Weight and Bullying

Bullying is increasingly a major concern of parents, teachers, and school administrators. Kids may be bullied for a variety of reasons - or for no real reason at all. Weight-related bullying is not a new phenomenon. With all the current media attention to childhood obesity, this type of bullying seems to be increasing among students of all ages.

What we know

• Being overweight can increase the chances of a child being bullied: Several recent studies have confirmed that obese children were twice as likely to be bullied than other kids.
• Bullying can take a toll on a child’s physical and mental health: Medical experts say that being bullied can have serious effects on both physical and emotional well-being.
• A student’s academic performance may also be affected by bullying: A 2011 study found that bullying victims often show a long-lasting decrease in grade point averages.

What parents can do

1: Talk to your children about all types of bullying.

• Children are often afraid to talk about being bullying by their peers. They may be especially embarrassed if they already feel shamed or blamed about their weight.
• Watch for signs that your child may be dealing with bullies, like problems at school or with previous friends. Keep asking and talking whenever you are concerned.

2: Take a zero-tolerance policy on weight-related teasing at home.

• Teasing - or any negative comments - about a child’s weight can have long-lasting effects on self-esteem. They may even be the first step toward an eating disorder.
• If you have concerns about a child’s health status, discuss them privately with your health care provider first. Make appropriate lifestyle changes for the whole family.

3: Help your school understand weight-related bullying.

• If a child is bullied at school, find out who has responsibility for bullying issues in the district. Meet with them as soon as possible and keep a record of your meetings.
• Request that weight issues be included in your district’s anti-bullying education. The Yale Rudd Center has useful materials at www.yaleruddcenter.org/what_we_do.aspx?id=197.

4: Help all children enjoy Health at Every Size®.

• Children of all shapes, sizes, and weights benefit from delicious nutrition and fun fitness. At home and school, encourage everyone to eat smarter and move more.
• For more about Health at Every Size® for children, download Everybody in Schools Curriculum Unit Resource Kit www.naafaonline.com/dev2/education/haesschool.html.

Revisiting 9/11 with Comfort Food

I originally wrote this column on September 18, 2001. As we focus on the 10^th anniversary of this national tragedy, I believe that the benefits of eating together with family and friends are just an important. A recent issue of the Dairy Council of California Health Connections newsletter explored this issue in depth: Raising Healthy Eaters, Benefits and Challenges of Gathering Around the Table (Summer 2011).

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“Food to a large extent is what holds a society together and eating is closely linked to deep spiritual experiences.”

[Peter Farb in Consuming Passions: The Anthropology of Eating, 1983]

When I wrote my Nutrition News column last week, the world was a different place. The events of September 11, 2001, have left our lives more complicated, intensely painful, and very uncertain. At this point, to continue writing about sugar and health seems trivial and unrelated to the rhythms of life after such a disaster. As I move back and forth through shock, anger, fear, sorrow and hope, I – like all of you – am trying to put this tragedy into the context of my work and my family’s life.

I believe that food, and nutrition, have important roles in our lives as we move through personal grief, national tragedy, and global insecurity. On Friday, the National Day of Remembrance and Prayer, I invited friends to dinner and began to make bread – to make bread by hand, not by machine. In kneading dough, baking bread, preparing dinner and setting the table, I began to feel calmer and more settled – the solace of simple things in troubled times.

Since then, I have listened carefully to wise thoughts from religious leaders, poets, counselors, musicians and others. Many themes for healing, recovery and “getting back to normal” begin to emerge. Some words are mentioned repeatedly – family, ritual and community among them. Many people have also spoken of reordered priorities, of reminders of that which is truly important, of refocusing our lives on those things that really matter. Naturally, from my nutrition perspective, all these themes keep bringing me back to food.

In terms of food, the important things are the simple things: meals prepared for loved ones; nurturing food given generously; homegrown produce eaten in the garden; and bread, the staff of life, broken together. In the words of feeding expert, Ellyn Satter: “Eating is about regard for ourselves, our connection with our bodies, and our commitment to life itself.” [Secret of Feeding a Healthy Family, Kelcy Press, 1999]

My nutrition thoughts today are not about what to eat, but about how to eat. Since the beginning of human culture, eating together has been important to families and communities – and the rituals that bind us together.

