Eating Healthy: FREE Mp3!! (Childhood Obesity)

HAPPPPPIEST of NEW YEARS!!!!!! and
HEALTHIEST of NEW YEARS, TOO!!!!!! 

By Debbie Clement

It's time to celebrate!! We made it!!!!! 2012! A new year!!
A new calendar. A new beginning. A new resolve. A new set of energies forward, toward improving our daily choices, our daily decisions, our daily activities. A new opportunity to begin all over again. Back to basics.
Are you willing? Let's do this together!!!!!!!

Today's Topic? Childhood Obesity. What can we do?

Have you made a list of resolutions for the New Year? For yourself personally? For your professional life? Now's the time to think through possibilities for the whole New Year ahead! Did you have a chance to read Dr. Ellaine's post from yesterday? That would be a brilliant follow-up to my post or a fitting prologue. She has such awesome insight. My take-away? Baby steps. Gradual change. Choose one area and f-o-c-u-s!!!!!! (Click back here for her insight and suggested links, or just keep reading + scrolling on down.)

Let's choose one thing to focus on first then we can move forward to what comes 2nd, after that we can begin to consider what comes 'next, then, and after' until we get to finally! [I took this photo a couple weeks ago at a conference where I was presenting and the article I wrote with the other photo-examples of 'foldables' included has become my number one viewed blog-post of all times -- in just a few short weeks! Click here to see the other foldable, 'graphic organizer' possibilities.]

Every conference I go to these days, has speakers addressing the topic and ramifications of the 'epidemic of childhood obesity.' I have recently heard several presentations -- including a keynote on this subject. One presenter used the analogy of a tsunami..... suggesting that America is about to be hit with a mammoth tidal wave of health related issues. The speaker highlighted concerns that as the younger, ever-so-much-more-sedentary generations age, our society will feel the long term effects of the health issues wrought by obesity.  While America may be leading at these issues, I'm certain these concerns are not specific to our borders.

What can we do? Start with an examination.
"We Are What We Eat!!!!" LOOK INSIDE:

How cute is this guy? Take a closer look at the many details!

Source: google.com via Debbie on Pinterest

According to the Center for Disease Control one preschool-aged child-in-7, of low income, is obese. They go further to cite that one-in-three children are 'over-weight' by the age of five. Click here for all of the specifics about how obese children are now establishing a lifestyle that will in-all-probability unfold into an entire lifetime of confronting such concerns as high blood pressure, diabetes and cardiac issues to name a few. All of these health issues are increasing at an alarming rate, all rearing their heads earlier and earlier in life. There are now 5 and 6 year old children with heart disease, a health issue which traditionally has been a concern some 50 to 60 years later in life.

Again, I ask you: WHAT CAN WE DO?
The obvious answer? We can get up + get moving!!! It's time to jump into action!
Get up off your chair! Get your feet up off the ground!!!!! Be an example. Be a role model!!

Source: rainbowswithinreach.blogspot.com via Debbie on Pinterest

CALL TO ACTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We ourselves in our personal lives, and we as educators and parents (and even wearing our grand-parent, coach and neighbor hats, too) need to get up and get the move on! We need to practise what we preach! We need to focus on this issue and focus on it right now!! This seriously needs to be priority #1. As a two-time survivor of early cancer diagnosis + treatment, safe-guarding our health hits very close to home for me. There are all sorts of studies underway investigating links between cancer and what we eat. Let me be the proverbial canary in the coal mine. The time is at hand for grasping the links between our diets and our health. This is a call-to-action on behalf of children everywhere!!! 

By example and by lesson plan! 
We need to get the kiddos in our lives up and going: jumping, grooving, marching, climbing, swinging, hopping, running, dancing, skipping, bopping, freezing, flapping, swinging, twirling, crawling, sliding, rolling, tumbling, scooting, stepping, swooping, whirling, swooshing ......... well you get the idea: MOVING!!! 



I am really going to put my money where my mouth is. I want to support you whether you are a teacher or a parent, a librarian, auntie, nannie, or an administrator -- whatever your role with children. I will email each and every single person who would like a copy of my original song, "Eating Healthy" as a Happy New Year encouragement to get your kiddos up and marching.

The chorus has a rousing, active march tempo. Get some pom-pom shakers!!!!!
Get those knees up high! March to the steady beat!! Get your heart pumping!!!!

          "Eating healthy, being healthy, that's the choice for me.
            Eating healthy, being healthy, yes ma'am, yes siree!
            Eating healthy, being healthy that's how I will choose.
            Eating healthy, being healthy, I'll be healthy, you be healthy, help me spread the news!"

I would really appreciate it if you would officially follow our collaborative blog here -- to keep you in the loop of hearing from all of our authors. When you let me know that you're 'following' I'll happily email you a copy of the Mp3 file. You may either leave your email address here in our comment section at the end of this post -- or you are welcome to send me an email with your request. My email address is in the contact tab located across the very top of the blog.

Debbie Clement's Pinterest pin-board collection: "EATING HEALTHY" (primarily vegetable related)

To further support your efforts at a healthier lifestyle, I have a Pinterest pin-board labeled, "Eating Healthy" with a couple hundred 'pins' of all sorts of delightful vegetable ideas like the little skeletal fellow above. The vast majority of pins are veggie ideas, but you'll find some glorious fruit concoctions as well.

Here's to making good choices, to determining what to do FIRST and then??????
Those three imortal marketing words, "JUST DO IT!"

                                      -- Debbie --
      Next month I'll tackle the issues of Children's Art:
                            Process vs. Product
   ****Editor's Note: It's ready! Here's that link, click here!

Debbie Clement is a sing/song-writer "music lady" having written over 100 original songs for children onto nine albums, known as 'Debbie's Ditties' by her fans of educators + libraians. She has a nationally DOVE award winning DVD entitled "Kweezletown" suitable for families with children of differing ages.

She is also the author/illustrator of three picture books based on her songs -- where the lyrics of the song become the text of the book and yes!!! The CD is included in the traditional hard cover picture book format, along with charts for the sign language and music notation to support the performance of the song/book! Look here for her RainbowsWithinReach family of products.

****I've added this post to the linky party at Thrifty Thursdays designed by a speech + language expert. Click here for other thrify blog posts at Playing with Words 365.  

****Thanks Beth, for your personal invitation to get this linked up over at Intentional Living. I've added it to your Linky #12.