KA 703. Nutrition Education and Behavior (McKinley County Nutrition Plan of Work )

More communities have become aware of the rising rates of obesity among our youth and adult population. The educators from the FACE program affiliated with the BIE (Bureau of Indian Education) have included an adult program with their pre school. Parents and care givers are required to attend daily classes during the same hours that their children are at school. Many of them have included the ICAN programs for these parents. This year 15 parents from the Wingate BIE FACE program completed “Loving Your Family Feeding Their Future”, 23 Chichiltah parents and 20 adults from the Basin Coordinated completed 9 ICAN lessons and received their certificates. Other community programs that reach community members are ECHO and the Gallup Community Pantry, they distribute about 650 food boxes each month to their clientele and CES includes nutrition information in the form of a weekly flyer for each household. Activities,programs,and nutrition information can help educate the public on these issues,but the results are slow and as we continue to strive for a healthier county more people need to join in the challenge to live healthier lives.

In New Mexico we know that healthy students make better learners. About a quarter of our students are considered overweight or obese and there are increasing numbers of students who are suffering from preventable diseases, such as type two diabetes which is caused by poor nutrition and sedentary lifestyles. Through the efforts of the McKinley County Wellness Council many of the teachers in the McKinley County have incorporated nutrition education for their students. Programs such as Eat Smart, Play Hard, Team Nutrition, and Cooking with Kids have become a part of the positive change for improving student health. Since October of 2007, over 3,000 students have gained knowledge about: MyPyramid, exercise, healthy eating habits, and healthy serving sizes. There are about 52 schools in McKinley County and about 10% of those schools participate in various nutrition programs offered through CES Nutrition Educators, LaRae Kendall and Gloria Yazzie. This year we added 5 new schools to our prior list and we will continue to reach other schools that have not utilized our programs.

Wellness Warriors 2008
Collaborative agencies are Chenoa Bah Stilwell-Jensen, Salud Community Outreach Coordinator, Sunshine Jim-Martin, TLC (Teen Lifestyle Change), IHS (Indian Health Services), and McKinley County CES. The TLC (Teen Lifestyle Change) training focuses on healthy bodies, healthy minds, and healthy diets for leading a healthy life through discovering how feelings are associated with overweight, asking for support from family and friends, exploring good nutrition concepts for adolescents, and exposure and participation in a variety of physical activities. This summer program will use the Teen Lifestyle Change curriculum developed and piloted by Envision NM. The training was held on May 30, 2008 at UNM, 16 people from different agencies were trained for the 2008 Wellness Warriors Camp that will be held in Gallup during the month of July. The 8 week session will have 20 participants each day will feature breakfast, a planned physical activity, completion of a TLC lesson, and an additional physical activity followed by lunch. Data collected will include attendance at all sessions, pre and post BMI (raw and %) and pre and post behavior surveys addressing modifiable behaviors associated with obesity. The training included:
Session 1: Introduction to TLC
Session 2: Nutrition: Macronutrients
Session 3: Love letters/weightism/body map
Session 4: Nutrition: 50/50 plate/needs
Session 5: Hunger scale/”Super Size”
Session 6: Nutrition Labels/Pleasure Map
Session 7: “Worry Wallet”/connect with others
Session 8: “Worry Wallet”/review/finish TLC program.

Cancer Health Disparities Workshop
The disparities workshop was held on February 15, 2008 in Las Cruces at the NMSU Campus,32 people attended. The purpose of the workshop was to plan a regional conference on cancer and health disparities for 2009 as part of the U54 partnership for the Advancement of Cancer Research Program between New Mexico State University and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA. Our brainstorming session centered on aspects of cancer and health disparities mainly in New Mexico or broader audience. We also included rural health improvement, prevention, education, rural health clinics, etc. A list of organizations to include or invite was drafted and other items to consider included lack of trust in government agencies, certain population groups prefer traditional medical practices, etc. It was noted that in 2006 un-insured population in New Mexico was about 26.6% and the United States averages 17.8% of un-insured population. There is a great need to educate the public about cancer and the conference would provide that need.

2007 New Mexico Agricultural Small Farm Conference and Trade Show Moriarty, New Mexico.
This year a Nutrition Component was offered at the conference which took place on November 2-4 2008. “Holiday Gifts and Treats from the Kitchen” Jams and Jellies, was presented by Cindy Davies and I (Elena Bowers). The presentation required audience participation and several jams and jellies were prepared and processed during the 1 hour workshop. Some of the recipes that we used were from the 4-H food preservation project and others came from the Food Preservation workshop offered to us by Dr. Nancy Flores Extension Food Technology Specialist earlier this year. We shared jam and jelly recipes, food safety information, and each of the participants were able to take a jar of jam or jelly home with them after the presentation. The recipes were very easy to prepare from start to finish and this was a plus, because the women of today do not spend much time in the kitchen due to other duties. About 12 women attended and they requested more Home Economics workshops at next year’s conference.