New York 4-H, UnitedHealthcare launch Eat4-Health program
New York 4-H -- managed by Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) and the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research at Cornell -- and UnitedHealthcare (UHC) kicked off their new Eat4-Health partnership in the 4-H Youth Building Aug. 29 at the New York State Fair in Syracuse. The partnership is intended to promote healthy living and to help combat the nation's obesity epidemic.
4-H youth, who will serve as health ambassadors in the partnership, joined UHC for fun group activities and exercises designed to burn calories and promote health. Also in attendance were former U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman; Alan Mathios, dean of the College of Human Ecology; Valerie Adams, CCE assistant director and New York 4-H Youth Development Program leader; and representatives from UHC and National 4-H.
The partnership will mobilize thousands of 4-H youth to make healthy choices for themselves and to encourage friends, families and people in their communities to make positive changes through training, creative programs and educational events.
New York is one of 10 states participating in the partnership to support healthy-living programs, events and other activities that encourage young people and their families to eat more nutritious foods and exercise regularly. Each state is receiving a $30,000 grant from UHC. The partnership in New York will focus its efforts primarily in Broome, Jefferson, Madison and Oswego counties, among other regions of the state.
"4-H youth ambassadors are prepared to work with UnitedHealthcare to make a positive impact on the health and wellness of our nation's future leaders. Today's activities are an example of the creativity and excitement 4-H youth are bringing to this campaign," said Adams.
All states in the Eat4-Health program will use curricula developed jointly by New York 4-H and Cornell's Division of Nutritional Sciences (DNS). In New York, for instance, the Choose Health Action Teens (CHAT) program teaches teens in 4-H to help younger children adopt healthy habits. CHAT teens teach interactive lessons on eating better and exercising more through Cornell's Choose Health: Food, Fun and Fitness curriculum. The National 4-H Council selected CHAT as the basis for the Eat4-Health program in the 10 UHC-funded states.
"By teaching our research-based obesity-prevention curriculum, the teens not only engage youth in fun ways to eat healthy, they also change their own eating behavior and gain leadership skills," said Wendy Wolfe, DNS research associate.
Participating 4-H state programs will develop action plans that provide innovative, hands-on learning approaches that target specific community needs in their state. Many of these activities will support healthy-living programs led by 4-H that encourage youth and community participation through events such as health fairs, cooking demonstrations, after-school programs, workshops and educational forums. UHC employees will team up with 4-H at many of these events, assisting with planning and executing projects that lead to positive, sustainable change at the community and individual levels.
Online and printed educational materials will enable participants to learn and commit to making healthier choices. To encourage participation, the campaign will provide simple tips for healthy choices when food shopping, preparing home meals and school lunches, when out with friends or at special occasions.
UHC is a company that offers health benefit programs for individuals, employers and Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, serving more than 38 million people.
Also at the state fair, the Jr. Tailwaggers (a dog-centric 4-H club representing Tompkins County) participated in the 4-H dog show and obedience and agility classes. And at the fair, local 4-H youth have been participating in the second annual 4-H Robotics Challenge, Aug. 25, Aug. 29 and Sept. 2.
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