According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the US Department of Health and Human Services, through the use of illicit and prescription drugs and Alcohol, each year these substances contribute to the death of more than 90,00 Americans, while tobacco is linked to an estimated 480,000 deaths per year.  With that being said, the Whitley County Expanded Food and Nutrition Assistant along with one of the local rehabs that treat (mostly pregnant) women, decided that while the residents are at their facility, they could also benefit from the incorporation of the Healthy Choices For Every Body curriculum that the Expanded Food and Nutrition assistant teaches.

Some of the classes consist of “Cooking is Healthy for Every Body,” “Feeding Your Pregnant Body,” “Feeding Every Little Body,” “Meal Planning” and “Eating Better on a Budget.”  Of the classes listed above, all of them with the exception of the “Meal Planning” and “Eating Better on a Budget” are not required for the Participants to be eligible to earn their “Certificate of Achievement.”  With the ladies being pregnant and coming off drugs, these classes are covered in addition to the required classes, with multiple “hands-on” activities and food demos.  Classes are held bi-weekly and the ladies learn things as simple as the “My Plate” and “What’s Your Nutrition Condition?”  While there, residents are learning how to function as a “sober” adult, how to cope with their addiction in a positive way, and many life skills to help them once they transition back to society.  

Nutrition Education is what the Healthy Choices for Every Body focuses on, and according to the National Center for Biotechnology, “proper nutrition helps those in recovery to feel better both mentally and physically.  Furthermore, adding nutrition education in substance abuse treatment programs can increase a participants’ success in achieving recovery. (ncbi)”  With the classes and recipes provided, clients share how they can tell such a difference in their “newfound” sober life style, and that they like being sober, and no longer have to avoid their family.  

The most recent comment came from a participant stating that her sister had a college degree.  Upon receiving her Certificate of Achievement through the “Healthy Choices for Every Body” curriculum, she was so excited to be able to share with her sister, that she finally achieved something besides “getting high” as she put it, and she looked forward to actually cook something tasty and nutritious for them.  She said, “All she has ever wanted was, for me to get my life straightened out, and now I have proof I achieved something positive.  I can show her my Certificate of Achievement.  It might not be a diploma from UK like she has, but it’s a start.”  Through the “Healthy Choices for Every Body” curriculum, as long as we can make a positive change in one person’s life, that is what it is all about, one person at a time.   

In another instance, while teaching one of the ladies’ group, this young “Mom to be” told the Expanded Food and Nutrtition assistant, “I am going to continue to eat what I like, because I don’t like vegetables, fruits, or anything else that would make me vomit due to not liking it… it doesn’t really matter what I eat as long as I like it.  Look at me, I don’t have to eat healthy just because I’m pregnant, I look healthy, so in my opinion I am healthy.”  The assistant, hadn’t ever quite ran across a situation like this before with a “mom to be” being so bold and really not seeming to understand the importance of good nutrition during a pregnancy.  So with the task ahead, not knowing what effects the lady’s drug use had on the now growing and developing fetus, she was determined to do everything to get through to this pregnant woman in hopes of regardless of the woman’s ideas concerning proper nutrition, she could have as healthy of a baby as possible at delivery.  Weeks and months went by, still with some defiance about her eating habits, so the Expanded Nutrition Program assistant, continued to challenge her with the “hello bites.”  She agreed to the challenge and at each new class she with the help of the other ladies would have at least tried a “hello bite” of something new, especially focusing on fruits and vegetables.

The ladies and assistant prepare food the demo, and once finished, they all taste the finished product of their efforts, usually followed up by receiving one of the incentives such as but not limited to, mixing bowls, measuring utensils, etc., so while we had our young “mom to be” agreeing to do another “hello bite”, one of the other ladies was sharing that every time her dad visits her, she sent her incentives home with him, for when she gets home, she will be getting her own place and the items would all be very useful with her getting a second chance at life.  Sometimes, these ladies are like little kids in many ways, they are like little kids at Christmas time when they receive their incentives, and they can be stubborn like the one young “mom to be” not wanting to change eating habits, etc., but the Expanded Food and Nutrition Assistant’s day was made when out of the blue, (during the sampling), the difficult “mom to be” told her, “I just want you to know, I have continued doing the “hello bites” you were so persistent about, and as much as I hate to admit it, learning the things you teach us about feeding our pregnant body, I am eating more of a variety of healthy foods, just by trying them.” The young woman volunteered and ask the group of ladies if she had been actually doing better, and they said that she was. Not only was this directly helping the mother, but it was helping the growing fetus and hopefully the child’s future life once born.

“Children’s earliest interactions within the family are crucial to their healthy development and risk for drug use.” (Biederman J, Faraone SV, Monuteaux MC, Feighner JA. Patterns of alcohol and drug use in adolescents can be predicted by parental substance use disorders. Pediatrics. 2000;106(4):792-797.)