Translating school health research to policy. School outcomes related to the health environment and changes in mathematics achievement.

This paper describes an exploration of the relationship between mathematic achievement and the school health environment relative to policy-driven changes in the school setting, specifically with regard to physical education/physical activity. Using school-level data, the authors seek to understand the relationship between mathematics achievement and the school health environment and physical education minutes. This work provides a description of the aspects of the school health environment, an exploration of the interrelationships between school health and student achievement, and an assessment of the effects of the school health policy and practice on student performance and health status. Based on these findings, we identify additional research necessary to describe the relationship between obesity and learning in children.

Design and Implementation of a 5-Year School-Based Nutrition Education Intervention.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the research methods of a multicomponent nutrition education program empowering teachers to improve nutrition literacy and prevent obesity among elementary school students. DESIGN: Prospective 5-year study following a pre-post intervention design. SETTING: Four elementary schools in a high-needs area in Washington, DC: 2 intervention and 2 comparison schools. PARTICIPANTS: Approximately 100 teachers (25/school) and 800 students (200/school) enrolled over the study period. INTERVENTION: Healthy Schoolhouse 2.0 will engage teachers as agents of change by designing, implementing, and evaluating a structured professional development program to support the integration of nutrition concepts in the classroom. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Change in pre-post survey assessment of students' nutrition literacy, attitudes, and intent; change in teachers' self-efficacy toward teaching nutrition; fruit and vegetable consumption data collected 6 times/y in the cafeteria. ANALYSIS: Process evaluation throughout the study to document implementation and challenges. Multilevel mixed modeling will be used to determine the impact of the intervention.

Incentivizing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Purchases with Fresh Produce in Corner Stores to Reduce Food Inequity in Underserved Areas of Washington DC.

Purpose: Maintaining a healthy eating pattern plays a key role in ensuring optimal health outcomes, yet, in areas considered "food deserts" and lower-income neighborhoods where the accessibility of healthy foods and beverages is limited, the pursuit of adequate nutrient intake is rendered cumbersome. This pilot program aims to improve access to healthful foods by supporting corner stores in stocking and promoting the purchase of produce. Methods: DC Central Kitchen's Healthy Corners program in Washington, DC piloted a nutrition incentive model in 17 corner stores that were upgraded to stock an increased variety and quantity of fresh produce. This program, entitled "5-for-5," provided a $5 coupon toward the purchase of fresh produce to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) shoppers making a qualifying purchase of $5 or more with SNAP benefits. Results: Evaluation based on store owner buy-in and customer intercept surveys indicated overall satisfaction in program offerings with 77% of SNAP shoppers polled indicating an increase in produce consumption as a direct result of the program. Coupon distribution data indicated that in the 5-for-5 program's first year, 76.5% of all 57,989 distributed coupons were redeemed, amounting to $221,770 worth of incentivized fresh produce sales. Conclusion: The results of the incentive program were promising with increases in the amount of produce purchased as a result of the program. Lessons learned concerning the use of a financial incentive to encourage the purchase of produce at corner stores is explored, as well as the feasibility of the corner store as a sustainable venue to increase produce consumption in underserved communities.

Measuring the Implementation of a School Wellness Policy.

BACKGROUND: With the rise in childhood obesity, school policies related to nutrition and physical activity have been written and implemented. In this paper, we present a model to evaluate the degree to which state legislation for school health policies are implemented at the school level. METHODS: Using Washington, DC's Healthy Schools Act (HSA) and a self-report measure of the implementation of the HSA, we illustrate the process of developing a composite score that can be used to measure compliance with the provisions of the law. RESULTS: We calculated elementary and middle school composite scores based on the provisions within the HSA. Schools have been successful in implementing nutrition provisions; however, more resources are needed for schools to achieve the minutes of health and physical education. We found statistically significant differences between public charter and traditional public schools on the implementation of the provisions of the HSA. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding how schools are complying with school wellness policies is a next step to determining where additional resources or support are needed in order to support school-wide adoption of healthy policies.