A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body

LEARNING AND HEALTH ARE STRONGLY CONNECTED!

1. According to the CDC, healthy students are better learners! The health of young people is strongly linked to their academic success, and the academic success of youth is strongly linked with their health. 

2. Education is predictor of health outcomes! Children and young people who receive a good quality education are more likely to be healthy, and likewise those who are healthy are better able to learn and complete their education.  

3. After the family, the school is the primary institution responsible for the development of young people in the United States. Schools are in a unique position to promote healthy behaviors. Most US children spend an average of 6 to 7 hours a day at school, which is a large part of their waking hours. 

4. Research has shown that nervous system and digestive system are very closely connected. In fact, scientists refer to the gut as 'the second brain,' and part of our emotions may be tied to the nerves in our digestive system. Consequently, school lunch is critical to student health and well-being as it provides energy and nutrients to keep the body and brain working efficiently through the school day. Foods have a direct and long-lasting effect on our brain chemistry, such as diets high in refined sugars are harmful to the brain which can worsen emotional and intellectual development. 

5. Recess allows students to be outdoors, which has has numerous benefits for their physical, intellectual, physical, and socio-emotional development. For instance, recess provides outdoor play and the sunlight produces vitamin D in our bodies, improves sleep quality, and stimulates the pineal gland, which boosts our mood and immune system. 

6. Recess helps children burn more calories, improve motor development, strengthen muscles and bones, teaches prosocial skills, improves executive functions, and reduces stress levels. Research shows that recess before lunch (RBL) leads to more students eating fruits & vegetables, less food waste, and improved classroom performance. 

7. Schools must promote healthy food choices and provide physical activity, while educating students with cross-curricular nutrition education, because helping students stay healthy is a fundamental part of the mission of schools. After all, schools cannot achieve their primary mission of education if students and staff are not healthy.

8. Having a healthy role-model to look up to supports children in feeling more secure and confident in making responsible decisions. It's important to teach children how to make healthy and responsible decisions, so that they are able to tackle all of life's curves with resiliency and self-autonomy.

9. Through a ‘whole child' approach, establishing healthy behaviors is easier and more effective during childhood and adolescence than trying to change unhealthy behaviors during adulthood. "Food is Medicine" is supported by numerous research that healthy eating can reduce the risk of unhealthy weight, depression, anxiety, and diabetes; while unhealthy eating can increase these risks. Poor self-care leads to poor performance in school and in life.

10. Our Nation is facing a health crisis, which has grown over the last thirty years to epidemic proportions. "If we don’t work to build a healthy foundation for today’s young people, both the military and our nation will pay the price tomorrow" -- Richard R. Jeffries, Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy (Retired) and former Medical Officer of the U.S. Marine Corps

Based on the science of EPIGENETICS, good nutrition & physical activity can improve brain development, learning, emotions, and the behaviors of students! 

1. 'You are What you Eat' is supported by the correlation between dietary behaviors and academics, where students with high grades are more likely to eat vegetables one or more times per day. 

2. Complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains and vegetables, are rich in cellulose, or fiber. We often think of fats as something to avoid in our diets. Unsaturated fatty acids are found mostly in oils from plants. They are considered beneficial fats because they can improve blood cholesterol levels, ease inflammation, stabilize heart rhythms, and play a number of other beneficial roles.

3. 'Food is Medicine' is supported by empirical evidence that healthy eating helps students feel better and think better! Most Americans usually eat enough protein, but not enough DIETARY FIBER (which is naturally found in plants, such as fruits & vegetables). Vitamin B12 is found in animal products and fortified foods, such as fish and plant milk. Processed foods and preservatives are mutagens that can change or mutate our DNA to increase the likelihood of cancer 🧬

4. Children who drink more than 16 to 24 ounces a day of cow's milk (Cow's milk not only contains little iron, but it can also decrease absorption of iron and irritate the intestinal lining causing chronic blood loss.) 

5. When I was a middle school student, my teachers encouraged us to eat healthier and this led me to be more successful in school, in sports, and in life. So, my goal is to pay it forward by providing the same practical knowledge to my students, thereby maximizing their "life chances" and helping them grow into happy, healthy, smarter, wealthy, and successful adults. In the words of Sir Isaac Newton, “If I have seen further than others, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”