Fresno kids grow vegetables in mobile garden
 

Hidalgo students with the mobile garden.

“Lean-N-Green Day” in Redding
 
In Redding, the community sets aside a day each March to focus on nutrition and physical activity.  The event, called “Lean-N-Green Day” and scheduled this year for March 23, is sponsored by a community coalition that works together to reverse the trend toward obesity. First thing in the morning, residents are invited to pick up a Lean-N-Green goodie bag at one of several locations.  “Inside, they will find a piece of fruit, a serving of vegetable, some kind of physical activity tool, like a Frisbee or exercise ball, for example, and some nutrition and physical activity educational materials," said Gloria Espinosa-Hall, the nutrition, family and consumer sciences advisor for UC Cooperative Extension in Shasta County and chair of the coalition.  Activities span the day, including an early morning mall walk and blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes screening.  At lunchtime, local restaurants get into the spirit.  They are enlisted to offer a “Lean and Green” menu special featuring several servings of fruits and vegetables in a low-fat meal.  “We will have about 11 restaurants participating,” Espinosa-Hall said. After work, participants are invited to Lema Ranch, a beautiful community park with several walking trails.  Community coalition members dressed in fruit and vegetable costumes lead walks of different lengths. Each participant will receive a free step counter, a 5 A Day t-shirt, and at the end of the walk, all will be greeted with a refreshing Jamba Juice smoothie.  “We want to support and encourage people to eat more plant food and get more physical activity,” Espinosa-Hall said.  Contact:  Gloria Espinosa-Hall, (530) 224-4900, gbespinosahall@ucdavis.edu.

Monterey County grows health
 
"Monterey County Grows Health!" is a newspaper supplement currently being developed by Monterey County students under direction of UC Cooperative Extension.  The four-page health tab will feature art, poetry, prose and even letters to families (such as, "Please Dad - quit smoking!" or "Let's all take a family walk after dinner, every night!")  The paper will go out to thousands of county residents on May 11, the Wednesday before Mother's Day.  Student-created ads for nutritious foods will support the project. “The take home message is that students, local agricultural producers and other community members all share in the 'growing of health' in our county,” said Kathleen Nolan, the nutrition education program manager for UCCE in Monterey County. Contact:  Kathleen Nolan, (831) 759-7373, kmnolan@ucdavis.edu.
 

Low-income Latina women’s past hunger related to obesity

Many low-income, immigrant Latina women experienced some degree of hunger during their childhoods in Mexico, a condition that today relates to their own obesity and their child-feeding practices, according to a study conducted by UC Cooperative Extension community nutrition specialist Lucia Kaiser. The study was conducted with a focus group of Mexican-born Latinas with four- to five-year-old children. As a result of their past experiences in Mexico, half of the women who participated in the study wanted to give their children better quality food, larger portion sizes and specific foods they did not have in Mexico. In fact, some even reject certain foods, such as rice and beans, that they had to eat every day in Mexico. The focus group revealed that women who sometimes didn't have enough food for their families stored less bread, milk, meat, fruits and vegetables in their refrigerators and cupboards, and consequently, their children ate less of these healthful foods.  “Fruits and vegetables are particularly affected,” Kaiser said.  Contact:  Lucia Kaiser, (530) 754-9063, llkaiser@ucdavis.edu.

Short video takes long view of childhood anemia
 
A 12-minute video, “For Goodness Sake: Prevent Anemia,” makes a tremendous difference in the lives of viewers.  Evaluations showed that 69 percent gained knowledge about iron deficiency and the average improvement was 20 percent. UC Cooperative Extension nutrition, family and consumer sciences advisor Mary Lavender Fujii developed the video to address a 13.8 percent rate of anemia in preschoolers from low income families in Contra Costa County.  It is particularly important to maintain sufficient levels of iron in the blood of children between birth and kindergarten when brain development occurs. “Children need the iron as the brain is developing. If a young child lacks iron at this critical time, you can’t make up for it later,” Fujii said.  Fujii’s video – also available in a 14-minute Spanish version – suggests easy ways to ensure adequate iron in the diet. Preschoolers readily eat iron-fortified breakfast cereals, such as Chex, Cheerios, Kix or their store brand equivalent. “A half-cup of cereal in a bag makes a great snack,” Fujii said. In the video, she recommends children be weaned from the bottle and sippy cup at one year of age to prevent milk and juice from “crowding out” iron-rich foods.  “After they are one year old, children don’t need all that liquid.  A child needs 16 ounces of milk and should have no more than six ounces of juice a day,” Fujii said.  “When they are thirsty, they can drink water. They need to know that’s a good beverage.”  Through the video, Fujii has made her anemia prevention training, iron-rich recipes and easily implemented recommendations available throughout California and the nation. The video is available for $25 in English or Spanish on DVD or VHS.  To order, go to http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu.  Contact:  Mary Lavender Fujii, (925) 646-6120, mlfujii@ucdavis.edu,  http://cecontracosta.ucdavis.edu/Nutrition/