8.NPA.4

What does this standard mean a child will know and be able to do?

8.NPA.4.1 Outline strategies that can be used to overcome barriers to healthy eating.
Barriers to healthy eating are everywhere. Student schedules are packed, often with sedentary activities from dawn to dark, leaving little daylight for physical activity. Heavy schedules cramp time for planning, securing and carrying healthy foods, particularly away from home. The easiest solution seems to be eating fast food--with sports teams, school groups and friends who just want to hang out for a while.

Media present sleek and attractive models to reinforce fast food choices. So when flab creeps on, another easy (but ineffective) fix seems to be a fad diet. Fad diets have been shown to be nutritionally unsound and ineffective over time (as most individuals regain all the lost weight and then some).

A person who is motivated to have a healthy body can find ways around every barrier. He or she might influence the family to buy healthy food and keep it prepared for packing. If parents insist on the drive-through, the student can order the healthy entree choice (by seeking the on-line menu in advance), low-fat milk, and bring a piece of fruit from home instead of fries. When friends want to eat out, speak up for restaurants that offer better choices.

Students should be strategic with their calendars, blocking out time periods for meals, activity, and rest on a daily basis. Being realistic when looking at a daily schedule and being able to say no to overload are characteristics of people with a positive sense of self. Students can minimize the negative effects of television commercials by making a habit of muting, fast-forwarding or TEVOing programs, particularly infomercials for fad diets. If extra help is needed in the weight loss area, researching groups that have a long and successful history of changing behavior patterns is the best strategy.
 * The student will identify barriers to personal healthy eating patterns.
 * For barriers identified, the student will propose and implement one or more successful strategies to overcome them.

8.NPA.4.2 Differentiate methods of food preparation in terms of their health and safety.
Knowing how to prepare meals and snacks lower in fat, sugar and salt is important to avoiding obesity. Baking, grilling, broiling, steaming, poaching, or sautéing (not frying) meats, vegetables and fruits reduce a food’s fat. [Google U-tube videos to learn how.] In making a recipe, fat can be easily cut by ¼, and sometimes ingredients like applesauce, low-fat yogurt or canned pumpkin can be substituted for fat to accomplish the same results. For instance, a chocolate brownie or cake mix can be made with a can of pumpkin and ¼ cup of water instead of oil and eggs to produce a really decadent chocolate dessert with no pumpkin taste and much less fat!

Vegetables can be sautéed in broth to reduce oil. Visible fat on meats and skin of poultry can be removed. Then the meat can be browned in a non-stick pan with oil spray. Healthy oils spritzed on salads and cottage cheese or baked potatoes bump up the nutrient density and lower the fat. Sugars have deceptive names (honey, corn syrup, molasses, fructose, sucrose or maltose to name a few), and are often hidden in drinks, cereals and baked goods. The student should examine the first four ingredients on packaging for excessive sugar. High fructose corn syrup seems to affect insulin in negative ways, so reducing it helps overall energy and weight management. Natural sugar in fruits and vegetables will shine through when artificial sweeteners and sugars are reduced or eliminated. Drinking water and low-fat milk with occasional real fruit juices or diet drinks lower overall calories.

Foods high in sugar need to be eaten is small portions along with a protein food like string cheese, walnuts or a boiled egg to control blood sugar, especially if someone is diabetic. One really important point a student should remember is not to let themselves get too hungry since good choices about fat and sugar depend on feeling in control.
 * The student will describe alternatives to preparing foods without frying.
 * The student will explain how to determine if a food contains added high fructose corn syrup or other sugars.
 * The student will explain two important strategies about controlling blood sugar and food choices.
 * The student will incorporate food preparation practices that reduce fat and sugar in the diet.

8.NPA.4.3 Summarize the benefits of regular physical activity.
If all the benefits of regular activity could be achieved in a pill, its value would make it very pricey. Active lifestyles throughout the U.S. would save an estimated 250,000 lives and about $150 billion per year.

Physical fitness strengthens the heart and lowers elevated blood sugar and blood fat levels, reducing risks for artery disease, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. It speeds metabolism, improves digestive health, and eliminates waste more efficiently. Load bearing exercise facilitates absorption of calcium, strengthening bones and reducing osteoporosis. Walking for exercise reduces risks for colds and respiratory problems, slows degeneration of organs such as brain, kidneys and liver, and releases hormones that create positive mood and energy.

Physical activity reduces incidence of breast, colon and other cancers. It helps women cope better with PMS and childbirth. Smokers and other drug abusers find exercise helpful in kicking addiction. People who exercise have greater balance and muscle tone and sleep better. Over a lifetime, a fit senior citizen has a body that functions as well as a 45-55 year old sedentary person—lifetime fitness slows the aging process. When people move from no activity to moderate activity like walking for 30 minutes, they measurably reduce health risks and improve their quality of life. No one needs to be a marathoner to gain health benefits.
 * The student will summarize the financial and physical benefits of an active lifestyle.
 * The student will explain the value of lifelong activity and what level is required to achieve measurable benefits.
 * The student will commit to a moderate level of exercise most days of the week.