TOOLKIT
Purpose
Being overweight or obese contributes to a variety of chronic health conditions.
In Arkansas overweight and obesity rose from 52.6% in 1997 to 65.7% in 2008, a
24.9% increase. According to recent data published by the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention’s, Division of Nutrition Physical Activity and Obesity
(NPAO), Arkansas ranks 11th in the nation in the prevalence of adults who are
overweight or obese.
The percent of obese children in Arkansas has increased from 12.7% in 1999 to
14.8% in 2008, a 16.5% increase. In order to address the economic burden and
the resulting health consequences of obesity, strategies must be developed at
the local and state level that will enable communities to make substantive policy
and environmental changes that will enhance the quality of life for individuals in
their communities.
The purpose of this Toolkit is to provide resources that will assist Growing
Healthy Communities sites in educating community members about the chronic
conditions that can result from obesity. This Toolkit contains evidence-based
practices that can be implemented in your local community. By taking
advantage of what has worked both nationally and locally, you will be able to
“grow your own healthy community.”
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Access to Healthy Foods…………………………………………………………………….4
Built Environment……………………………………………………………………………..6
Early Childhood and Schools……………………………………………………………….9
Worksite Wellness…………………………………………………………………………..14
Training………………………………………………………………………………………16
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Access to Health Foods
National Resources:
Association of State & Territorial Public Health Nutrition Directors
http://www.astphnd.org/
The Association of State and Territorial Public Health Nutrition Directors
(ASTPHND) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides national and state
leadership on food and nutrition policy, programs, and services.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Fruit & Veggies: Eat a Colorful Variety of Fruits and Vegetables Every Day
http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/
This website includes recipes and tips to create healthy budget conscious meals and
highlights information on various fruits and vegetables each month.
Moving to the Future: Developing Community Based Nutrition Services
http://www.movingtothefuture.org/
Use this website to develop successful community programs that promote healthy
eating and physical activity. Moving to the Future provides: step-by-step instructions
for conducting a community assessment, writing objectives, developing a plan, and
evaluating your program using forms, surveys, and worksheets that can be downloaded
and adapted to your own needs. Discussion forums are also conducted to network with
colleagues around the country doing this same work.
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Produce for Better Health Foundation
http://www.pbhfoundation.org/
Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) consumer
education foundation whose purpose is to motivate people to eat more fruits and
vegetables. The foundation is responsible for a variety of nutrition education and
marketing programs, including the new Fruits & Veggies—More Matters™ health
initiative. PBH also achieves success through nutrition policy efforts and industry and
government collaboration. PBH is chair of the National Fruit & Vegetable Program,
which consists of government agencies, non-profit organizations, and industry working
collaboratively to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables for improved public
health.
Public Health Law & Policy (PHLP) - Healthy Planning
http://www.phlpnet.org/healthy-planning/products/getting-to-grocery
Planning for Healthy Places at Public Health Law & Policy works to build public health
advocacy by increasing basic knowledge and skills among public health professionals
on land use and the economic development decision-making process throughout
California. PHLP provides hands-on training and consultation, training materials to walk
users through the planning process. PHLP also organizes and facilitates roundtable
discussions with local health officers and local planning directors.
Local Resources:
Fruits & Veggies More Matters
http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/
Produce for Better Health Foundation offers the Fruits & Veggies—More Matters®
health initiative. The Fruits & Veggies—More Matters® health initiative offers expert
cooking advice, nutrition information and shopping tips. In addition, this program
demonstrates that eating MORE fruits and vegetables does matter. The Fruits &
Veggies—More Matters program is the nation’s largest public-private nutrition education
initiative with coordinators in each state, territory, and the military.
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BUILT ENVIRONMENT
National Resources:
Active Living Research
Building the Evidence to Prevent Childhood Obesity and Support Active
Communities
www.activelivingresearch.org
Active Living Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,
contributes to the prevention of childhood obesity in low-income and high-risk
racial/ethnic communities by supporting research to examine how environments and
policies influence active living for children and their families.
