Extension
It Starts With Us
Active Living & Health Promotions
Improve Physical & Mental Health
Alyssa Cox
Active Living and Health Promotions General
Substance Use Prevention and Recovery General
Nutrition and Food Systems General
With the increased trend of chronic disease and obesity in Kentucky, individuals, families, and communities need tools and environments that support healthy and active lifestyle choices. In Wolfe County, 40% of adults are obese, 50% have hypertension, and 7.7% have diabetes (Kentucky Extension Community Assessment 2019). The goal is to reach diverse audiences to help combat chronic disease and obesity in Wolfe County. This will be accomplished by focusing on a foundation of overall direct health education to increase health literacy and ability to make healthy lifestyle choices. Including, creating spaces or opportunities for active living and health behaviors.
- Routinely meeting physical activity and dietary recommendations that promote health and wellness (e.g. 150 minutes a week of moderate activity and consuming recommended daily fruits and vegetables)
- Community environment promotes healthy behaviors where people live, learn, work, and play
- Reduce the rate of chronic disease and obesity
- Prevent and reduce substance use and its related consequences
- Generate positive attitudes toward changing lifestyle choices to be more healthy
- Increase intake of fruits, vegetables, and other nutrient-dense foods
- Improve self-efficacy in physical activity, movement, and active routes to destinations
- Delayed age of first use of substances among Kentucky youth
- Increase awareness about lifestyle choices and chronic disease (e.g. tobacco use, poor nutrition, & lack of physical activity)
- Increase confidence in ability to employ healthy practices
- Improve food and nutrition-related skills (e.g. preparation techniques, safe food handling)
- Increase motivation to be active
- Increase awareness of accessible safe places for activity
- Increased knowledge of substance use prevention, addiction, and recovery
Outcome: Nutrition knowledge and dietary intake
Indicator: Number of individuals who reported: eating 4-6 servings of fruits and/or vegetables daily, utilize the food label to make healthy food choices; choosing smaller portions
Method: Self-report surveys
Timeline: Pre-post implementing curricula or program
Outcome: Physical activity knowledge, skills, and competencies
Indicator: Number of individuals who reported: knowledge and skills gained about the benefits of physical activity; adoption of physical activity practices; increase in physical activity levels
Method: Self-report surveys
Timeline: Pre-post implementing curricula or program
Outcome: Chronic disease prevention
Indicator: Number of individuals who reported: one or more health indicator (cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass index, blood glucose) improved
Method: Self-report survey
Timeline: Pre-post implementing curricula or program
Outcome: Availability / Access to healthy lifestyle choices
Indicator: Number of communities, health coalitions, or organizations who reported: implemented policy, system, and/or environmental changes to promote healthy eating and active living
Method: Self-report survey
Timeline: Pre-post implementing curricula or program
Outcome: Substance use prevention
Indicator: Number of students undergoing Botvin Life Skills
Method: Retroactive pre-post
Timeline: Pre-post implementing curricula or program
Audience: Youth
Project or Activity: Chronic Disease Prevention
Content or Curriculum: Publications, Health Bulletins, Cook Together Eat Together, Community Park development, Recovery Week, Zombie 5K, and Youth on the Move
Inputs: Efforts from Agents, support staff, Wolfe County Schools, volunteers, Extension Specialists, ASAP, Wolfe Countians Against Drugs, and various community agencies
Date: Cook Together Eat Together – Spring 2022, Community Park Development – Summer 2021 through Summer 2022, Recovery Week – July 2021, Zombie 5K – October 2021, Youth on the Move – Spring 2022
Project or Activity: Physical Activity
Content or Curriculum: Stories, Songs, and Stretches, Recovery Week, Zombie 5K, Youth on the Move, Longest Day of Play, and Community Park Development
Inputs: Efforts from Agents, public library, Early Childhood Development, Wolfe County Schools, ASAP, Wolfe Countians Against Drugs, and various community agencies
