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Home > Blogs > Middletown School News and Issues > Archives > 2010 > June > 03
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Gov. Strickland to sign “healthy kids” bill into law
A while ago I wrote a series of stories on childhood obesity. It looks like Ohio law is taking action against the disease. Here’s a story that will run in tomorrow’s edition done in conjunction with a colleague at the Dayton Daily News.
Gov. Ted Strickland will sign a bi-partisan bill to combat childhood obesity that requires healthier options in school cafeterias, and provides for body-mass-index screenings of students and a pilot program for daily physical activity during the school day.
The Healthy Choices for Healthy Children bill was approved Thursday, June 3, by both chambers of the Ohio legislature. Strickland will sign the bill into law, said Amanda Wurst, the governor’s spokeswoman.
The bill focuses on decreasing and preventing childhood obesity in Ohio schools through healthier food and beverage options; changes to physical education instructor requirements; body-mass-index (BMI) screenings upon school entry and in 3rd, 5th and 9th grades; and a pilot program to encourage 30 minutes of daily physical activity for students.
One in three children born in Ohio is overweight by age 8, said Sen. Kevin Coughlin (R-Cuyahoga Falls), a sponsor of the bill.
Middletown City Schools has provided parents with student BMI information since the 2006-2007 school year, according to Student Services Director Susan Combs.
“We feel this is important information for parents to have,” Combs said. “There were some privacy concerns from parents at first, but once we assured them they would be the only ones getting this information, they’ve been more supportive.”
Combs said parents receive a letter with the screening results, along with recommendations to consult their family doctor if the student’s results indicate a weight problem.
But, some health officials have concerns about how the new law would be implemented or enforced.
“The BMI number doesn’t tell the whole story at all,” said Dr. Laurie Mitan, a pediatrician who specializes in adolescents and eating disorders. “Screenings like this need to be done in the context of a medical professional. Parents need to be given guidelines and may not understand what these numbers mean.”
Legislative advocates said education is key to combating childhood obesity, which is why it is a main focus of the bills.
“We would send home materials to help guide parents on how they can help their child,” Bacon said. “We see this as a community effort, not just a school effort.”
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