The World Health Organization recently caused an uproar with its review of research that red meat and especially processed meats significantly increase the risk of cancer. Other studies have shown that red meat consumption increases premature mortality from all causes, including heart disease and diabetes. A sedentary lifestyle and emotional stress are bad for the human body, which was designed to be active and fuel its movement with whole foods.
These studies come at a time as Congress struggles to pass its federal education law supporting school nutrition policies. Healthy habits begin at birth, yet a majority of school age youth are not learning healthy lessons at home -- so, if that knowledge is not gained in the classroom, then where? Educators and school personnel work on the front lines of childhood obesity, but every day they face the challenges of budget cuts, mandated tests, rushed lunch periods, and a decrease in time for physical activity.
First Lady Michelle Obama elevated the national conversation about youth health and wellness through her Let's Move campaign -- making home gardens, eating vegetables and being physically active hip and cool. Parents and kids know they should pass up the fries for an apple and exchange the video game for a game of tag -- but knowing and doing are certainly different things.
I appreciate the power of a White House bully pulpit -- but kids listen and learn primarily from other kids. If your son's friend tells him that the apple is better than the fries, he's more likely to listen.
Enter HealthCorps, a nonprofit organization that I have worked with since its inception in 2003. HealthCorps embeds recent college graduates into disadvantaged high schools and supplements each school's health and wellness program. The teens in turn work as health catalysts for their friends and families. If you have teens at home -- you know how influential and persuasive they can be.
Consider this: Among the top five leading causes of death for 12- to 19-year-olds in America are heart disease and suicide [1]. Well-known risk factors for each of these causes -- and among Health People 2020's highest priority areas for improving adolescent health at the national level -- include suboptimal nutrition [2] and poor mental health [3]. HealthCorps reduces teens' risks in both domains, helping teens improve their diets (e.g., decreasing soda consumption) [4, 5], as well as their mental fitness [4]. By having such an impact on teens, HealthCorps and its peers in the arena of school-based health education represent an intervention that is part of the solution: They equip teens with the tools they need to experience longer, more productive, more healthful lives.
Knowledge and engagement are a powerful antidote to forces that often work against our kids being healthy. HealthCorps provides both. Their mission is to implement an innovative in-school model that inspires teens to make healthier choices for themselves and their families. This program is in 44 high schools in 10 states and has impacted almost 1.5 million students. It includes embedding a trained HealthCorps Coordinator in a high school on a full-time basis for a minimum of two years to serve as a peer mentor for students. HealthCorps University is a train the trainer professional development program that makes available the HealthCorps principles and curriculum to virtually any school, community or organization.
What programs like HealthCorps shows us is that kids want to learn and they want to be healthy. Furthermore, they want to share that information with those they love. HealthCorps shows them how.
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If you -- or someone you know -- need help, please call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. If you are outside of the U.S., please visit the International Association for Suicide Prevention for a database of international resources.
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REFERENCES
[1] Miniño AM. Mortality among teenagers aged 12-19 years: United States, 1999-2006. NCHS data brief, no 37. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2010. 27 Oct. 2015. <http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db37.htm
[2] "2020 Leading Health Indicators Topics: Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity." U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion 27 Oct. 2015. <http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/leading-health-indicators/2020-lhi-topics/Nutrition-Physical-Activity-and-Obesity>
[3] "2020 Leading Health Indicators Topics: Mental Health." U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion 27 Oct. 2015. <http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/leading-health-indicators/2020-lhi-topics/Mental-Health>
[4] Guzman-Alvarez, Alberto, et al. "HealthCorps Program Evaluation: Year 2 Report." University of California-Davis School of Education, CRESS Center--Center for Education and Evaluation Services (2013).
[5] Cawley, John, et al. "Effect of HealthCorps, a high school peer mentoring program, on youth diet and physical activity." Childhood Obesity (Formerly Obesity and Weight Management) 7.5 (2011): 364-371.