Speakers at health conference address childhood obesity problem

On July 28, educators and health officials got together to discuss the problem of childhood obesity in North Carolina.

For overweight 10 to 17-year olds, North Carolina ranks No. 14. For example, in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools alone, 1 in 10 high school students is obese. Also, 57 percent of CMS high school students don’t get the recommended levels of physical activity.

Being obese can cause heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses. The N.C. State Board of Education’s senior policy adviser for healthy responsible students, Paula Collins, said that we are in an epidemic.

The event was hosted by IMPACT Childhood Obesity hosted the event. It is a North Carolina-based organization that supports child and adolescent wellness. J. Allen Queen, one of the founders of IMPACT and a UNC Charlotte professor, said that the main goal of the event is to get the schools and community to pay attention to the problem.

The State Board of Education does work with legislators to encourage physical activity, healthy eating and positive character building in middle and high school students. Public school cafeterias are also offering healthier food choices for students such as whole wheat pizza crust, vegetables and low-fat dairy items.

Paula Collins said “if you can maintain the weight during middle school because of the growth they go through, they’ll be fine later in life.”

Free lunches and daily physical education classes for all students are some of the legislative goals.

The first African American to break the four-minute mile record, Reggie McAfee, talked about his 3-year-old Cross Country for Youth running program. There are more than 250 kids who participate in McAfee’s 10-week after-school program which main focus in character building. The runners in the program exercise every day and compete in 4 statewide races. McAfee said that “physical activity helps prevent children from being obese.”