American Planning Association (APA)
www.planning.org
The American Planning Association is an independent, not-for-profit educational
organization that provides leadership in the development of vital communities by
advocating excellence in community planning, promoting education and citizen
empowerment, and providing the tools and support necessary to meet the challenges of
growth and change. APA also produces audio conferences, manuals, training
workshops, and video and audio recordings to promote education about planning.
APA’s vision includes having a “nation of vital communities, fully accessible to all
people” to create healthy, safe places for individuals to live and work.
Mass in Motion
http://www.mass.gov/massinmotion/
Launched in January 2009, Massachusetts Mass in Motion promotes the importance of
healthy eating and physical activity. Mass in Motion uses a multi-faceted approach that
includes: Supporting regulatory changes to promote healthy diet and exercise, including
Body Mass Index (BMI) testing of public school students in grades 1, 4, 7 and 10, and
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menu labeling for chain restaurants operating in Massachusetts; Requiring state
agencies responsible for large-scale food purchasing to follow healthy nutritional
guidelines in their food service operations; and Providing grants to cities and towns to
make wellness initiatives a priority at the community level. A state-sponsored Mass in
Motion web site was developed to provide simple, practical, cost-effective ways to eat
better and move more at home, work, and in the community.
National Center for Bicycling and Walking (NCBW)
www.bikewalk.org
The National Center for Bicycling and Walking’s mission is to
create bicycle-friendly and walkable communities. The aim of the
NCBW’s program is to change the way communities are planned,
designed and managed to ensure that people of all ages and abilities
can walk and bike easily, safely, and regularly.
National Complete Streets Coalition
www.completestreets.org
Complete Streets are designed and operated to enable safe access for all users. The
National Complete Streets Coalition seeks to transform the look, feel, and function of
the roads and streets in communities by changing the way most roads are planned,
designed, and constructed. The Coalition’s goal is to help with the adoption and
implementation of statewide, regional, and federal and local complete streets policies.
Safe Routes
National Center for Safe Routes to Schools
http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/
Safe Routes to School programs enable community leaders, schools and parents
across the United States to improve safety and encourage more children to safely walk
and bicycle to school. This program is designed to reduce traffic congestion and
improve health and the environment, making communities more livable for everyone.
Smart Growth America
www.smartgrowthamerica.org
Smart Growth America is a coalition of national, state and local organizations working
to improve the ways towns, cities and metro areas are planned and built. The coalition
includes national organizations that advocate on behalf of historic preservation, the
environment, farmland and open space preservation, and neighborhood revitalization.
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Smart Growth Online
http://www.smartgrowth.org/about/default.asp
Smart Growth is concerned about the linkages between development patterns and
quality of life issues. Smart Growth principles include, but are not limited to: creating
housing opportunities and choices, creating walkable neighborhoods, encouraging
community and stakeholder collaboration, fostering distinctive, attractive communities
with a strong sense of place, making development decisions predictable, fair and cost
effective, preserving open space, farmland, natural beauty and critical environmental
areas.
Walkable Communities, Inc.
www.walkable.org
Walkable Communities, Inc. promotes walkability as the cornerstone of a successful,
vibrant community. Walkable Communities, Inc. offers a 12-step checklist to define,
achieve, or strengthen a walkable community.
Local Resources:
Arkansas Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Coordination
http://www.arkansashighways.com/planning_research/statewide_planning/mpo.aspx
Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) are designated by the State’s Governor
to conduct the 3C (continuing, comprehensive and cooperative) planning process in
each urbanized area. The governing body of the MPO consists of elected officials
representing local governments plus representatives of local transit agencies and the
Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD). MPOs provide
guidance on matters relating to AHTD projects in their area and interpret and ensure
adherence to federal regulations.
American Planning Association - Arkansas Chapter
http://www.arkansasapa.org/
The Arkansas Chapter of the American Planning Association is a professional
organization representing practicing planners, officials and citizens involved with urban
and rural planning issues within the State of Arkansas. The Chapter formulates
planning policies and prepares land use regulations. The Arkansas APA's objective is to
encourage planning that will contribute to the public’s well-being by developing
communities and environments that meet the needs of Arkansans more effectively.
