Tuesday August 28, 2012 <\/p>\n
PITTSFIELD <\/p>\n
Dr. Jacqueline Jones of Berkshire Pediatric Associates is partnering with The Nutrition Center to launch a new after-school kids cooking and nutrition education program in Pittsfield this school year. <\/p>\n
The partners are acting under a $12,000 pediatric grant it received from CATCH (Community Access to Child Health), a national program of the American Academy of Pediatrics. <\/p>\n
According to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health's Body Mass Index (BMI) screening data, 34 percent, or 2,559 children in the Pittsfield public school district are considered overweight or obese. <\/p>\n
BMI is calculated by using a formula that compares a person's height and weight with a set of BMI standards by gender. If a person's BMI number is above the 85 percentile, they are considered to be at risk of obesity; a BMI above the 95th percentile is an indicator of obesity. <\/p>\n
\"Learning basic cooking skills during childhood has been shown to lead to life-long behavior changes for better health,\" said Peter Stanton, director of The Nutrition Center. He holds a master of science degree as a registered dietitian and is a state-licensed dietitian\/nutritionist. <\/p>\n
The nonprofit Nutrition Center provides community-based-nutrition education, cooking classes and clinical nutrition counseling for better health and disease prevention. This summer, it opened a new office and moved its administrative headquarters from Great Barrington to Pittsfield. <\/p>\n
The <\/p>\n
\"[Obesity is] such a huge problem in our population. We want to give parents and kids tools to be healthy,\" said Jones. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Read the rest here: Tuesday August 28, 2012 PITTSFIELD Dr. Jacqueline Jones of Berkshire Pediatric Associates is partnering with The Nutrition Center to launch a new after-school kids cooking and nutrition education program in Pittsfield this school year. The partners are acting under a $12,000 pediatric grant it received from CATCH (Community Access to Child Health), a national program of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Continue reading
\nAfter-school program highlights cooking, nutrition<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"