Preventing Childhood Obesity in Early Care and Education Programs is a new set of national standards on best practices in nutrition, physical activity, and screen time for early care and education programs.
Here’s information about the publication from the National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education:"Preventing Childhood Obesity in Early Care and Education Programs contains practical intervention strategies to prevent excessive weight gain in young children. The standards detail opportunities for facilities and caregivers/teachers to work with families beginning on day one of an infant’s enrollment to prevent childhood obesity by promoting a healthy and active lifestyle.
These updated standards will be a part of the comprehensive Caring for Our Children: National Health and Safety Performance Standards; Guidelines for Early Care and Education Programs, Third Edition (CFOC, 3rd Ed.) to be released in 2011. The standards are for all types of early care and education settings – centers and family child care homes.
Areas of coverage:
- General Nutrition Requirements
- Meal and Snack Patterns
- Requirements for Infants and Support Breastfeeding of Infants
- Requirements for Toddlers and Preschoolers
- Meal Service and Supervision
- Food Brought from Home
- Nutrition Education
- Active Opportunities for Physical Activity
- Outdoor and Indoor Play Time
- Caregivers/Teachers’ Encouragement of Physical Activity
- Screen Time Limits
- Policies on Infant Feeding, Food and Nutrition Services, and Physical Activity
Caring for Our Children standards are developed through a public-private partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Public Health Association, the National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)."