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and Schools
National Resources:
Child & Adult Care Food Program
http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Care/
USDA’s Child and Adult Care Food Program improves the quality of child and adult
day cares by making it more affordable for many low-income families. The program
provides meals and snacks to nonresidential adult day care centers and provides meals
to children in emergency shelters and those who participate in afterschool care
programs.
Choosy Kids: Be Choosy, Be Healthy
http://www.choosykids.com/CK2/
The mission of Choosy Kids, LLC is to promote healthy and active lifestyles in
children. Choosy Kids uses contemporary music and offers practical suggestions to
incorporate exercise in any setting on a limited budget.
Color Me Healthy
www.colormehealthy.com/professional/index.html
Color Me Healthy is a cooperative extension-partnered program that teaches
preschoolers good health habits.
Head Start Body Start
www.headstartbodystart.org
The purpose of Head Start Body Start is to increase physical activity, outdoor play,
and healthy eating among Head Start and Early Head Start Center children, families,
and staff. The Center helps Head Start programs in creating healthy learning
environments, both in and outside the classroom, through structured and unstructured
physical activity.
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I am Moving, I am Learning (IMIL)
http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/ecdh/Health/Nutrition/Nutrition%20Program%20Staff/Ia
mMovingIam.htm
I am Moving, I am Learning (IMIL) is a proactive approach used to address childhood
obesity in Head Start children. IMIL seeks to increase moderate to vigorous physical
activity every day, improve the quality of movement activities intentionally planned and
facilitated by adults, and promote healthy food choices every day.
Joint-Use Agreement
http://www.jointuse.org/
Jointuse.org provides the tools and resources advocates need to launch successful
joint use agreements which allows for shared use of public spaces like schools with
community members once schools are closed.
National Society of Physical Activity Practitioners in Public Health
www.nspapph.org
The National Society of Physical Activity Practitioners in Public Health
(NSPAPPH) is a professional organization dedicated to growing the capacity of physical
activity practitioners in public health. Members of the organization receive or have
access to advocacy information, continuing education opportunities through meetings,
seminars and conferences, as well as other professional development opportunities.
Parents as Teachers
www.parentsasteachers.org
Parents as Teachers provides parents with child development
knowledge and parenting support. The program is designed to
increase parent knowledge of early childhood development and
improve parenting practices, provide early detection of developmental delays and health
issues, prevent child abuse neglect, as well as increase children’s school readiness and
school.
PE Central
http://www.pecentral.org/
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PE Central provides the latest information about developmentally appropriate physical
education programs for children and youth. This website provides suggestions and
ideas for lessons, assessments, bulletin boards, and online courses that professionals
can take. PE Central also has a store to shop for DVDs, books, music and other helpful
materials.
Project Wild/Growing Up Wild
www.projectwild.org/GrowingUpWild.htm
Growing Up WILD is an early childhood education program for children ages 3-7 that
builds on children’s sense of wonder about nature and invites them to explore wildlife
and the world around them. Through a wide range of activities and experiences,
Growing Up WILD provides an early foundation for developing positive impressions
about nature using crafts, art projects, music, and conservation activities.
Reach Out and Read
http://www.reachoutandread.org/
Reach Out and Read is a national, nonprofit organization that promotes early literacy
by making books a routine part of pediatric care. Reach Out and Read trains doctors
and nurses to advise parents about the importance of reading aloud and to give books
to children at pediatric checkups from 6 months through 5 years of age, with a special
focus on children growing up in poverty. Reach Out and Read makes literacy promotion
a standard part of pediatric primary care, so that children grow up with books and a love
of reading.
US Department of Agriculture
Food and Nutrition Service
www.fns.usda.gov/fns/nutrition.htm
US Department of Agriculture’s website has helpful information and links to
resources/programs including: Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Food Guide Pyramid,
Team Nutrition, Eat Smart, Play Hard, Breastfeeding Promotion and Support.
We Can! (Ways to Enhance Children's Activity & Nutrition)
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/wecan/about-wecan/index.htm
We Can! (Ways to Enhance Children's Activity & Nutrition) is a national movement
designed to give parents, caregivers, and entire communities a way to help children 8 to
13 years old stay at a healthy weight. We Can! also offers organizations, community
groups, and health professionals a centralized resource to promote a healthy weight in
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youth through community outreach, partnership development, and media activities that
can be adapted to meet the needs of diverse populations.
