Fit Kids Body Mass Index Screening Project Report

Fit Kids Resource Guide 2006

View the  Fit Kids  Brochure

Learn more  about Be Fit.

Learn more about No Junk Food Week.

Join the Mayor's
and Supervisor's Challenge

About the Mayor's and Supervisor's Challenge for a healthy community (pdf)

 Pound Ridge accepts the county's 'healthy community' challenge (pdf) (Journal News article, Nov 23)

Healthy Snacks for Schools (pdf)

Healthy Snacks (pdf)
 

Bone up on Calcium (pdf)

Life in the Fast Lane - Nutrition & Fast Food (pdf)

Trans Fat and
 Your Health (pdf)

  What's All the Buzz About Phytochemicals (pdf)

Protecting Our Food Supply (pdf)

 Fit Kids Walking Programs
Ossining School District, Westchester County
Arthur S. May School, Arlington School District, Dutchess County
Dutchess County
New York State
RJ Bailey School
Orange County

New Food Guide Pyramid for Kids
(USDA)

Body and Mind (BAM)

Kidnetic

Nutrition Explorations

Smart-Mouth

Healthy eating can help beat diabetes

10 Steps Towards Healthy Eating at School (pdf)

Food Guide Pyramid for Young Children (pdf)

Take the Portion Distortion Quiz!

Healthy Snack Suggestions (pdf)

Nutrient Content of Fast Foods

10 Best and Worst Children's Foods

Westchester Kids Website

Westchester County Parks Department

 Food Guide Pyramid
(USDA)

Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion

Food and Nutrition Information Center

Archived Press Releases

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Participate in local and national activities that promote healthy eating and physical activity. Download “Fit Kids Back to School Activities". To Market, To Market..... Farmers’ Market season is here!  In the past two decades, farmers’ markets have become very popular as a source of fresh produce including fruit, vegetables, cider, fruit juices, herbs, meat, and dairy foods that are grown on area farms. This is a great opportunity to introduce your children to new fruits and vegetables, to teach them about the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables, and for children to learn where produce comes from. Farmers’ markets offer many benefits for both consumers and farmers. The markets provide convenient access to fresh, locally grown produce. Consumers can talk with farmers about how the produce was grown and how it can be prepared. Farmers’ markets may enable small family farms to remain viable. By supporting local producers, these markets can help retain jobs, sustain the area's economy and develop local services. Give your children a few dollars to spend at the market. Let them explore the world of produce and make a new selection. There is a greater chance your child will try a new food they bought since it “belongs” to them. Please consult the list below for details on farmers’ markets located throughout Westchester County. Farmers’ Markets in Westchester - 2008   Location Months of Operation Hours Bronxville Farmers’ Market Stone Place off Paxton Avenue July 5 – November 15 Saturday 8:30 am – 1 pm Dobbs Ferry Farmers’  Market Corner of Cedar and Main Streets July 2 – October 29 Wednesday 10 am – 4 pm Hartsdale Farmers’ Market Hartsdale Train Station/DiSanti Plaza July 5 – November 15 Saturday 9 am -2 pm Hastings-on-Hudson Farmers’ Market Library lot off Maple Avenue July 5 – November 15 Saturday 8:30 am – 1:30 pm Katonah/Lewisboro Farmers’ Market Front of John Jay HS, Rte. 121, Cross River July 5 – November 15 Saturday 8:30 am – 2 pm Larchmont Farmers’  Market Metro North Upper Lot #3, Chatsworth Avenue July 5 – November 15 Saturday 8:30 am – 2 pm Muscoot Farm Farmers’ Market 51 Route 100, Somers May 25 -  October 26 Sundays 11 am – 3 pm New Rochelle Farmers’ Market Municipal lot, S. Division Street & Leroy Place July 4 – November 14 Friday 8 am-3 pm Ossining Farmers’ Market Spring and Main Streets July 5 – November 15   Saturday 8:30 am – 2 pm Pelham Farmers’ Market Harmon Avenue off 5th Avenue July 6 – November 9 Sunday 8:30 am- 2 pm Pleasantville Farmers’ Market Manville Rd & Wheeler Ave., Memorial Plaza July 5 – November 15 Saturday 8:30 am – 1 pm Rye Farmers’ Market Sunday lot #2, Theodore Freund Avenue July 6 – November 9 Sunday 8:30 am - 2 pm Stone Barns 630 Bedford Road, Pocantico Hills June 6 – November 26 Wednesday 3-6 pm Fri., Sunday 1-4pm Tarrytown Farmers’ Market Patriot’s Park, Route 9 July 5 – November 15 Saturday 8:30 am – 2 pm White Plains Farmers’ Market Parking lot next to City Hall, 225 Main Street July 2 – November 12 Wednesday 8 am – 4 pm Yonkers/St. JohnsFarmers Market Church Courtyard, 1 Hudson Street Getty Square July 3 – November 13 Thursday 8 am – 4 pm   No Junk Food Week was March 2008    No Junk Food Week Letter from the County Executive,       Andrew J. Spano    View the No Junk Food Week flyer    Download the No Junk Food Week Contract    Healthy Snacks flyer (English/Spanish)    Letter to Parents (English)   (Spanish)             -Healthy snack recipes for home             -Healthy snack recipes for schools   See what schools were doing for No Junk Food Week 2008 R. J. Bailey School celebrates No Junk Food Week with County Executive Spano. Read all about it. County Executive Spano helps serve ice cream to students. See the CBS Video on the RJ Bailey event. Read about New Rochelle School District’s plans for No Junk Food Week 2008 View Port Chester's flyer for No Junk Food Week Read the Journal News article about No Junk Food Week at Richard J. Bailey School in the Greenburgh school district. Read about the variety of activities  R. J. Bailey School (Greenburgh school district) planned for National Nutrition Month and No Junk Food Week.

