represented here today are indicative of ones in our nation that are working to do just that.” The manager of a local General Mills plant, Keith Pullman, highlighted his company’s commitment to helping its employees stay fit, noting examples of those programs in action at his facility. “Employees are really starting to see a difference in themselves and their performances. From simple stretching exercises to running marathons, more people getting motivated and involved, ” he said. The event specifically highlighted local programs like the Boys and Girls Club of Albuquerque and Rio Rancho’s Fitness Authority, which are helping youth learn how to eat right and get moving. Evalyn Williams told the audience how the program enables children to set their own personal fitness goals and learn how to make smart food choices through hands-on experience working with local supermarket sponsors. “The children are able to go home and share this information with their families. This way we are not only educating the children, but the family as well,” she said. Event participants included representatives from local government offices including the New Mexico Department of Health, City of Albuquerque, Governor’s Council, as well as the local staff of U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman. The event was highlighted on the local KOB-TV, the local NBC affiliate, and in the Albuquerque Journal. ACFN Chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., who moderated a panel discussion, noted how many of the programs highlighted throughout the TRIUMPH series are challenged by and seeking new ways to quantify the successes they are achieving. She also challenged the program leaders to incorporate both physical activity and nutrition into helping people live healthier lives. The next TRIUMPH event is scheduled for Nov. 16 in Oklahoma
City.
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Major
Newsletter Publishes Nutrition Advice
ACFN Chair Susan Finn emphasized the power of whole grains in a recent article in the consumer advice newsletter, Bottom Line/Personal which has a circulation of 1million. In the article “The Amazing Power of Whole Grains, ” Susan Finn, Ph.D, R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., chair of ACFN said, “ Americans consume about 12 grams of fiber daily, less than half the recommended amount of 25 to 30 grams. This low intake of fiber is dangerous to our health, increasing our risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and digestive diseases.” Dr. Finn explained the critical role whole grains play in disease prevention. She discussed how whole grains can suppress appetite and offered usable tips for readers on great sources of the nutritious carbohydrates. Dr. Finn is the director of communication at The Ohio State University and past president of the American Dietetic Association. Bottom Line/Personal is among the most widely read newsletters covering advice from professionals on issues Americans are confronted with on a daily basis. Please click here to view Dr. Finn’s article as published in Bottom Line/Personal.
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ACFN
Urges Members to Participate in Family Day
ACFN and its member organizations call on their grassroots supporters to sit down for dinner with their families on the evening of Monday, September 26, in support of “Family Day - A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children.” “Family Day” is a call to action by Family Table, a public service campaign created by TV Land and Nick at Nite in 2003, which this year has teamed with The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. The goal is to encourage Americans to pledge to have dinner as a family on September 26 and, hopefully, use “Family Day” as a catalyst to make family dinners a regular part of their lives. TV Land even plans a one-hour on-air "blackout" on the evening of Monday, September 26. ACFN promotes smart meal planning and urges families to plan with and teach their children the importance of eating healthy and staying active. Together, CASA and the Family Table campaign have set a goal of registering millions of people to participate in “Family Day” on September 26. Please sign up to be part of this important event - pledging is easy and free. Simply visit www.familytable.info to sign up.
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| ACFN
Chair Notes Changing Products, Packaging, Marketing Posted September 16, 2005
At a presentation during an Ohio State University short course for snack food company manufacturing personnel, ACFN Chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A., highlighted specific steps food and beverage companies are taking to fight obesity. She noted the “wellness shift” being made by shoppers, and discussed changes in the nutrition profile of food and beverage products, as well as packaging and marketing. “Eighty-five percent of food or beverage companies have introduced or improved nutrition in more than 5,000 products,” she said, referring to the findings of a recent member survey by the Grocery Manufacturers Association, an industry trade group and key ACFN member. “Fifty-seven percent have changed multi-serve packaging or are in the process, and another 25 percent are planning to.” Finn also discussed workplace wellness programs being advanced by food and beverage companies for the approximately 2.5 million people employed by the industry, as well as nutrition and physical activity programs the companies sponsor in their respective communities. Dr. Finn was participating in the Wilbur A. Gould Total Quality Management Short Course entitled “Working Together to Build a Healthier Tomorrow: Industry’s Role.” The course was sponsored by the Snack Food Association and Center for Innovative Food Technology, in conjunction with The Ohio State University.