Local Resources:
HealthTeacher Good Health is Contagious
www.healthteacher.com
HealthTeacher is an online comprehensive resource and curriculum to help health
teachers and other professionals teach good health habits to children. HealthTeacher is
used in 50 states and 14 foreign countries.
HIPPYUSA, Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters
http://www.hippyusa.org/
Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) is a parent
involvement, school readiness program that helps parents prepare their three, four, and
five year old children for success in school and beyond. HIPPY helps parents empower
themselves as their children’s first teacher by giving them the tools, skills and
confidence they need to work with their children in the home. The program was
designed to bring families, organizations and communities together and remove any
barriers to participation that may include limited financial resources or lack of education.
Nutrition and Physical Activity Self Assessment for Child Care
http://www.napsacc.org/
The Nutrition and Physical Activity Self Assessment for Child
Care (NAP SACC) is a nationally recognized intervention program
that promotes nutrition and physical activity in child care centers.
NAPSACC goals include improving the nutritional quality of the food served, the amount
and quality of physical activity, staff-child interactions, and center nutrition and physical
activity policy.
PE4life
www.pe4life.org
PE4life’s mission is to develop a country of active and healthy children and youth by
increasing access to quality physical education by engaging them in a fun and
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interactive way. PE4life believes that physical activity should be directed to all students,
not just the athletically inclined.
SPARK Curriculum
http://www.sparkpe.org/
SPARK curriculum is used to improve the health of children, adolescents, and adults by
disseminating evidence-based Physical Education, After School, Early Childhood, and
Coordinated School Health programs to teachers and recreation leaders serving Pre-K
through 12th grade students.
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Worksite Wellness
National Resources:
America on the Move®
America On the Move® challenges you, your family and your community to take small
steps and make small changes to a healthier way of life. Get involved!
Source: America on the Move Foundation http://aom3.americaonthemove.org/
Leading Employees to Activity and Nutrition
CDC's Lean Works!
A FREE web-based resource that offers interactive tools and evidence-based resources
to design effective worksite obesity prevention and control programs, including an
obesity cost calculator to estimate how much obesity is costing your company and how
much savings your company could reap with different workplace interventions.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Division of Nutrition,
Physical Activity and Obesity, National Center for Chronic Disease
http://www.cdc.gov/leanworks/
National Diabetes Education Program Resources
With diabetes prevalence rates soaring and workers spending more than one-third of
their day on the job, employers are becoming more concerned about diabetes
prevention and control in the workplace. Learn how to implement worksite wellness
programs to improve the lives of your employees and lower the costs of health care and
missed productivity for your company.
Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (USDHHS), Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and
Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) http://www.ndep.nih.gov/hcp-businesses-andschools/Businesses.aspx
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Local Resources:
Arkansas Department of Health: Worksite Wellness Toolkit
A worksite wellness resource inclusive of health assessment, incentive programs in
tobacco, nutrition, physical activity and chronic conditions. This toolkit is designed to
assist employers in taking the first steps toward promoting health and wellness in their
business.
Source: Arkansas Department of Health
http://www.state.ar.us/ha/pdf/worksite_wellness.pdf
Employer Worksite Wellness Kit- Arkansas Fitness Challenge
A tool designed to provide the structure of the Blue and You Fitness Challenge physical
activity contest. Includes sample e-mail, posters, timelines, incentive ideas, but also
includes a section on Worksite Wellness resources available from various sources for
lunch-and-learns and health-related activities at the workplace.
Source: Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield
http://www.arkansasbluecross.com/employers/efck.aspx
Many more resources await you at the upcoming regional Employer Worksite Wellness
Summits!
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TRAINING
Nutrition Environment Measures Survey.
www.med.upenn.edu/nems<http://www.med.upenn.edu/nems
Students and practitioners interested in Community Nutrition/Public Health would be
very interested in the course. An online training program on the Nutrition Environment
Measures Survey for Stores (NEMS-S) and Restaurants (NEMS-R) is available for
researchers, community advocates, and leaders to use the tools for research and action
in their own communities. This course is offered every 45 days.
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