Head Start is a federal program designed to promote school readiness by enhancing the cognitive and emotional development of pre-school aged children. Through a program called “Eat Play Grow,” a series of obesity prevention classes are offered by the Children’s Museum of New York and the National Health Institute to be held in classrooms throughout New York City. Nonprofit groups throughout low-income areas in New York teach classes to children in underserved communities. Classes are held at common neighborhood institutions, such as community centers and libraries.

The classes aim to teach kids healthy living activities, like learning to love fruits and vegetables, when their brains are in their most impressionable stage – before the age of five. It is important to reach kids at this age, according to Andrew Ackerman, executive director of the Children’s Museum, because “there’s a significant amount of research that points to lifelong habits being formed by the time you are 3 or 4.” In places that lack access to nutritious foods, commonly referred to as ‘food deserts’, kids can get in the habit of eating junk food, which may become a habit that is difficult to break later in life. Conversely, teaching kids to love fruits and vegetables can form healthy habits that will increase their chances of leading healthy lives.

The Head Start classes not only ensure that children eat healthy foods when they are there, but also educate the kids, as well as their parents and teachers, about the food that is being served and the importance of embracing it. They are trying to get parents and children alike in the routine of reaching for an apple rather than a bag of chips when they are hungry, or a glass of water rather than a soda when they are thirsty.

Though the program is relatively new, all signs point to the venture being a resounding success. When the director of a head start program in Brooklyn came into the class with a soda, the students gave her such a hard time that she not only disposed of the drink, but also arranged for the soda machine outside the classroom to be removed. With more and more schools and families signing up for the program, it is the hope of the founders of the Head Start program that this becomes a regular occurrence in classrooms throughout the country.

For more information: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ohs