Dear Dr. Susan,
 Summer
seems to get shorter each year; the Back-to-School sales
and--gasp--Halloween candy displays (don't get me started) have already
started to appear. We've spent our summer thinking about how to
reach out to new audiences in our fight for healthy school food. It's
not just about what kids eat in school. It's about what they eat
with their families. What they see on TV. What snacks
they're sharing at the playground and what sports drinks they're
guzzling at summer camp. Food is part of the physiological,
cultural and emotional fabric of our lives. Given the
impact food has upon all areas of our lives, we realized we need to
cast a much larger net. We've formed a new committee to support
parents of preschoolers (see feature story, below) in order to start
healthy eating habits early in life. We also wanted to better
understand some of the macro-food issues, like food advertising to
kids, and attended a meeting hosted by the Federal Trade Commission
(FTC). It seems to us that re-packaging convenience foods to
contain fewer calories is not going to make our kids healthier, but it
certainly is making food companies more profitable. Read my blog for more on this, or read another blog we like, "The Doctor Weighs In."We've also decided to join forces with organizations like screentime.org to promote turning off the TV and eating dinner together (see Events, below). And
we have new resources for our members including information sheets on
food ingredients, a Healthy Snack List, and more. All BSF members
will be able to access these valuable tools. If you haven't yet
converted from "subscriber" to "member," visit our Join BSF page.Poor
quality foods and declining children's health have grown to be two of
the most critical issues facing our nation. Einstein said that a
problem cannot be solved with the consciousness that created it.
We will work to help you change the food consciousness of your
community, and create better school food. Sincerely, Dr. Susan Rubin, Founder, Better School Food |
Preschool Parents, Unite!
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Could it be that eating habits are formed as early as age two or three? Some studies say so. Research shows  that
this is the most important time to teach healthy eating habits. If a
child likes certain types of food at a young age, he or she is most
likely to continue eating those foods into adulthood. With
that in mind, BSF has created a new committee to support parents of
young children in preschools, day care centers, and other places of
early childhood education. For some, the challenges are in the
snacks served: what can a preschool with no refrigerator, a
student population with diverse food allergies, and small food budget
serve on a daily basis? For others, including day care centers,
the issues are similar to those a grade school would have:
complicated food service contracts, unhealthy ingredients, and
resistance to change. We'll work together to understand the
issues and facilitate communication between parents and directors in
order so we can improve what's offered for snacks, meals, and even
food-related projects in school. BSF also wants to help parents
improve their food I.Q. Parental influence on eating habits may never
be as strong as it is with toddlers and preschoolers who cannot go out
and buy junk food. Do you have a story about your
preschool or day care center? Would you like to join our
committee? Please email lisa@betterschoolfood.org. |
FoodNews: Food Affects Behavior
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What do a child's behavior, memory and ability to learn have in common? They share a connection that begins in the grocery cart--food. One in six children now suffers from a behavioral or learning disability, and there is strong scientific evidence supporting the connection between diet and ADHD:
- Studies
at California State University showed that nutrient dense diets
resulted in improved conduct, intelligence, and academic performance
- A
Purdue University study showed that kids low in Omega-3 essential fatty
acids are significantly more likely to be hyperactive, have learning
disorders, and to display behavioral problems
- A Cornell Medical
Center study found that foods and additives are common causes of the
attention deficit hyperactive disorder in children
- A study
reported in the International Journal of Neuroscience in 1983 provided
evidence that food additives do affect ADHD and hyperactivity
Nutritional
factors such as food additives, refined sugars, food sensitivities and
allergies, and fatty acid deficiencies have all been linked to ADHD.
It is common knowledge that things like alcohol, caffeine, nicotine 
and chemicals like drugs can affect behavior, but most of us don't
think about the chemicals added to the foods we eat. Let's get
back to basics when it comes to feeding our kids--skip the processed
foods and foods that contain preservatives and artificial sweeteners
and colorings. Let's help young minds reach their full potential
with more whole foods, fruits and vegetables.