Think about those words – and special meals come to mind. Holiday meals like Thanksgiving and Passover, shared meals like church potlucks and office parties, celebratory meals like birthdays and anniversaries.

Unfortunately, in our fast food culture, everyday meals have too often been seen as something to get through quickly – so that we can get on to something more important. In this troubled time, as we search for a sense of safety, there may be nothing more important than rediscovering the joy and security of good food eaten with others.

As we face the uncertainty of the future, cooking and eating together are among the simple things that can comfort us. The strength we seek, as well as nourishment, health, communication, and stronger family bonds, are as close as our kitchens and dining rooms. Here are a few ways to make food and nutrition even better than “normal” in the weeks ahead.

• Cook together. Preparing food is a loving way to share time and bring generations together. Measuring, stirring, and chopping can be as comforting as other routine, everyday tasks. Kneading bread can be downright therapeutic.

• Eat together. Make family meals a real priority as often as you can. If you live alone, reach out to family, friends, or co-workers – and break bread together. Eat together at home, eat together at restaurants, eat together at work, eat together at a picnic.

• Turn off the television. Even in normal times, television makes it hard to eat well. The repetitive images of recent destruction can literally make us sick to our stomachs. Take a break from the news and focus on the tastes, smells and textures of food.

• Return to rituals. Families have many rituals for meals – prayers, a moment of silence, joining of hands, candles, or festive touches, like flowers and special dishes. Making rituals part of everyday meals ties us to the past and to hope for the future.

• Take time to share. Slow down and share – food, fellowship, memories, tears, laughter, and the joy of time together. Even small children can learn to share in conversations at the table. Give everyone time to share what is important to them.

• Invite others to join you for a meal. A sense of community is one of the strongest ways to fight fear and move forward. By joining with others around the table, you can begin to take comfort from the nourishing food and loving companionship.

“Eating is not merely a material pleasure. Eating well gives a spectacular joy to life and contributes immensely to goodwill and happy companionship. It is of great importance to the morale.”

[Elsa Schiaparelli, Shocking Life, 1954]

The Flavored Milk Wars: Is a tempest in a milk carton good for kids’ nutrition?

As a Registered Dietitian (RD) who has dedicated more than 30 years of my work and volunteer life to child nutrition, I’m bewildered by the intensity of efforts to ban flavored milk from schools. Petition drives, community forums, hyperbolic sound bites – really? Is this all about 10 or 12 grams of sugar? I wonder if these confrontational tactics are best the thing for improving children’s nutrition. Might our time be better spent collaborating on a school garden, a salad bar, or a campaign to get more calcium into kids?

First, let’s take a look at the facts about the flavored milk served in schools today. This is not a “milkshake” in a plastic bottle nor the flavored milk that you drank in school. In just the past five years, the dairy industry has responded to nutrition concerns and renovated their products dramatically.

• From 2006 to 2011, the average calories in flavored milk decreased by 23 calories – to just under 143 calories in 8 ounces. This is only 39 more calories than white milk.

• Decreasing calories has been accomplished by reducing fat (to fat-free milk) and reducing added sugar. Added sugar in flavored milk has declined by 30% – by 5 grams per cup – over the past 5 years.

• Many dairies now offer flavored milk with just 10 to 12 grams of added sugar per cup. Some anti-flavor activists fail to remember all milk has 12 grams of natural sugar (lactose) straight from the cow!

• For example, the fat-free chocolate milk served in New York City public schools has just 130 calories, 22 grams of total sugar, that’s 12 grams from naturally occurring lactose and 10 grams of added sugar.

Next, let’s keep our eyes on the nutrition prize. While some children in the US are getting too many calories for their activity level, a significant number of children are seriously under-nourished. The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans listed four nutrients of concern for adults and children: calcium, vitamin D, potassium, and dietary fiber. These nutrients are “of concern” because our low consumption can affect our health today and in the future. Here ‘s how nutrients of concern relate to the flavored milk debate:

• Just like white milk, flavored milk provides three of the nutrients of concern – all of them except dietary fiber.

