According to the New Mexico Department of Health, Childhood Obesity Rates for third graders for Third Graders in New Mexico is currently at 18.9%, while rates are higher for Hispanic third graders at 36.4% and even higher for American Indian students at 50.4%.
A recent conference, Public Health Beyond Borders, looked at different ways communities are trying to target and improve childhood obesity rates.
Childhood Obesity Rates in New Mexico have dropped 16% among third graders since 2010, and communities are still looking for ways to continue to improve obesity rates.
Gil Padilla with Healthy Kids Las Cruces says they work with the community to create policy that will help kids get moving.
“The environmental change is probably one of the biggest ones,” Padilla said. “Because it’s a process, it takes some time, and being involved with it for the past 8 years with healthy kids Las Cruces, we’ve seen that. Where there is more people out at the parks, more people on trails, for example the Triviz trail, you build it they will come kind of method. We’re very fortunate, where we have much support from the Parks and Rec Department to do that kind of stuff.”
Padilla says they also work with Las Cruces Public Schools to teach kids good nutrition. Every LCPS school now has a salad bar for students, and he’s seen improvements in student choices.
“In 2008, the school district passed the vending machine policy where they weren’t selling any sodas in the high schools,” Padilla said. “Well, I work closely with a lot of high schooler’s and they are prone to drink water vs. soda.”
Padilla say when you focus on children, the health of the community improves.
“It’s a community-wide effort,” Padilla said. “We’re not only targeting the children, but we have to also include the family. Families whose parents go out and have a decision to buy water or soda, and so we’re making changes within the whole family not just the kid themselves.
La Familia Medical Center in Santa Fe started the Cena program for families of children who are considered obese that focuses on getting families to eat better and become more physically active together.
Laura McCann, Clinical Dietician for La Familia Medical Center says they take cultural influences into account when planning the program.
“When we choose recipes for the cooking classes they need to be food that families are familiar with,” McCann said. “And we’ll venture out from there. We definitely want to expose people to new things, but it’s good to start from a place of familiarity.”
McCann says they work with family’s individual challenges.
“There are a lot of barriers in place,” McCann said. “One of them may be the perception that healthier foods are not as accessible, or affordable. So, one part of my role can be to educate on how to create a healthy diet with foods that are affordable.”
McCann says there are simple things parents can do to improve their children’s health.
“Act as a positive role model,” McCann said. “It’s their job to provide healthy foods, provide healthy meals, so limiting foods that are present in the home to only healthy choices makes it a whole lot easier, not fighting with kids about eating, chips, cookies or soda if there not in the house.”
McCann says it’s also important for kids to be involved in cooking.
“The more kids have a role in grocery shopping,” McCann said. “Selecting fruits and vegetables that they want to try, or things that they like. Helping in the kitchen, from the age of 2 years old there are things that kids can do tearing up leaves, or different vegetables, counting things out.”
McCann says they also provide participating families with passes to a local recreation center to encourage physical activity.
