University of Missouri Extension has received $7.7 million in federal funds to address the obesity epidemic through nutrition and physical activity education for low-income children and adults.
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The Family Nutrition Program promotes lifelong health and fitness, said Jo Britt-Rankin, MU associate dean for human environmental sciences extension.
Funding for the program comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture through the food stamp program administered by the Missouri Department of Social Services.
MU Extension educators reach more than 225,000 people annually; 90 percent are children through classroom-based lessons, Britt-Rankin said. More than 65 percent of Missouri school districts participate in the nutrition program.
“We have chosen in Missouri to focus primarily on youth education,” Britt-Rankin said. “If they change nutrition and fitness behavior as a child, it’s more likely to become a lifelong behavior.”
Nutrition educators also work with local health departments, after-school programs and community coalitions. These groups match the federal funds, bringing the program’s total budget to $15.3 million.
This year the Family Nutrition Program, which started in 1994, has messages that address three specific goals: eating more fruits, vegetables, whole-grain foods and low-fat dairy products; being physically active every day; and balancing caloric intake with physical activity expenditure.