Grant to fight childhood obesity
Hamilton County Public Health officials say simple changes can help combat childhood obesity in the community.
They’ll be using a four-year, $360,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to implement those changes. The foundation funds projects that aim to solve pressing health and health-care issues, including childhood obesity.
Data show 22 percent of third-graders in Hamilton County are overweight or obese.
The grant project will focus on expanding access to existing resources to help those kids slim down and to make future generations healthier, said Stacy Wegley, director of health promotion and education for the health department.
One of the initiatives on the table is making it possible for farmers’ markets that provide fresh fruits and vegetables to accept WIC vouchers and other benefits programs as payment for their wares, she said. The move would make it easier for low-income families to buy fresh produce often not available in neighborhoods that don’t have grocery stores.
Another initiative would expand existing community gardens and establish new ones in neighborhoods throughout the county, including Avondale, Lincoln Heights, Woodlawn and Forest Park.
The grant will also help communities and school districts work together to utilize or expand resources like walking and running tracks or school playgrounds in communities that lack safe places for children and families to be physically active, Wegley said.
Wegley and her colleagues will also use the grant to help set up a surveillance system to track children and teens’ body mass index to see what impact the project is having.
Hamilton County was one of 41 counties and cities around the United States to receive a “Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities” grant. It is the only Ohio site to win one of the grants.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation complements a five-year, $1.2 million grant the county health department received in 2008 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The federal grant aims to improve the health of residents in Lincoln Heights, Woodlawn and Lockland through the “We Strive” initiative, said Rebecca Stowe, a senior health educator with Hamilton County Public Health and project coordinator.
The “We Strive” initiative aims to reduce disease caused by obesity, cardiovascular disease and tobacco use in the three communities.
The “We Strive” communities are also setting up community gardens and looking at ways to let families use school facilities for physical activity.
“There’s one grocery store in Woodlawn, so you either have to use that store or leave town,” Stowe said. “Or you can go to the corner market.”
Part of the project calls for residents to lobby convenience store owners in their communities to stock healthier foods, including fresh fruits and vegetables, she said.
The “We Strive” project will also focus on reducing youths’ exposure to tobacco products, both by encouraging village governments to establish tobacco-free areas, including public parks, and by reducing the amount of tobacco advertising targeting young people.
