HOST Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Roundup, February 8, 2018

The latest in our regular roundups of healthy eating and physical activity news from HOST members and others.

Events

The National AfterSchool Association's annual convention, March 18-21 in Atlanta, Georgia, "is designed intentionally as a healthy environment with plenty of opportunities participants to engage in healthy practices," so that afterschool leaders can model healthy practices for students, writes Heidi Ham, vice president of programs and strategy at the National AfterSchool Association.

Policy and Practice

Several HOST members have responded to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) “Child Nutrition Programs: Flexibilities for Milk, Whole Grains, and Sodium Requirements” interim final rule, including Salud America; Richard Besser, MD, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; and Dr. Howell Wechsler, CEO of Alliance for a Healthier Generation.

Tips and Ideas

Alliance for a Healthier Generation offers ways to "Create a Welcoming and Healthy Environment this Valentine's Day," and has launched #SweeterStudents, a campaign to encourage healthy Valentine's Day parties.
The American Heart Association shares how people are "Getting Heart Healthy One Simple Step at a Time."

Success Stories

The Alliance of New York State YMCAs has secured a cumulative $1.3 million for increasing the uptake of the National AfterSchool Alliance's Healthy Eating and Physical Activity (HEPA) Standards, which HOST developed. Here's how they did it.

Grant Opportunities

The JPB Foundation has provided a grant to the National Partnership to fund the Safe Routes to Parks program to increase safe and equitable access to parks. Applications just opened for year one and 10 communities will be selected to begin work this spring.
The National Recreation and Park Association, a HOST member, has announced the availability of grant funds from the Walmart Foundation to support children's health through park and recreation out-of-school-time programs.