Running head: SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION

The Role of Schools in Health Promotion Tamara Putney Ferris State University

SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION Abstract Understanding the correlation between poor adult health and early-established health and wellness habits is of the utmost importance. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the important role the schools of our nation can play in establishing positive early health and wellness habits in students. The importance of proper nutrition, avoiding risky behaviors, and physical education with activity will be explored. Also to be explored is the important role the

community and government plays in helping schools overcome barriers due to funding. Last, the potential impact on the nursing profession due to an increased successful implementation of school health promotion programs will be discussed. Keywords: health promotion, wellness, nutrition, physical education

SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION The Role of Schools in Health Promotion Defining the role schools should play in the promotion of health is more imperative than ever before. The survival and well being of our nation and its health rests on the future condition of the population as a whole. The Centers for Disease Control [CDC] report health risk factors for disease are increasing at an alarming rate (MMWR, 2011). Poor nutrition and health, and lack of physical activity is directly linked to other risk factors such high blood pressure, high cholesterol and blood glucose levels, which in turn is correlated to the increasing prevalence of obesity, heart disease, diabetes and cancer (CDC, MMWR, 2011). In light of all this research, schools are a perfect venue for the promotion of health, wellness and physical activity. Schools are potentially the most effective site for intervention because of the large amount of time children spend within these facilities (Pender,

Murdaugh, & Parsons, 2011). The educators of our school systems are shaping the population of the future. Many of the habits adults have can be directly linked to exposure and education received during childhood and school age years (CDC, 1996). With this known fact, if schools educate and stress the importance of proper nutrition and provide physical education to promote physical activity, this will have a major impact on the world as a whole. The Washington State Board of Health states that, Poor nutrition and not enough physical activity lead to lower academic achievement (Keefer, 2011). Deficient nutrition has been directly correlated with lower test scores, less successful educational outcomes and increasing levels of poverty (2011). The time has come to mandate schools to promote health and wellness early on for the future benefits of our nation. Many important factors will need to be addressed to ensure the success of any school health and wellness promotion program. Nutrition and wellness education must be

SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION comprehensive and thorough, physical activity and education must be consistent, and funding barriers must be overcome; many times this means involvement of the community or the government is necessary. Because many schools integrate nurses as educators of health, and because many communities rely on nurses for care delivery, the impact on the nursing profession as a whole will be affected by an increase in successful health promotion programs in schools. If wellness is engrained in children early in life the entire impending cascade of health problems that many people experience could be decreased or avoided. This would allow the nursing profession to focus more on those with disease that was not preventable and to find new ways to implement wellness and health prevention programs. Nutrition Understanding nutrition is an essential part of life. Nutrition involves, not only the study of what foods are nutritious, but also the actual ingestion of those nutritious foods. Nutrition education in schools must be presented in a way so that it is easy to achieve. Studies show that proper nutrition early in life plays an integral part in normal growth and development (CDC, MMWR, 2011). This along with established eating habits will give the children of our schools the very best shot at a long, healthy, successful life. Over the past 3 decades the prevalence of

obesity alone, for the age range of 6 to 19 years, has tripled (2011)! Also, the CDC reports that 1 out of every 3 children or adolescent is overweight or obese. This alarming upscale trend shows no indication that it is going to decrease (2011). Through school nutrition and wellness education classes, students must be taught that what they do now will impact them for all their years to come. This can be achieved through health education and nutrition classes integrated into the daily school routine. Students must

SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION learn about the food groups, as well as what healthy eating is all about, and how it can impact their body and their future.

It is important to remember the role of schools in health promotion is not only health and nutrition education classes, but also offering the students nutritious lunchtime meals. To help make this possible there is federal funding available to schools to assist with providing meals, but proper planning by school officials is key to take advantage of this assistance. A healthier younger generation will decrease the future prevalence of chronic illness in our population and make the world a healthier, happier place to live. Risky Behavior Education Teaching that risky behavior can be detrimental is of utmost importance when presenting a well-rounded health promotion curriculum. Current reports indicate that 1 in 5 high school students is a smoker, and 3 out of every 10 young women become pregnant by age 20 (CDC, 2011). These two facts alone show that health promotion education in schools must also address and educate on risky behavior. These behaviors include such things as smoking, having unprotected sex, which could result in HIV and STDs, and taking illegal drugs (2011). It is imperative that every child understands these risks. One of the major overall challenges schools face in this dire economic time is funding. Thankfully our current government and other community organizations are aware of this and have implemented programs to assist in breaking down this barrier and giving schools the support needed. An example of this is the CDCs funding of a Coordinated School Health Program [CSH]. The CDC has supplied funds to 22 states and 1 tribal government as of 2011. These funds allow schools to set up education programs that address topics such as health education, physical education, health and nutritional services, counseling, safe environment and

