MyPlate: Practical Tips to Integrate Nutrition Education Into the Classroom

Brenda Roche Wilford and Cynthia AvilaUC Cooperative Extension

Los Angeles County

Overview

• Introduction to MyPlate

• Overview of Website

• Classroom Activities

MyPyramid or MyPlate?

MyPlate and MyPyramid can be used together!

• Information on what and how much to eat has not changed

• Use information on choosemyplate.gov to add to your existing resources

10 Tips Nutrition Education Series

Choose MyPlateTake action by making changes in these 3 areas

Balancing Calories• Enjoy your food, but eat less• Avoid oversized portions

Foods to Increase• Make half your plate fruits and vegetables• Make at least half your grains whole grains• Switch to fat-free or low-fat (1%) milk

Foods to Reduce• Compare sodium in foods like soup, bread, and frozen meals

and choose the foods with lower numbers • Drink water instead of sugary drinks.

IOM Report, May 2012Accelerating Progress in Obesity Prevention

Solving the Weight of the Nation

Strategy 5-3 Ensure Food Literacy, including skill development, in schools

“During the last decade…despite an increased focus on efforts to prevent childhood obesity…school programs providing nutrition education have remained inconsistent and underemphasized”

“It is difficult to imagine how children and adolescents can be expected to make healthy food choices in or out of school with so little instructional time spent on healthy foods and eating habits”

“The amount of time schools should devote to nutrition education is not well defined…the committees recommendation is 20 to 50 hours per year”

Suggested Methods for Delivering Nutrition Education to Youth Audiences*

*Contento, 2011

Cognitive & Emotional Development of Adolescentsimplications for nutrition education (Contento, 2011)

Classroom Activities

Peer Survey

Nutrition Questionnaire:•What type of Milk did you drink?

•How many cups of fruits/vegetables did you eat?

•How many glasses of water did you drink consume?

•How many 12 oz sodas did you drink?

•What types of snacks did you eat afterschool?

Observational LearningTeenagers learn from observing the food-related behaviors of their peers

enasco.com

Balancing Calories“Enjoy your food, but eat less”

Avoid oversized portions

610 590 350

400 More Calories!!

*NHLBI Portion Distortion Quiz

Portion Distortion

Foods to Increase“Make half your plate fruits and vegetables”

Studies have shown taste is a powerful determinant of food choice

Cooking or food preparation can provide additional motivation to make healthier choices when students are involved in the actual work

Foods to Reduce“Drink water instead of sugary drinks"

• Re-think your Drink activities:

•Grams – teaspoonso Visualize how much

sugar you’re drinking

•Sugar goes by different names

o Show me the Sugar!

•Understanding the food label

• Resources:

o Hunger Attack

o Bay Area Nutrition & Physical Activity Collaborative (BANPAC)

Show me the Sugar!

MyPlate into Financial Literacy Ed:

Money Talks for TeensHUNGER ATTACK

Be a Healthy Role Model

• At home• At school• Fresno High School

– Peer Education Extender Team (PEET)

The use of peer educators to deliver nutrition education has been done effectively with adolescents.

Peer educators can model healthful behaviors and address participants' concerns about powerful social influences on healthy eating behaviors.

PEET Program• Mercedes is a junior in

High School– Teaching students at

Roeding Elementary about MyPlate and the importance of a healthy breakfast

UCCE Curricula• TWIGS: Garden-based nutrition education

– Students learn where food comes from and become more interested in nutrition. Studies have shown that students who garden eat more fruits and vegetables

– Nutrition education linked to school gardens has been found to improve academic achievement (CDE)

– Use with first time gardeners– Teens can mentor younger students – Contact UCCE Master Garden Program

• EatFit: Goal setting curriculum for middle schools students – An intervention study found that guided goal setting improved students' dietary

behavior compared to an intervention without guided goal setting

• Hunger Attack: Financial literacy education for teens– Created to appeal to teens as it increases financial literacy– Teens learn how to make healthy and affordable purchasing decisions– Teen and leader’s guides updated with MyPlate

Nutrition Education Resource Guidefor California Public Schools

• MyPlate: choosemyplate.gov

• Team Nutrition (http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/)

• Money Talks for Teens (Hunger Attack): moneytalks4teens.org

• Jumpstart:http://www.schoolnutritionandfitness.com/data/pdf/Jump_start_TeensTraining.pdf

• Empowering Youth: http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/resources/empoweringyouth.html

• CA Department of Education: Nutrition Education Resource Guide http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/nu/he/nerg.asp

Resources

• USDA Recipe Finder (Build a Cookbook): http://recipefinder.nal.usda.gov/

• Portion distortion I: http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion/portion.cgi?action=question&number=1

• Portion distortion II: http://hp2010.nhlbihin.net/portion/portion2.cgi?action=question&number=1

• Portion Distortion also available at choosemyplate website: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/supertracker-tools/portion-distortion.html

• Bay Area Nutrition and Physical Activity Collaborative (BANPAC) Sugar Savvy Resources: http://www.banpac.org/resources_sugar_savvy.htm

Resources

Thank you!Any Questions?

Brenda Wolford, Nutrition AdvisorPhone: (323) 260-3299

Email: bkroche@ucdavis.edu

Cynthia Avila, EFNEP Program CoordinatorPhone: (323) 260-3345

Email: cgbandera@ucdavis.edu