Resources

This list of resources is not meant to be an all-inclusive list; rather, this list is a starting place for suggestions of materials that may be of benefit to your particular interest.

Table of Contents

• General Obesity Information
• Resources for Kids
• Resources for Adults
• Resources for Families
• Resources for Physical Activity
• Resources for Schools
• Resources for Taking Action in the Community
• Related Links
• Obesity Task Force Brochures and Materials

General Obesity Information

• The CDC's quarterly publication, Preventing Chronic Disease, published by the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, features leading research supporting healthy lifestyles.
• The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity includes a press release, the report, fact sheets on overweight and obesity, and online resources from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Resources.
• CDC's Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity provides information and resources on ways to improve dietary quality to support healthy child development and reduce chronic disease, increase health-related physical activity for people of all ages, and decrease prevalence of obesity through prevention of weight gain and maintenance of healthy weight.
• The Mayo Clinic provides up-to-date information on obesity and chronic diseases. Experts provide the content and provide answers to common questions about obesity, nutrition, and health.

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Resources for Kids

• Infant and Toddler Nutrition from the CDC brings together existing information and practical strategies on feeding healthy foods and drinks to infants and toddlers, from birth to 24 months of age.
• MyPlate Kid's Place has games, activity sheets and videos on healthy eating for kids.
• KidsHealth from Nemours offers a variety of activities for children of all ages, including recipes, quizzes and computer games.

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Resources for Adults

Nutrition Education

• SNAP-Ed Connection published by the United States Department of Agriculture provides wonderful health resources including information on meal planning, shopping and budgeting, physical activity, and nutrition apps and games.
• The Alabama Cooperative Extension System offers information on topics such as reading food labels, understanding the "MyPlate" concept, shopping tips, healthy recipes, and much more.
• The Dietary Guidelines for Americans provides advice for making food choices that promote good health, advocate a healthy weight, and help prevent disease.
• MyPlate carries the messages and dietary guidelines to make Americans aware of the vital health benefits of simple and modest improvements in nutrition, physical activity and lifestyle behavior.
• Emotional eating is the practice of consuming large quantities of food - usually "comfort" or junk foods - in response to feelings instead of hunger. Learn more at Improving Your Eating Habits.
• WebMd contains a variety of information on healthy eating and fitness. Search this site to learn about portion sizes, Body Mass Index, healthy recipes, and evaluate your diet.

Portion Control/Reading Food Labels

• The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics helps you become a smart shopper by learning to read food labels.
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition - How to use the nutrition facts on food labels.

Wellness

• Scale Back Alabama (SBA) is a free, statewide wellness program for adults, ages 18 or older, designed to encourage Alabamians to get healthy and have fun while doing it.
• American Heart Association recommends walking for a healthier lifestyle.

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Resources for Families

Breastfeeding

• The United States Breastfeeding Committee is an independent nonprofit coalition of more than 40 nationally influential professional, educational, and governmental organizations, that share a common mission to improve the nation's health by working collaboratively to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.
• American Academy of Pediatrics has breastfeeding information online, including fact sheets, national campaign strategies, and resources.

Child Nutrition

• Let's Move, an initiative of First Lady Michelle Obama, is America's move to raise a healthier generation of kids.
• We Can! Ways to Enhance Children's Activity and Nutrition provides parents, caregivers and communities with information to help children maintain a healthy weight.
• CulinarySchools.org provides information on health and nutrition for kids, including a list of healthy food choices and tips on how to maintain a good attitude toward fitness and weight.
• Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) report, Marketing Junk Food to Kids and Pestering Parents, identifies a plethora of ways that companies target kids in their homes, in their schools, on the web, and wherever else kids go.

Smart Food Shopping

• Tip Sheet: Healthy Eating Starts with Healthy Food Shopping - The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Obesity Guidelines suggests you can reduce the time you spend cooking healthy by using a shopping list and keeping a well-stocked kitchen.

Preparation, Skills, and Easy Recipes

• The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Cooperative Extension's Recipe Central offers tips on cooking healthy, economical meals at home.
• Food and Health Communications provides free recipes that are high in fiber, low in fat and sodium and are based on whole grains, vegetables, beans and fruit. They are easy to make using common ingredients and best of all they are well-tested and taste great.
• Healthy for Good from the American Heart Association is an online cookbook that lets you search for heart healthy recipes.

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Resources for Physical Activity

• The ADPH Nutrition and Physical Activity Division and the iChoices Wellness Program present Healthy Activity for Everyone, a video series showcasing short workouts devoted to arms, abs, legs and the total body.
• The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans provide science-based information concerning the health benefits of physical activity, types and amounts of physical activity recommended for your health, ways to be more physically active, and ways to reduce risks of activity-related injury.
• American College of Sports Medicine's mission is devoted to public awareness and education about the positive aspects of physical activity for people of all ages, from all walks of life.
• The Community Guide's systematic review of the effectiveness of selected population-based interventions designed to increase levels of physical activity focused on interventions in three areas: informational approaches to increasing physical activity; behavioral and social approaches to increasing physical activity; and environmental and policy changes to increasing physical activity.
• Get Moving Alabama is an initiative of the Alabama Obesity Task Force promoting physical activity to improve health and quality of life. 

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Resources for Schools

• The Alliance for a Healthier Generation works with schools, community organizations, healthcare professionals, and families to empower kids to develop lifelong healthy habits. The Alliance provides information on the prevalence of childhood obesity, how to live healthier, and how to take action.
• WellSAT: 3.0 Wellness School Assessment Tool reflects new USDA school food requirements and allows school officials to assess the quality of their school district's wellness policy.
• The CDC provides information on using the School Health Index for self-assessment and planning tools to improve school health.
• Team Nutrition serves as a clearinghouse of information on the components that should be considered when establishing a school wellness policy. Examples of policies already developed by schools and state agencies are provided as resources and references. These policies are not endorsed by USDA nor do they represent a comprehensive list. They are provided to enable schools to have a variety of examples for local policy development.
• Action for Healthy Kids (AFHK) is a nationwide initiative dedicated to improving the health and educational performance of children through better nutrition and physical activity in schools. This effort represents a response to our nation's epidemic of overweight, sedentary, and undernourished children and adolescents. Healthy schools produce healthy students and healthy students are better able to learn and achieve their true potential.

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Resources for Taking Action in the Community

• The Building Healthy Christian Communities Training Manual (1.5 MB) is designed to reach and teach community leaders who have the desire to address the rising incidence of Obesity in the state of Alabama. The manual contains step-by-step planning, implementation, and evaluation information utilized to coordinate the successful Relay for Health and Wellness program for five years.
• To get physical activity and nutrition on your local agenda, follow the steps taken at The Community Toolbox. The Community Toolbox is a service of the Work Group for Community Health and Development at the University of Kansas and a source of information for community-building techniques with more than 7,000 pages of practical guidance in creating change and improvement.
• CDC's online journal, Preventing Chronic Disease - Public Health Research, Practice, and Policy, is a peer-reviewed, electronic journal providing a forum for public health researchers and practitioners to share study results and practical experience.

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Related Links

• ADPH Nutrition and Physical Activity Division
• American Association of Retired Persons Healthy Living
• Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
• Obesity Task Force Brochures and Materials
• CDC Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity
• Have a Plant
• National Association for Health and Fitness
• National Center on Physical Activity and Disability
• National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
• National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

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