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staff wellness (2011). These programs have been very successful, in part due to the engagement of the community. It is important to note that in many areas where government funding is unavailable, community involvement and/or local grants have been utilized to help educate our future generation on the importance of a healthy lifestyle. Making the world a better place to live has a role for everyone in our community! Physical Education According to the CDC physical activity is any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure. Exercise is a subset of physical activity that is planned, structured, and repetitive and is done to improve or maintain physical fitness (CDC, 1996). According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, 35% of Americans are overweight, 30% are obese and only about 35% of Americans participate in moderate to vigorous exercise 5 or more times per week (1996). Again, exercise is like practicing proper nutrition, these habits are not inborn; they are all learned. All schools must implement a physical fitness or education program and start teaching the children of the world to value their body and to be regularly active. If the habit is instilled at an early age, it will likely continue throughout life. Physical education for promotion of physical activity is directly related to an increase in academic performance and bone mass density. It is also related to a decrease in being overweight or obese, a decrease in the prevalence of depression and anxiety related disorders, and physical activity can drastically reduce or even eliminate the instances of cardiac disease, diabetes, and in many cases it can prevent certain kinds of cancer (1996). Most, but not all states require physical education credit to graduate from high school (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2005). The children our schools need to know how to set up and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION Drastic economic times require drastic measures, and in many circumstances schools need the help of communities or the government in order to offer physical education classes. Various programs exist to assist schools in offering this education, and in some circumstances even reward schools that provide this education. Some programs such as the Lets Move Initiative,

through the United States Department of Education do just that (http://www.letsmove.gov). This government led initiative has engaged families, schools and communities, and increased opportunities, as well as changed attitudes about the importance of physical activity. More and more, our changing economic times are requiring teamwork for overall survival. Impact on the Nursing Profession According to the National League for Nursing (NLN) the number one trend that is transforming the nursing profession is the negatively changing demographic and socioeconomic factors of society (2011). If schools step up and take a larger, more impactful role in the development of the health attitudes of the human race, nurses can spend more time curing and comforting those whose disease was not preventable, and more money will be available to stress wellness and health prevention. There will always be a need for nurses to provide a curing and caring environment for patients. But a downward trend of occurrences of preventable disease would directly impact those with inevitable or terminal illness. Less instances of preventable disease would also free up more funds for health research, make more help available to those in need, and further the advancement of disease prevention tools. Health and wellness promotion needs to start early in life. Growing up with well defining habits of healthy eating and living, and participating in regular physical activity will lower the risk of developing chronic illness later in life. Early health promotion in schools could impact every human being on this planet. Why wait any longer to implement the difference maker?

SCHOOLS IN HEALTH PROMOTION References American Academy of Family Physicians. (2011). Americans underestimate obesity problem, are unlikely to exercise. Retrieved from http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/publications/news/news-now/health-of-thepublic/20061221obeseandunaware.html

Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (1996). MMWR weekly: Guidelines for school health programs to promote lifelong healthy eating. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00042446.htm Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011). MMWR weekly: School health guidelines to promote healthy eating and physical activity. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr6005a1.htm?s_cid=rr6005a1_w Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011). School health programs: Improving the health of our nations youth. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/AAG/dash.htm Keefer, A. (2011). Nutritional and physical activities. Retrieved from http://www.livestrong.com/article/450778-nutrition-physical-activities/ National Conference of State Legislatures. (2005). Health: Physical education and physical activity for children. Retrieved from http://www.ncsl.org/default.aspx?tabid=14027 National League for Nurses. (2011). The future of nursing education: Ten trends to watch. Retrieved from http://www.nln.org/nlnjournal/infotrends.htm Pender, N. J., Murdaugh, C. L., & Parsons, M. A., (2011). Health promotion in nursing practice (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

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NURS 310 Health Promotion

Research Paper Purpose: Each student will write a research paper in a selected area of health promotion. The purpose of this assignment is to investigate an area of health promotion of interest in depth. It may be related to any area of health promotion. Any of the weekly discussion topics are possible topics for the focus of the paper. It is a paper that will report and analyze a specific area of health promotion. It is a scholarly paper and requires full use of APA format including abstract and professional references from nursing and health promotion literature. It may include references from public health and epidemiology. Paper should not exceed 8 pages, including the title page, abstract, and references.

Content Criteria Question at issue: Is the topic clearly identified? Can the reader readily identify the focus of the paper? Information: Is the key information for the topic included and adequately sourced? Point of view: Are the key viewpoints articulated and examined? Assumptions: What underlying assumptions are foundational to this issue? What does the reader need to understand about the issue? Concepts: Are the key concepts of the topic identified? Is their relevance clear? Purpose: What is the purpose in examining this topic? Why is it important to nurses and nursing? To clinical populations? Inference: What is the logical interpretation of the data about this issue? Implications/consequences: What are the likely outcomes of the various positions on this issue? Format Criteria APA considerations, Intellectual Standards, Format (abstract, introduction, references, etc) Total

Points Points Available Awarded 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10

10 10 10 10

10 10 10 10

20 100

20 100

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10

Headings within the paper should reflect the content of the paper and not the elements of reasoning or intellectual standards. The grading will take into account acceptable writing standards. Comments: Good job on research paper. All content addresses elements of reasoning. The other components within this section adequately covered. Please see paper for specific comments. Again, good work!