Georgia Elementary School bans junk food....

The school day starts with an hour of jumping jacks, exercising and dancing -- one morning to the beat of "Whoomp! (There It Is)" as the children bounce and sing along. Students also eat a breakfast of omelets, soy milk, organic cereal and turkey sausages.

"When students are healthy, they do their best work..." Sanders-Butler said. "We want to make sure we're providing foods that will not only nourish the body, but also brain foods."

It turns out the kids don't hate the healthy stuff.

"One of the most requested vegetables now is broccoli..." Sanders-Butler said. "Can you believe that? The kids love broccoli."

In the first six months of the sugar ban, disciplinary incidents went down 23 percent, counseling referrals decreased 30 percent, and in the first years of standardized test scores, reading scores improved 15 percent, she said. Browns Mill was named a national blue ribbon school and a Georgia school of excellence in 2005.
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Collaborative Effort Addresses Diabetes on Near-East Side

Article taken from the Columbus Medical Association Foundation Quarterly Newsletter, Vol 2, Issue 4, Dec. 2008:

Two previously funded programs and a newly created pilot program helped the Columbus Medical Association Foundation foster a collaborative partnership to address the prevalence of diabetes on the near east side. The Urban Diabetes Fitness Program, created by the Ohio State University Foundation, leverages existing resources to increase positive health outcomes for people with diabetes and encourage their family and friends to make healthy lifestyle selections



The near-east side project is a collaboration between OSU East, the Central Ohio Diabetes Association’s Healthy Lifestyle Center and the Central Community House. The program itself is a three-pronged approach of medical, nutritional and social support services to reach out to the African-American community.

Leon McDougal, MD, an associate professor at the Ohio State University and family physician at OSU East, leads the medical team’s effort to improve the lives of those that suffer from Type 2 Diabetes, the most common form of diabetes. “The death rate for diabetes on the near east side is double for that in the city of Columbus and Franklin County,” said Dr. McDougal.

OSU Family Practice at University Hospital East currently serves 468 diabetic patients. 100 African American patients were randomly selected to enroll in the study. The participants receive pre and post tests to assess readiness for change and ultimately to measure the change parameters.

Over a 12-month period, participants and their two support people will undergo nutrition and physical activity education. They will attend four group sessions led by a lifestyle coach to cover 16 lifestyle modification topics as detailed by the Diabetes Prevention Program curriculum. All participants will receive a pedometer and culturally sensitive dietary training centered on “The New Soul Food Cookbook for People with Diabetes”. The program includes a walking program and encourages participants to walk with their social support persons at least 3 times a week for 30 – 60 minutes. Dietary intake is monitored along with the physical activity through the steps taken via pedometer recordings. Other changes monitored include body weight, body mass index and Hemoglobin A1C results.

This practice site is located in Near East Columbus about 4 blocks from the Central Ohio Diabetes Association’s new Healthy Lifestyle Center (funded by the CMAF in 2005) and within a 10-minute drive to the Central Community House (funded by the CMAF in 2006).

The Columbus Medical Association Foundation is always searching for innovation in tools that support healthcare issues. If you have a grant proposal or are interested in supporting one of our existing programs, please contact the Columbus Medical Association Foundation at 614-240-7420.

Photography by Jason Moore

Urban Farmers Market---it's about feeling good!

Well, we've all had a week to think about our wonderful farmers market that we coordinated last weekend. The event was everything we'd hoped and planned for---A place for everyone in the community to come and learn more about healthy cooking, gardening, eat and buy delicious food and have fun! Our cooking demonstrations were great and all incorporated produce from the community gardeners stands. The crowd also commented on how they were pleased with the diversity of vendors, AmyD, Wholly Craft, Pattycake, RadDog and Snowville Creamery.The next farmers market will continue to feature our local chefs and urban farmer-superstars! I photographed the event and there was an overwhelming theme in the comments about the market...."It was nice to see people, talk, the produce and flowers were beautiful, the cooking and garden demonstrations were informative and it was fun." That is what community gardening should have at it's core, enjoyment, feeling good, connection to the people in your neighborhood and good food! See you at our next farmers market, where we will learn more about cold weather crops, new recipes and vermiculture! I have included portraits of the folks that attended the market and some of our wonderful produce.