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| Harvard’s
Blackburn Points to Nutrition Knowledge Gap Posted August 26, 2005 A recent article in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition by George L. Blackburn, M.D., Ph.D., emphasized the critical role physicians can play in helping patients understand dietary guidelines and energy balance. The article states, “As many as 90 million Americans lack basic skills needed to access, understand and use health information and services to make healthy dietary choices.” Blackburn is a member of the ACFN Advisory Board and associate director of the division of nutrition at Harvard Medical School. At Harvard, Blackburn is the chief of the nutrition/metabolism laboratory, and director of the center for the Study of Nutrition Medicine, which are affiliated with the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. He is an internationally renowned expert in the fields of obesity and clinical nutrition. Please click here to view Dr. George Blackburn’s article in full on the Web site of the American Journal for Clinical Nutrition. The American Journal for Clinical Nutrition has recently published an article by ACFN Chair Susan Finn, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., F.A.D.A. entitled, Science-Based Solutions To Obesity: What Are the Roles of Academia, Government, Industry, and Health Care? Now and again: the food and beverage industry demonstrates its commitment to a healthy America. Please click here to read the article in full on the Web site of American Journal for Clinical Nutrition.
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| Seven
New Members Join ACFN Obesity Fight Posted August 26, 2005
Common Threads, co-founded by a personal chef to Oprah Winfrey, is one of seven new ACFN members joining in the fight against obesity. Tara Sidlowski, a Common Threads representative speaking at an ACFN TRIUMPH event in Chicago on August 2, told attendees how the program “uses food to teach children about all of the things we have in common as a world family.” Each week, the children identify a new country that they explore through meal preparations and activities involving the different cultures. ACFN convenes nutrition, fitness and other organizations with a stake in the fight against obesity. Among other new members:
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This
Summer, Local Anti-Obesity Programs Heat Up
This summer, children at U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) housing complexes across Baltimore are learning jump-rope routines from trained volunteer coaches as part of a program called "JumpSmart" (Jump Rope, Eat Smart). In Chicago, through a partnership between the nonprofit Common Threads and the Chicago Parks District, children are learning tai chi and how to incorporate vegetables they’ve grown themselves into Asian dishes. These are just a few of the excellent, community-spawned local programs that ACFN, along with the National Association of Health and Fitness, are shining a light on this summer through our TRIUMPH series. "These programs are indicative of the comprehensive, behavior-focused efforts taking place in communities across the country to help people improve their health by staying active and eating smart," explains ACFN Chair Dr. Susan Finn in describing why ACFN has undertaken the TRIUMPH series. "We are going to communities around the nation to observe and learn what’s working, and to do our best to assist the sharing of good ideas that are really helping people make healthier choices." As of August, ACFN has hosted TRIUMPH events in five cities: Austin, Baltimore, Chicago, Little Rock and Philadelphia, providing a forum for the best of the best in community-based programs to share their insights with other experts in the field. To learn more about what was learned in each of the cities, click on the city names below:
Austin To learn more about TRIUMPH, click
here. |
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| ACFN
Leaders Provide Perspectives in Leading Clinical Journal Posted August 5, 2005 The July 1 edition of the respected American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published the work of two ACFN leaders on the roles of academia, government, industry and health care in fighting obesity. ACFN Advisory Board member Dr. George Blackburn of the Harvard Medical School described the complex link between reading education, the ability to comprehend food labels and obesity – underscoring the impact that doctors can have as agents of change. Dr. Susan Finn, chair of ACFN, noted the recognition demonstrated by the food and beverage industry of the influence it can have in modifying the eating behavior of Americans. "Improvements in education are needed to close the gap between knowledge and action in the prevention and treatment of obesity," said Dr. Blackburn in the article entitled "Teaching, learning, doing: Best practices in education, "To make healthy food choices, adults and children need easy-to-use information that fits into their busy lifestyles." He explained that by applying best practices in teaching and learning, clinicians can improve health literacy and give patients the information they need. In her published article on steps the food and beverage industry is taking in the war against obesity, Dr. Finn wrote, "Who is responsible for ensuring that Americans of all ages follow a healthy diet? Government? Scientists? Food makers and marketers? Schools? Parents? The answer is all of the above." She noted the industry’s pledge to communicate clearly in labeling, packaging and advertising to enable consumers to make information choices. She also pointed out how the industry is urging Americans – in line with new U.S. Dietary Guidelines – to eat less, be more active or do both to maintain good health. Please click here to view Dr. Susan Finn's article in full on the Web site of the American Journal for Clinical Nutrition. Please click here to view Dr. George Blackburn's article in full on the Web site of the American Journal for Clinical Nutrition.
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ACFN
today announced it has identified six key characteristics among grassroots
health and wellness programs that are creating positive change in communities
nationwide. Those characteristics are examined in a report ACFN
released today on its 2005 TRIUMPH (Trends, Resources and Inspiration
for Understanding and Maintaining Physical Health) series, during which
ACFN highlighted the successes of such programs across the country.
