D.C. Council to vote for bill that tackles childhood obesity

In an effort to combat the childhood obesity epidemic in the District of Columbia, Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray and Ward 3 Councilmember Mary M. Cheh co-introduced the Healthy Schools Act, a bill to improve the quality of school meals by adopting nutritional standards from the USDA and the Institute of Medicine for students attending District of Columbia public schools (DCPS) and D.C. public charter schools. The bill also aims to increase physical activity among students in schools and afterschool programs. The council unanimously approved the bill on April 20 and a final vote on the bill is scheduled for Tuesday, May 4.

Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray said, “I co-introduced the Healthy Schools Act because I am hoping the legislation, which is designed to improve the health and wellness of D.C. children, will jumpstart family fitness, raise nutritional awareness and promote a healthier District of Columbia across the population, starting with our youngest residents.”

A report released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and Trust for America’s Health found that the District of Columbia has the 9th highest percent of obese and overweight children in the nation at 35.4 percent. "Our health care costs have grown along with our waist lines," said Jeff Levi, Ph.D., executive director of Trust for America’s Health. "The obesity epidemic is a big contributor to the skyrocketing health care costs in the United States. How are we going to compete with the rest of the world if our economy and workforce are weighed down by bad health?"

The lack of access to healthy foods is also a contributing factor to the high rates of obesity in some areas of the District, primarily in wards 7 and 8. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, obese children are at risk for health problems during their youth and as adults. Obese children are more likely to have high cholesterol, high blood pressure and Type 2 diabetes. One study found that 80 percent of children who were overweight at 10-15 years of age were obese adults at age 25.

“We have the highest rate of adolescent obesity in the nation – half of the children in some neighborhoods are overweight or obese,” said Councilmember Cheh. “The Healthy Schools Act is a sweeping reform that will substantially improve the health, wellness, and nutrition of public and charter school students in the District.”

If the legislation is enacted, the key provisions in the Healthy Schools Act will:

• Serve healthy and nutritious meals to DCPS students. DCPS are strongly encouraged to consider serving vegetarian food options each week.

• Schools are strongly encouraged to participate in the United States Department of Agriculture’s Healthier US School Challenge program and achieve Gold award level certification

• All breakfast, lunch, and after-school meals served to students will meet or exceed the federal nutritional standards in the Child Nutrition Act of 1996 and the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act

• Schools will offer free breakfast to all students.

• A DCPS elementary school and a public charter elementary school will offer breakfast in the classroom each day

• Middle and high schools and public charter middle and high schools will offer alternatives such as breakfast in the classroom or grab-and-go carts, each day to increase breakfast participation.

• Schools are encouraged to make cold, filtered water available free to students, through water fountains or other means, when meals are served to students

• Schools will establish a farm-to-school program to serve locally-grown, locally-processed and unprocessed fresh foods to students.

• Schools will promote goals for students to engage in physical activity for 60 minutes each day by encouraging students to walk or bike to school; promote active recess; integrate movement into classroom instruction and support athletic programs.

• Schools will promote their local wellness policy to faculty, staff, parents, and students. The wellness policy will be posted on the school’s website and distributed to the school’s parent teacher association. The Office of the State Superintendent of Education will review each local wellness policy to ensure that the policy complies with federal requirements.

Many initiatives are currently underway to combat childhood obesity. The Healthy Schools Act works hand in hand with First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” nationwide campaign to provide healthier meals in schools and promote physical activity.