“One in Three Preschoolers are Overweight or Obese”

So warned Debbie Chang, Vice President of Policy and Prevention for Nemours, in her opening remarks at today’s Healthy Kids, Healthy Future conference in Washington, D.C.  And overweight preschoolers, she continued, are at greater risk of becoming overweight adults. After laying out these sobering statistics, Chang welcomed participants to the first ever conference to examine the role of early child care  in obesity prevention.

More than a convenience

Three quarters of kids under six spend part of their day in childcare.  For Chang, this means that childcare “is more than a convenience – it’s a partnership.”  She called for an array of programs, policies and environmental changes to make childcare a place where children eat healthier foods and get more physical activity.

She also shared the story of the Latin American Community Center in Wilmington, Del. Since partnering with Nemours, the executive director of the community center, Maria Matos, has transformed the foods the center provides for participating children. They’ve removed vending machines.  They’ve cut out sugar-sweetened beverages, and now serve only water, skim and low-fat milk.  They’ve eliminated fried foods altogether.

Chang used this example to implore those in the room to harness what they know, break down barriers, and spread what works. When, as Chang noted, the most commonly consumed vegetable among kids 15 to 18 months old is French Fries, there is vast potential for improvement.

“Creating the changes we want to see will take planning, direction, energy and motivation,” Chang reminded participants. “And it doesn’t end here, we have to keep it moving after we leave.”

Slides from Debbie Chang’s presentation are available here.

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