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Community Spotlight:
Katonah-Lewisboro School District, NY
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The
Katonah-Lewisboro School District board recognized the link between a
healthy diet and a student's ability to learn effectively in
school. They wanted to bring the benefits of physical activity,
nutrition education and healthy food choices--and their impact on the
academic achievement--to their students,, and they engaged the entire
community to make it happen.
How
did they go from chicken nuggets to grilled chicken with
rosemary? It wasn't easy. Here are the highlights of their
efforts and achievements:
- Sent out four thousand surveys to the entire school district community (and received over 2,000 back!)
- With community support, sought input from local nutrition experts and BetterSchoolFood.org
- Wrote and implemented a Wellness policy
- Hired
a consultant and trained chef to purchase new equipment, review food
service contracts, and create new menus using whole foods and fresh
ingredients
- I
 nvolved a diverse group of students, staff and administrators in decision making and implementing the new school lunch program
- 6. Created marketing materials and award-winning newsletter (see left) to educate community on changes
- 7. Implemented weekly farmer's market at district high school
We'll be posting the full story in a new section of our website,
"Success Stories," in the coming weeks. Congratulations,
Katonah-Lewisboro!
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Events
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- September 9th conference hosted by Rockland County, NY School's Open: Do you know what your kids are eating? Conference hosted by Rockland County, NY BSF affilate. For more info, contact: rocklandbetterschoolfood@gmail.com
- Our 2nd BSF Teleconference is scheduled for September 20,
 1:00pm EST. Following an lively first teleconference with fifty callers participating, we look forward to continuing the conversation.
- Have dinner with your Family Day September 24. An initiative to turn off your tv and computer screens and spend time with your family.
- Preschool Directors, Parents and Caregivers Conference coming late Fall.
- National School Lunch Week, October 15 - 19 Join us for a "Lunch-In" and take your child to lunch in their school cafeteria.
- Conference for educators: BOCES Southern Westchester, October 16th from 5:30pm - 8:30pm,
Southern Westchester BOCES, Elmsford, NY. Dr. Susan Rubin and Geri
Brewster will be discussing how to use food as a tool and the ABC's of
food in your school's curriculum.
For more information on these events, visit our events page.
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Our Mission
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Is to raise awareness of the connection between food and children's health, behavior and learning.
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NEWS ALERT!!!
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Check out Dr. Susan in an exclusive interview today August 8th in
USA TODAY
Click on the link below!
"Mothers Start A Food Fight"
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Become A Member
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Ingredient Facts
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Are Sports Drinks Better Then Soda or Just as Bad?
Here are some ingredients of a typical and popular sports drink:
High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)
has been shown to increase the risk for type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, strokes and cancer.
Blue 1/Yellow5/Yellow 6/Red 40 (food color additives), these are believed to be a cause for hyperactivity in kids, among other things
Source: BSF Ingredient Fact Sheet
More details about this and other Ingredients Facts Sheets will soon be made available to BSF members.
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Food Facts
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The
vast majority of grains and legumes grown in the U.S. are actually fed
to animals. If Americans decreased their animal protein consumption by
10%, they would create a surplus of 12 million tons of grain annually,
enough to completely eliminate starvation in both America and Africa.
Source: The Vegan Diet as Chronic Disease Prevention by Kerrie K. Saunders, Ph.D.
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For More Information
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Better School Food
287 E. Main St. #231
Mount Kisco, NY 10549
(914) 864-1293
info@betterschoolfood.org
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About BSF
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About Better School Food
Founded
in 2005, The Coalition for Better School Food (BSF) is a nonprofit
organization dedicated to improving school food for a positive impact
on children's health, behavior and learning. BSF founder Susan Rubin,
DMD, HHC, is a dentist, holistic nutritionist and parent of three who
has been advocating better school food for over a decade. BSF aims to
provide resources and guidance to parents who are inspired to take
action after seeing the film Two Angry Moms, created by award-winning
documentary filmmaker and Yale University Department of Medicine and
Psychiatry Lecturer Amy Kalafa, HHC |
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Become A Member
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