Date: Stories, Songs, and Stretches – Monthly beginning August 2021, Recovery Week – July 2021, Zombie 5K – October 2021, Youth on the Move – Spring 2022, Longest Day of Play – June 2022, Community Park Development – Summer 2021 through Summer 2022
Project or Activity: Substance Use Prevention
Content or Curriculum: Botvin Life Skills, Recovery Week, Zombie 5K, and Youth on the Move
Inputs: Efforts from Agents, Extension Specialists, Wolfe County Schools, volunteers, ASAP, Wolfe Countians Against Drugs, and various community agencies
Date: Botvin Life Skills – Fall 2021 and Spring 2022, Recovery Week – July 2021, Zombie 5K – October 2021, Youth on the Move – Spring 2022
Audience: Families and Individuals
Project or Activity: Chronic Disease Prevention
Content or Curriculum: Publications, Health Bulletins, Cook Together Eat Together, Dining with Diabetes, Fit Blue, Faithful Families, Plate It Up! Kentucky Proud Recipes, Keys to Embracing Aging, Community Park development, Recovery Week, Zombie 5K, Wolfe County Movement Challenge, Youth on the Move, and Diabetes Prevention Program
Inputs: Efforts from Agents, support staff, Wolfe County Schools, volunteers, Extension Specialists, and various community agencies
Date: Cook Together Eat Together – Spring 2022, Dining with Diabetes – Winter 2022, Fit Blue – Jnauary 2022, Faithful Families – Summer 2022, Keys to Embracing Aging – Fall 2021, Community Park Development – Summer 2021 through Summer 2022, Recovery Week – July 2021, Zombie 5K – October 2021, Wolfe County Movement Challenge – Monthly, Youth on the Move – Spring 2022, Diabetes Prevention Program – Monthly beginning July 2021
Project or Activity: Physical Activity
Content or Curriculum: Publications, Faithful Families, Fit Blue, Keys to Embracing Aging, Wolfe County Movement Challenge, Recovery Week, Zombie 5K, and Longest Day of Play
Inputs: Efforts from Agents, support staff, Extension Specialists, publications, ASAP, Wolfe Countians Against Drugs, and various community agencies
Date: Faithful Families – Summer 2022, Fit Blue – January 2022, Keys to Embracing Aging – Fall 2021, Wolfe County Movement Challenge – Monthly, Recovery Week – July 2021, Zombie 5K – October 2021, Longest Day of Play – June 2022
Audience: Kentucky Extension Homemakers Association
Project or Activity: Leader Lessons
Content or Curriculum: Sharing Meals Together, Meal Kits, Holiday Roadshow, Grocery Lists and Coupon Apps, The Buzz About Honey, Plate it Up KY Proud, Pin Weaving, and Organization
Inputs: FCS Extension Specialists, KEHA, FCS Area Agents
Date: September 2021 through May 2022
Author: Alyssa Cox
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
According to Feeding America, Wolfe County is amongst the leading counties in the state of Kentucky for food insecurity. In addition, Wolfe County residents report having significantly poor health and access to health care. To address this ongoing issue, the Wolfe County Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences, Alyssa Cox, partnered with the UK Center of Excellence in Rural Health, Kentucky Homeplace, and the Wolfe County Health Department to host the Appalachian Community Health Days at the Haze
Author: Jessica Morris
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
Wolfe County ranks amongst the highest for obesity, heart disease and diabetes. Members of our community expressed interest in a group to encourage and hold each other accountable. Here at the Wolfe County Extension Office we created a group called the Wolfe County Movement Challenge. The challenge began in January of 2021. Members joined the group and their first goal was to complete 5 miles. They could choose to walk, run, hike or bike... any way or a combination there of to complete the milea
Author: Jessica Morris
Major Program: Nutrition and Food Systems General
A spring goal setters group created a new challenge for teachers at Rogers Elementary School. In January 2022 we created a group on Facebook for community members to encourage each other to get up and move, make healthy food choices and share ways to improve mental health. A group of teachers at Rogers took the challenge to new heights as they requested water bottles from us here at the Extension office. I went to the school and conducted a program on water consumption. Next, a teacher took the
