By I.S. Yansané
Special to the AFRO
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C.W. Harris students lined up for screening in the all-purpose room.
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(April 8, 2009)- WASHINGTON- Students at C.W. Harris Elementary received health screenings that included dental, vision, body mass index, height and weight measurement and blood pressure at a fair organized by United Medical Center Foundation on April 2.
The UMC fair is an ongoing pilot program at specific District schools that will follow students through their school matriculation and beyond in an effort to promote preventive care, collect data and foster better health outcomes in Black communities.
“People need to learn how to access better health practices in order to live healthier lives,” said Calvin Smith, chairman of the UMC Foundation, which is working with Healing Our Village, the National Kidney Foundation, the Lung Cancer Association and the D.C. Department of Health to increase ongoing education in pulmonary, kidney and heart diseases.
At the center of the initiative, Foundation representatives said, was the shocking statistics about childhood obesity that has emerged in recent years.
“The screening was started on the basis of an internal background study indicating that obesity has become an epidemic that must be curbed,” said UMC employee Lateicia Harrisson, who works on community outreach.
And it’s an epidemic that is disproportionately prevalent among lower-income communities of color, research has shown.
A 2006 study funded by the national Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases shows that approximately one-third of American children and adolescents are overweight or obese, especially those of Latin, African-American and low-income backgrounds.
C.W. Harris Elementary represents this demographic. According to physical education teacher Benjamin Davis, 100 percent of C.W. Harris students are African American, of which 99 percent qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Twenty-seven percent of students in grades 2 through 4 are at risk of becoming overweight or obese, Davis added, ranking between the 85th and 95th percentile in the body mass index by age.
And, 21 percent in grades 2 through 4 are overweight or obese and rank in the 95th percentile or higher in the body mass index.
There is at least one easy way to change those statistics, the PE instructor said.
“Physical activity is a cheap, sustainable, and efficient method of reducing and preventing overweight and obesity,” Davis said. “Physical activity habits are learned, with schools being the optimum environment for the teaching of these ideals.”
Sadly, the children who need to learn such lifestyle lessons the most are the ones who don’t show up to school and are otherwise most afflicted by the “education gap.” And, they are unlikely to obtain those lessons at home.
“Students practice for the test instead of taking physical education,” said Davis, who helped conduct the screenings at the fair. “They come to school with chips and candies… They play video games at home.”
The health fair was therefore aimed to elevate students’ minds, create healthy lifestyles habits in order to maximize social and economic opportunities.
Davis said, “It is imperative that we focus on educating both the mind and bodies of our students in order to help them become well-rounded, healthy adults.”
Studies show that the adverse health consequences of childhood obesity can follow a person into adulthood.
“Obesity has been linked to hypertension, elevated cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, orthopedic disorders, and respiratory disease; [it] has a significant negative effect on childhood emotional development, has been shown to track to adult obesity and increases the risk of adult mortality,” Smith said.
Many factors can be blamed for these numbers, but the solution is clear, said Davis, who outlined several initiatives CW is pursuing including, creating a Health Promotion Program; partnering with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, United Medical Center, The First Tee National School Program, DC SCORES, City Dance Dream Program, Chartwells Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program and Quick Fit, an in- class exercise initiative.
He said, “We need to implement quick and decisive action now…to assist our students in living healthier lives.”