Focusing on Food for Children

I saw an excellent presentation at WAPL called "Focusing on Food for Children's Programs at Public Libraries." (Our own Kymberley Pelky was part of this panel, and she did a great job!) The session focused on combining food and kids at the library.

One of the panelists, Jill Camber Davidson, is a DPI Nutrition Education Consultant. Jill shared some imperative information about food allergies, obesity and sanitation. The timing couldn't be better as many of you are gearing up for your summer programs. She asked questions such as,

Do your current storytimes interfere with lunch or dinner? Do you have alternatives in case of food allergies? Are there ways to "reward" kids with non-food rewards? Is there a way you can limit food as props?

In her presentation, she also shared the following:
* Approximately 10 percent of 2-5 year-olds and 16 percent of 6-19 year-olds are overweight, and the percentage rate is near 25 among black and Hispanic children.

* The American Academy of Pediatrics says that children under 4 years old, often due to choking hazards, should not eat:

hot dogs
nuts and seeds
chunks of meat or cheese
whole grapes
hard, gooey or sticky candy
popcorn
chunks of peanut butter
raw veggies
raisins
chewing gum

* As far as handling food and sanitation, hand washing is the most important. As far as "anti-bacterial" sprays or hand gels, Purell is the ONLY one that is FDA approved, but hand washing is still your best bet. Batches of food should also be kept at room temperature for two hours maximum.

She also listed several websites that might be helpful.
DPI Nutrition Education Page
Fighting Bacteria
USDA Team Nutrition Web Page
Action for Healthy Kids

Jill was kind enough to email me her PowerPoint presentation! Please let me know if you would like me to send it to you.

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