IOM Reports on Food Marketing to Kids
In December, the Institutes of Medicine (IOM) released a report on food and beverage marketing targeted to children ages 12 and under. In a review of hundreds of studies, the IOM committee found the following: 1) television advertising influences the food and beverage preferences and purchase requests of children; 2) over the short term, television advertising affects children’s consumption habits; and 3) most of the advertising geared toward children promotes high-calorie, low nutrient foods, beverages and meals. 
As a result, the committee recommends that the food industry focus on kid-friendly products high in nutrient density and that specifically licensed characters should be used only to promote products that support a healthy diet. In partnership with industry, the federal government should enhance nutritional standards, incentives and public policy to promote the marketing of healthier foods and beverages. Most if not all of the IOM committee recommendations require buy-in from the food and beverage industry. 

 To read the full report, visit: http://books.nap.edu/catalog/11514.html?onpi_newsdoc12062005 (see the link on the left side);
The press release is available at: http://www4.nationalacademies.org/news.nsf/isbn/0309097134?OpenDocument

MiPirámide Now Available
FNS unveiled MiPirámide: Pasos Hacia Una Mejor Salud, the Spanish version of MyPyramid in early December. Studies show that the Latino community has higher-than-average rates of obesity as well as other chronic diseases such as diabetes. Just like its parent site, MiPirámide encourages the Latino community to make smart eating choices from every food group, to find a balance between food intake and physical activity and to get the most nutrition from the calories consumed. 

To directly visit the Spanish version of MyPyramid click: http://mypyramid.gov/sp-index.html. 

Income Inequality in Pennsylvania
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Economic Policy Institute recently released a report detailing a state-by-state analysis of income trends. According to the study, in most states, the gap between the highest-income families and poor and middle-income families grew significantly between the early 1980s and the early 2000s. Pennsylvania saw a significant rise in the incomes of the wealthy while the incomes of its middle- and lower-income families only saw a moderate increase. In fact, Pennsylvania ranked 2nd among the states for experiencing the greatest increase in income inequality between the top and middle tiers from the early 1980s to the early 2000s.

To read the full report, visit http://www.cbpp.org/1-26-06sfp.pdf.
To read the press release, visit http://www.cbpp.org/1-26-06sfp.htm.

The Food Stamp Program and the Farm Bill
Over the next fifteen months, the Senate and House agriculture committees will prepare legislation to reauthorize the federal programs included in the Farm Bill, which expires in September 2007. The Food Stamp Program (FSP), the foundation of America’s effort to end hunger and the largest program in the Farm Bill, will be included.
With an annual budget of around $35 billion, and with the federal government going ever deeper into debt, the FSP will receive a lot of attention. Even more importantly, Congress has finally begun to recognize the far-reaching implications of America’s taste for cheap, high-energy and low-nutrient food items. Unless Americans can be persuaded to eat more healthily, we face a future in which the federal treasury will be swamped by the costs of treating chronic disease.

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Keystone Color Me Healthy
Keystone Color Me Healthy is a nutrition and physical activity program for limited-resource children ages 4 and 5. It is designed to stimulate all the senses of young children: touch, smell, sight, sound and, of course, taste. Keystone Color Me Healthy uses color, music and exploration of the senses to teach children that healthy eating and physical activity are fun. The program also exposes children to fruits and vegetables in an enjoyable and interactive way so that children will learn to accept and prefer them over non-nutritious snacks. Originally developed and evaluated by a multi-agency partnership in North Carolina, Keystone Color Me Healthy is currently in its third implementation year in Pennsylvania.

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Chew This, Nutrition TV Show for Philadelphia Kids
EAT.RIGHT.NOW. is entering its sixth year as an official nutrition education program of the School District of Philadelphia. This program is funded by the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Program (PA NEP) as part of the USDA’s Food Stamp Program. EAT.RIGHT.NOW. provides nutrition outreach programs and services to public school students, teachers, staff, administrators and parents. It is based at both school and community sites, during school hours as well as after school and involves nutrition education at various levels. During the 2004–2005 school year, EAT.RIGHT.NOW. successfully reached 1,517,921 participants (duplicated and unduplicated) through various direct and indirect outreach programs and services. Thanks to recent expansion of the program for the 2005–2006 school year, it is estimated that outreach will grow to approximately 7,348,922 (duplicated and unduplicated).

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The Kindergarten Initiative
What do you get when you mix fresh, delicious local food, classroom lessons, parent involvement and farm trips? Kids who love fruits and vegetables! The Kindergarten Initiative, now in its second year, is getting students to not only eat their fruits and vegetables, but to actually ask their parents for more. One mother even exclaimed, “My son now asks for more nutritious snacks like carrots, pears, and apples.”
At least part of the reason children are so excited about eating their 5-A-Day is that they are getting snacks made with fresh, local produce. The freshness and taste of these fruits and vegetables is by far their greatest promotion.