• All milks are nutrient-rich beverages. They are packed with what kids need for strong bodies – calcium, vitamin D, and potassium, as well as protein, phosphorus, and vitamins A, B₁₂, riboflavin, and niacin.

• Dr. Rachel Johnson (University of Vermont professor and former dean) has studied milk consumption for years. Co-author of Drinking Flavored or Plain Milk Is Positively Associated with Nutrient Intake and Is Not Associated with Adverse Effects on Weight Status in US Children and Adolescents in the April 2008 Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Johnson has noted that “the battle against chocolate milk may be the wrong one.”

Finally, let’s figure out how to work together to improve nutrition in schools and for families, especially those in low-income, at-risk neighborhoods. Improving child nutrition in the US is going to take serious collaboration – among parents, dietitians, chefs, and school nutrition professionals.

Banning flavored milk might have the potential for a tiny reduction in calories. However, several national and local studies have confirmed that it is also likely to reduce overall milk consumption. Is this really a smart approach? No one – not even dairy advocates – is suggesting that we should push flavored at kids. Let’s have fat-free flavored milk as one option in school cafeteria. Let’s not throw important nutrients out with misplaced concerns about small amounts of sugar.

Let’s put our passion for child nutrition toward effective collaborations on positive ways to improve access to delicious nutrient-rich, more-locally sourced foods at school and at home. Let’s get together on School Gardens, local Farm-to-School projects, and helping kids build “Best Bones Forever.”

Dayle Hayes, MS, RD, president of Nutrition for the Future, Inc., blogs at Nutrition for the Future and showcases the school nutrition revolution at School Meals That Rock. She is the immediate Past-Chair of the School Nutrition Services Dietetic Practice Group of the American Dietetic Association and also Co-Chair of Billings Action for Healthy Kids in her hometown of Billings, Montana. Dayle is proud to work with the dairy farm families represented by National Dairy Council and regional dairy councils, such as Western Dairy Association.

5 Simple Ways to Start Walking with Your Sole Mates

Walking is good for your body, your brain, and your mood. When you find a few good walking buddies, it’s good for your social life too! Walking is fun, easy, and probably the cheapest workout on the planet. All you need is well fitting, comfortable walking shoes. Put on a pair - and start walking your way to health and happiness today!

1. Wear your walking shoes around the house.

Walking shoes can put a spring in your step even when you are doing routine chores around the house. Put on some music and you might even feel like dancing. Plus, if you’ve got your walking shoes on, you can enjoy a 10-minute walk in the sun when you go out to empty the trash. Research shows that a 10-minute burst of activity can offer a real boost to your mood.

2. Wear your walking shoes to the office.

Walking at work can improve your health and productivity too. Studies show that physical activity can help one’s ability to concentrate on detailed tasks. A short walk instead of a high calorie snack may help reduce your stress and allow you to better focus on your job. Walking meetings can also be an effective way to get some business done with your coworkers.

3. Wear your walking shoes while shopping.

Whether it is running errands at lunchtime or longer shopping expeditions on the weekend, walking shoes can help you get things done while ‘working out.’ Take a friend or two and park in a central location. Walk to all your shopping destinations, then back to the car with your bags. Now, that is some successful multi-tasking, along with social networking too!

4. Wear your walking shoes to the game.

Ever go to children’s or grandchildren’s soccer, baseball, or football games? When you wear walking shoes, there’s no need to be stuck on the sidelines ever again. You, along with family members and friends, can walk around the field - being active, being social, and watching the game from all perspectives. Walking around is also a great way to entertain small children.

5. Wear your walking shoes everywhere.

Your sole mates - those comfortable walking shoes - can take you many places. They can take you around town, up and down mountains, or across foreign countries. They can take you into new social circles and help you make friends with dogs of all sizes. Wear your walking shoes whenever you can and you’ll probably be healthier, happier, and wiser.