See what schools are doing for the  Fit Kids Campaign:

BeFit Westchester visits Yonkers School 23.  Read the article in The Journal News.

Read Port Chester's District Wellness Newsletter

Read about the Rye Middle School’s health fair in the Rye Record.

Read about the Daniel Warren School’s (Rye Neck school district) “Think Breakfast Program” in The Rye Record

Read about the jump rope program at Central School (Mamaroneck school district) in the Larchmont Gazette.

Read about the wellness initiative at Greenvale School (Eastchester school district).

Read about Rye Neck Middle School’s “Fear Factor Tasting” in The Rye Record

Read about Rye Recreation Department’s “Passports to Playgrounds" program. This community event, sponsored by Rye Recreation, the Rye Elementary Schools and the Rye YMCA, encourages children and their families to visit local playgrounds.

Daniel Warren students create a “healthy quilt”

Wellness Day at Bear Mountain State Park

Gardening at Hartsbrook Masters program

King Street School International Walk to School Day

Read about the farmers’ market at Osborn School in Rye.

Read about the new mural in Dow’s Lane’s cafeteria (Irvington School District).

Ossining’s Wellness Efforts tie for best in State

Take a look at Port Chester’s Fit Kids calendars (for King Street School and Park Avenue School).

Richard J. Bailey School in Greenburgh participated in the Gardening at Hartsbrook Master Gardeners Program

Read about Richard J. Bailey School’s Wellness Day at Bear Mountain State Park.

King Street School in Port Chester participated in International Walk to School Day on October 3rd, 2007.

Read about Joseph D’Aquanni West Road Intermediate School’s walking program in The Poughkeepsie News West Road is a Fit Kids of Hudson Valley school in Dutchess County.

Congratulation to the Ossining Union Free District for receiving the Healthy STARS Silver Level Award. Read the press release.

Read about the Haldane school district’s health fair. Haldane Elementary and Middle/ High School are Fit Kids of Hudson Valley schools in Putnam County.

Read about the milk taste tests conducted by the Westchester County Department of Health at Mildred E. Strang Middle School in Yorktown.

Read about Fitness Fun Day at Mohansic School, Yorktown in the North County News.

In April, the Irvington School District held an “Eat Smart” event that promoted healthy eating, physical activity and wellness.

In Yorktown, Mohansic School kindergarteners were treated to a healthy birthday celebration. See the birthday surprise!

Briarcliff Wellness Taste Tests Briarcliff Middle School Taste Test #2 Recipes

From the Rye Sound Shore Review;  March 2, 2007 Rye holds the mayo in fight against fat

Students at Columbus Elementary in Thornwood became members of the Columbus Fit Kids Cub Club

Read about Fit Kids in InTown Magazine's April 2007 Issue.

Lakeland elementary schools participate in No Junk Food Week.  Read about it in the North County News.

Orange County schools – our partners in Fit Kids of Hudson Valley -  participate in No Junk Food Week.  Read the press release.

Read about New Rochelle City School District’s plans for No Junk Food Week.

Read about Claremont School’s (Ossining) Kids in the Kitchen event.

Read about the grants awarded by the Rye YMCA’s Activate America coalition to Fit Kids schools.

Read about Walter Panas High School’s “Shape Up Panas Club.”

Read about Port Jervis Middle School’s health and wellness assembly .  Port Jervis Middle School is a Fit Kids of Hudson Valley school located in Orange County.

Read about Springhurst  Elementary School’s  (Dobbs Ferry) Fit Kids Month.

Daniel Warren Elementary School in Rye Neck has started a series of Fitness Workshops.  Find out about this program and other wellness initiatives at the school.

Read about RJ Bailey School's Community Service Day in The Journal News. (pdf)

Read about and see pictures of how the Osborn School in Rye chose healthy rewards.

Read about the Irvington school district’s celebration of NY Harvest for NY Kids.

Rye YMCA awards grants to Sound Shore schools to promote healthy kids initiative. Read the press release.

FitKids Campaign 2003/2004/2005/2006 - Read what the schools did for FitKids

More than 16 percent of children are overweight - that's more than double what it was in 1980.  Not only is this unhealthy, but it can result in more serious health problems at younger ages as well as when they become adults.  Poor eating habits are established during childhood.  Along with physical inactivity, poor diet accounts for at least 365,000 deaths among US adults each year, second only to tobacco use which causes 435,000 preventable deaths.  Overweight and obesity are now recognized to be at epidemic proportions.

To try to reach kids before they turn into coach-potato adults with high-cholesterol and diabetes, Westchester County Department of Health and County Executive Spano launched the "Fit Kids" campaign in March 2003.

As part of the campaign, Westchester County Health Department and the Communications Office have developed a step-by-step guide to help schools develop programs and plan activities in their schools that encourage kids to eat healthier and exercise more.  The guide was distributed to the county's 47 school districts in the hopes that they will develop programs that are appropriate for their communities.

 The guide instructs schools on how to improve the quality of foods offered in their cafeterias and how to start a Healthy Heart Committee made up of school staff, parents or any interested adult as well as plan activities that will raise awareness among young people.  Schools can hold "No Junk Food Days," in which vending machines are turned off or filled with healthy snacks.  Another popular event is a "10,000-Step A Day" challenge, in which kids are given pedometers to chart how many miles they can walk.  

Public health activities now need to focus attention on overweight, obesity and physical inactivity among our children.  Fit Kids will enable the health department to work cooperatively with our schools and park system to this address public health issue.

To help stop childhood obesity, click here to get the Fit Kids Resource Guide 2006