Fulton County CES

Title:

To encourage individuals, families and communities to make proactive choices to improve health and wellness

MAP:

Making Healthy Lifestyle Choices

Agents Involved:

B. Cheirs, A. McCoy, B. Rudy

MAJOR PROGRAM 1:

Faithful Families

MAJOR PROGRAM 2:

4-H Health Core Curriculum

MAJOR PROGRAM 3:

Promoting Healthy Homes and Communities (general)

MAJOR PROGRAM 4:

Plate It Up! Kentucky Proud

Situation:

The obesity epidemic threatens the quality and years of life of Kentuckians. Obese individuals are at increased risk for many chronic health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some types of cancers. The obesity rate in Kentucky increased 90 percent over the last 15 years. Thirty percent of individuals in the Commonwealth report no leisure-time physical activity. Increased consumption of unhealthy food, stress, and built environments that promote physical inactivity are largely responsible for the obesity epidemic. As a result, Kentuckians are dying from heart disease and cancer at higher rates than all Americans and they have a lower life expectancy, 75.5 years, compared to 78 years for Americans.

Nutrition Education Programs help families gain access to food and stretch food dollars; communities to decrease hunger; and local food assistance programs to educate recipients on healthy and safe food preparation methods. Agents, paraprofessionals and volunteers are pivotal in training consumers and producers to maximize local access to food products from farm to table.

Long-Term Outcomes:

-A decrease in the number of obese and overweight children, youth, adults and elderly

-Increase in the practice and promotion of physical activity and healthy eating daily

-Improvement in the mental health and well-being of Kentuckians

-Manage and prevent the risk, debilitation, and premature death related to diabetes, cancer, heart disease, stroke and hypertension

-Increase the estimated health savings in dollars for chronic disease.

-Kentucky population will increase average fruit and vegetable consumption by 1 or more servings per day

Intermediate Outcomes:

-Practice healthy food choices and strengthen individuals’ ability to build healthy eating plans and patterns.

-Maintain appropriate calorie balance during each stage of life: childhood, adolescence, adulthood, pregnancy and breastfeeding and older age

-Practice of physical activity in families and communities and decreased time spent on sedentary behaviors

-Strengthen community coalitions or partnerships to address obesity, physical inactivity and chronic disease.

-Access more local foods

-Plant, harvest and preserve produce

-Apply improved food preparation skills, food management skills, food safety and healthy eating habits

Initial Outcomes:

-Participants will learn the difference between portion sizes and serving sizes

-Participants will understand the relationship between mental health and physical health

-Participants will learn to prepare a healthy snack

-Participants will gain knowledge of the relationship between disease and weight

-Participants will learn how to read food labels

-Participants will understand relationship between caloric intake and energy output

-Participants will learn that fitness can be fun while being healthy

-Participants will understand health related terminology (i.e. BMI, etc.)

-Participants will increase knowledge of the benefits of physical activity

-Participants will understand the importance of sustainable local agriculture to individual health and financial well-being

-Participants will learn to grow, prepare and preserve food

-Participants will learn to incorporate unfamiliar foods or foods not currently eaten into a healthy diet

-Participants will increase knowledge and understanding of healthy eating, food safety and food resource management

Evaluation:

Long-Term Outcome: Individuals and families improve their quality of life by consuming healthy foods and increasing physical activity.

Indicator: Increase fruit and vegetable consumption to at least 75% of RDA, 30 minutes of activity at least 4 days a week.

Method: Written survey of sample of program participants

Timeline:12 - 15 months following educational activities during this 4-year Plan of Work

Intermediate Outcome: Apply improved food preparation skills, food management skills, food safety and healthy eating habits.

Indicator: Demonstrate proper measuring and cooking techniques, follow food safety procedures.

Method: Observe at hands-on workshops

Timeline: During educational lessons

Initial Outcome: Increase knowledge of the relationship of food, activity and health

Indicator: Understand that calorie intake and output effect body weight, identify healthy food choices

Method: Oral or written survey

Timeline: End of lesson

Learning Opportunities:

Audience: Farmers Market Clientele

Project or Activity: Taste Testing of Locally Grown Foods

Content or Curriculum: Plate It Up

Inputs: Farmers Market, Plate it Curriculum, Agents, Assistants

Date: July-October 2018-2020

Audience: General Public

Project or Activity: Food Preservation Programs

Content or Curriculum: Food Preservation Publications and Training

Inputs: Agent, Ball Home Canning resources

Date: Summer 2020

Audience: Preschoolers

Project or Activity: LEAP for Preschoolers

Content or Curriculum: LEAP

Inputs: Preschools of county

Date: Fall and Spring 2018-2020

Audience: General Public/Low income families

Activity: Group meetings, home visits, youth groups, school enrichment

Content or Curriculum: NEP

Inputs: SNAP-Ed Assistant, Senior Citizens Center, Housing Authority,

Date: All year

Audience: Community Health Fairs

Activity: Banana Festival Health Fair and Hickman Health Fair - booths, doctors

Content or Curriculum: Ask-A-Doc informational speakers, educational booths

Inputs: AHEC, local healthcare community, Housing Authority, Health Department

Date: Fall 2019 and Spring 2020

Audience: Extension Homemakers

Activity: Leader training, workshops,

Content: NEP, FCS Publications, HEEL program, Plate It Up

Inputs: Extension resources, eXtension, other university's Extension resources, USDA, Specialist

Date: Various Times in 2019-2020

Audience: Fulton County and Fulton City Schools

Activity: 8 week school enrichment

Content or Curriculum: Professor Popcorn

Date: Fall 2018-2020

Audience: Fulton County and Fulton City Schools

Activity: The Great Adventurers

Content or Curriculum: The Great Garden Detectives, Dig In, Growing Healthy Kids

Date: Summer/Fall of program year

Inputs: Extension Agents, FFA

Audience: Fulton County and Fulton City Schools

Activity: Truth or Consequences: The Choice is Yours

Content or Curriculum: Truth or Consequences program materials, Local Statistics

Date: Winter 2020

Inputs: Extension Agents, Schools, Fulton-Hickman ASAP Council, Four Rivers Behavior Health, Hospitals, Health Department, Local Government

Audience: Fulton County and Fulton City Schools

Activity: Germbusters- Hand washing Program

Content or Curriculum: HEEL resources, Wally Cat, USDA, etc.

Date: Winter/Spring 2018-2020

Inputs: Extension Agents, Schools, Health Department, And Family Resource Centers

Audience: Adults

Activity: Senior Citizens Lessons on Nutrition and Safety

Content or Curriculum: Various UK Curricula

Date: Year 19-20

Inputs: Extension Staff, Senior Citizen Center and Staff

Audience: 4-H Age

Project or Activity: Bee Pollinator program

Content or Curriculum: Bee Curriculum

Inputs: Bee School, Bees for Dummy, Mini Ag Grant, Ashley Asborne

Date: Summer 2019-2020

Audience: 4-H Age

Project or Activity: Cooking

Content or Curriculum: Super Star Chef, 4-H Breads

Inputs: Homemaker, FCS, 4-H

Date: throughout school year

Audience: 4-H Age

Project or Activity: Afterschool physical activity

Content or Curriculum: SPARK Curriculum, Yoga, 4-H Fitness

Inputs: Community Leaders, Schools, Teen Club

Date:  2018-2020

Success Stories