The theme of the 2012 White House Easter Egg Roll was "Let's Go, Let's Play, Let's Move!" and with activities that included leaping through an obstacle course, stretching to downward dog, jumping for three-pointers and serving on the tennis courts, there was not much standing around on the agenda. By 7 pm on Monday, more than 30,000 people had visited the South Lawn for the 134th annual event -- and more than 14,500 hard-boiled eggs had been rolled.
Posted by Arthur Neal, Deputy Administrator, AMS Transportation and Marketing Program on April 9, 2012
Ed note: this has been cross-posted from the USDA's blog
Every day, thousands of local farmers and ranchers work hard to ensure that their communities have access to a diverse range of fresh, healthy affordable foods. While nutritious food is a cornerstone of society’s physical health, a vibrant community also includes sustainable economic opportunities. By funding projects that support these goals, USDA’s Farmers Market Promotion Program continues to make a difference for farmers at the local level.
Posted by Jessica Fern, Intern at the HHS Center for Faith-Based & Neighborhood Partnerships on April 6, 2012
As Hindus worldwide celebrated Makar Sankranti, marking the change of seasons, one organization, inspired by the First Lady’s Let’s Move! initiative, took the opportunity to usher in a brighter season of health and wellness. Hindu Swayamesvak Sangh USA, HSS, a voluntary, non-profit, social and cultural organization that aims to preserve, practice and promote ideals and values of the Hindu community, expanded on the traditional celebrations of the ritual to promote healthier lifestyles and physical fitness by teaching participants about yoga!
HSS launched their 6th annual Health for Humanity Yogathon from January 14-29. The initiative encouraged over 10,000 people from across the country to unite under the goal of reaching more than one million repetitions of the sun salutation yoga routine. With participation expanding across 37 states and 204 cities, HSS surpassed their goal, with a total of 1,003,000 repetitions in just 16 days!
Posted by Capt. Meredith Reynolds, Ph.D., USPHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on April 5, 2012
Does your preschooler want to eat chicken nuggets every day? Does your toddler refuse to eat carrots? If your child doesn’t want to eat the healthy meals and snacks you fix, there are strategies that can help. The Let’s Move! Child Care (LMCC) website offers tips to help young children learn to enjoy healthy meals and snacks. Here are some examples from the LMCC website:
Posted by Vishwarupa Vasani, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on April 5, 2012
Imagine it is lunchtime and kids are running on empty. They rush into the lunch line, but instead of reaching for chicken nuggets and pizza, students are decorating their trays with brightly colored vegetables and fruits like red cherry tomatoes, green broccoli, black beans, and oranges. This isn’t just a dream, it is actually happening in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).
High school students from LAUSD’s Los Angeles High School of the Arts teach elementary and middle school kids how to correctly and safely use a salad bar through a skit called Salad Bar Manners.
LAUSD, the second largest school district in the United States, serves as a great example for how to integrate healthy eating habits into everyday school routines. With the help of Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools (LMSB2S), the salad bar program at LAUSD shows what can happen when students and parents take initiative to support healthy eating in school cafeterias. Are you inspired by LAUSD? Take a look at how you can help make this a reality within schools in your community.
Ed. note: This was cross-posted from the White House blog.
The White House held a poster competition and invited elementary and middle school students nationwide to submit poster designs for the 2012 Easter Egg Roll. Students from over 20 states submitted entries. First Lady Michelle Obama selected winning designs for the 2012 Official Easter Egg Roll program cover and 2012 Official Easter Egg Roll poster. Posters will be handed out as a prize to children who win the Easter Egg Roll or Egg Hunt.
Posted by Kirsten Hancock, USDA Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships on March 29, 2012
How do you teach a child using a holistic approach to good nutrition and exercise? One Jewish Community Center in Akron, Ohio, piloted the Coordinated Approach to Children’s Health or CATCH, early childhood wellness program, to do just that. The CATCH program teaches school-age children about healthy eating and exercise, and does it in a way that is fun.
In February we celebrated the second anniversary of Let’s Move!, and First Lady Michelle Obama took to the road, touring the country and highlighting the achievements of Let’s Move! programs in communities just like yours.