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PANA Upcoming Events for Pennsylvania Schools
Pennsylvania Advocates for Nutrition and Activity (PANA) invites you to join schools across the state in celebrating the second annual Go for the Greens event on March 17. By participating, you can help Pennsylvania schools fight childhood obesity by focusing on the importance of eating green vegetables as part of a healthy diet. Team with your local schools and businesses by offering your time, support and resources. Schools will be serving green vegetables to students and offering a number of fun activities such as vegetable trivia contests, taste-testings, recipe contests and lessons about the state’s vegetable farms. Schools that participate are eligible to win cash prizes by visiting www.panaonline.org.

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PA NEN School Breakfast Promotion
Studies indicate that schools with good turnouts at breakfast have markedly better school attendance rates, lower rates of tardiness, fewer discipline problems and fewer student visits to the school nurse. Students that have breakfast in the morning are more likely to sustain focus and achieve academic success.
Unfortunately, children from low-income families are less likely to eat breakfast at home. Out of every 100 low-income Pennsylvania children eating free or reduced-price lunch at school, only thirty-six are eating breakfast at school. In fact, a recent report released by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) indicated that Pennsylvania has fallen in the national rankings from 38 th to 42 nd in the provision of school breakfasts to students in need. To read the full report, please visit www.frac.org/Press_Release/12.13.05.html.

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At Issue . . . Allocation of Credit
In the National Academy Press’s release of On Being a Scientist: Responsible Conduct in Research (http://newton.nap.edu/html/obas/content.html) attention is given to “allocation of credit.” Specifically denoted is that “. . . credit is explicitly acknowledged in three places: in the list of authors, in the acknowledgements of contributions from others and in the list of references or citations.” All three are equally important, however most pertinent to the work of the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Program and the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Network is the acknowledgement of contributions from others. Contributions include scholarly assistance (e.g. reviewing a manuscript, survey instrument), organizational or physical help (e.g. participant/subject recruitment) and financial support. Crediting sources of financial support lends credibility to the project by showing peer support and implied accountability. In addition, funder interests, vision and commitments are acknowledged and promoted.

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Research Update
In the last issue of the Food for Thought, the research committee took the opportunity to introduce its members and their research interests. Now we would like to share with PA NEN members a series of articles on the effectiveness of different approaches of conducting nutrition education and reviewing current research on innovative practices within the field. With constricting funding streams and new ideas for conducting nutrition education, this series is intended to explore modes of educational messaging, tying the methods to research. From podcasts to comic books, innovative ideas to promote nutrition education are all around us.

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Strengthening the Food Resource Safety Net
6th Annual Conference
Mark your calendars for “Strengthening the Food Resource Safety Net” to be held May 22–23, 2006 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
This year’s program promises to be top-notch! Featured speakers include Dr. Gloria Wilder Brathwaite, a nationally recognized advocate for underserved children in Washington, D.C., and Dayle Hayes, the award-winning author, speaker, and nutrition therapist from Billings, Montana. Also invited are U.S. Senator Rick Santorum, State Treasurer Robert Casey, and Robert Nelkin, executive director of the Governor’s Cabinet for Children and Families. Three different workshop tracks will cover topics ranging from nutrition education to food security to emerging issues and initiatives.

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PA NEP New Staff
Please extend a warm welcome to the two new members of the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Program (PA NEP) staff, Melanie Fisher and Denise Wall.

Melanie Fisher, R.D., L.D.N.
Nutritionist
Melanie earned a bachelor’s degree in nutritional science from the University of Connecticut and completed her dietetic internship at the New York Presbyterian Hospital in NYC. She brings to the PA NEP four and a half years of community nutrition experience as a WIC nutritionist in the Cambridge/Somerville area of Massachusetts. As the PA NEP nutritionist, Melanie will evaluate quarterly reports, manage a statewide digital curricula library, provide technical assistance on nutrition education, monitor programming integrity, and contribute to the State Plan/Project proposal process. Melanie can be reached at (814)863-0074 or mrf15@psu.edu.

Denise E. Wall, M.P.H.
Evaluation Associate/Nutritionist
Denise received a bachelor’s degree in nutrition science from Penn State University and worked as a research technologist in a behavioral nutrition laboratory for two years. She attained a master of public health degree in nutrition from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, which included a clinical internship at High Point Regional Hospital as well as community nutrition experience working with the food stamp population through the Durham County Health Department. She also completed a research project at the Economic Research Service in Washington, DC. As the evaluation associate/nutritionist with the PA NEP, Denise will evaluate quarterly reports, administer the PA NEP online reporting system, and manage the adult post/pre survey project. She will also monitor evaluation activities of the statewide projects and contribute to the State Plan/Project proposal process. Denise can be reached at (814)863-0074 or dew177@psu.edu.

It's the Tenth Anniversary of the PA NEN!
Join in the year-long celebration of the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Network's tenth anniversary! Stay tuned for details on upcoming events.