To date, the initiative has touched families, schools and organizations across the country and inspired local changes to improve the health, life and happiness of children and youth. We put together a collection of some of our favorite moments from the trip:
First Lady Michelle Obama gives seeds to girls from Girl Scout Troop 60325 in Fairport, N.Y., as she joins students for the spring White House Kitchen Garden planting on the South Grounds, March 26, 2012.
Radishes generally aren’t the top request among kids for an after-school snack. It’s probably safe to say they probably don’t break into the top 10. Or 200.
But there’s something about growing it yourself that creates a special connection.
We're excited to announce the next Let's Move! tweetup at the White House. On Monday April 9th, 2012, the First Family will host the 134th annual White House Easter Egg Roll with the theme “Let's Go, Let's Play, Let's Move." Let's Move!
Posted by Capt. Meredith Reynolds, Ph.D., USPHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on March 22, 2012
Are you a parent or caregiver that packs a lunch for your child to take to preschool? When your daughter comes home, are her carrot sticks still in the bag? Does your son eat his whole sandwich and tell you he was too full to eat his applesauce?
Before you pack another lunch, take a minute to make sure you’re packing the right portion sizes of food. Healthy eating is not only about eating healthy food but also eating the right amount. Also, packing the right portion size of the main dish for preschoolers may be a strategy to help them eat more fruits and vegetables at lunch time.
To find out how portion sizes affect what kids eat for lunch at preschool, Jennifer Savage from Pennsylvania State University and a team of researchers served lunch one day each week for 6 weeks to 17 kids ages 3 to 6 years old attending a full-day childcare. Each of the lunches had the same foods: a macaroni and cheese entrée, milk, and 3 sides (green beans, a whole-wheat roll, and unsweetened applesauce). The only difference in the lunches each week was the portion size of the macaroni and cheese. The smallest portion served was less than half a cup, and the largest portion was more than a cup and a half.
Today, the White House honored twelve Americans who are who are living the goals of Let’s Move! everyday as Champions of Change. Each of the invitees is an example of what First Lady Michelle Obama called the founding purpose of Let’s Move! – community leaders, teachers and health professsionals who have found creative ways to keep our children active and healthy and get their communities moving!
During the event, the Champions each talked about the program they developed or introduced to their community and together they spoke about how small changes can yield tremendous wins in the lives of their students, area children and families.
Posted by Kathleen Merrigan, Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture on March 21, 2012
Three years ago, I was asked to participate in the White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity, out of which grew the First Lady’s Let’s Move! Initiative. In May 2010, we submitted a report to the President that made a series of recommendations for addressing the challenges of obesity and hunger, both of which stem from a lack of access to good, healthy food. The report identified local food systems as a strategy to combat food access problems, and specifically called upon the USDA Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Initiative to provide technical and financial assistance to help communities grow and process their own food, and create jobs at the same time.
I’m pleased to report that we’ve made a lot of progress since 2009 – and we have two new tools to help communities learn about what we’ve done and tap into USDA resources to develop their own solutions. The new Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Compass is a document packed with photos, video and case studies of communities building strong local food systems. Farmers’ markets, mobile produce vendors, farm to school initiatives, and food hubs are just a few of many examples highlighted by the Compass. The Healthy Food Access section shows how communities are using USDA resources to promote health and the local economy.
Ed note: Former WNBA player and four-time Olympic champion Lisa Leslie joined First Lady Michelle Obama and Samantha Cameron, wife of British Prime Minister David Cameron, and Washington, D.C., area children in a mini-Olympics competition to celebrate the 2012 London Summer Olympics and the “Let’s Move!” initiative. The First Lady will lead the Presidential Delegation to the Opening Ceremonies of the Games.
When I was contacted to participate in the First Lady’s Let's Move initiative, I was thrilled! It was just as much of an honor to have the opportunity to introduce Michelle Obama as it was to represent our country in the Olympics.
I also had the pleasure of meeting and introducing Samantha Cameron, the Prime Minister's wife of the United Kingdom. This summer, she will welcome people from all over the world to her country for the Summer Olympic Games.
